The CIS Software of Hotels - Essay Example

Computers Systems. Rydges has incorporated sophisticated new technology in maximizing on its potential. The hotel information systems consist of software encompassing property management systems ("PMS"), sales and catering systems ("S&C"), central reservation systems ("CRS"), and customer information systems ("CIS"). The restaurant information systems consist of hardware and software for point-of-sale ("POS") and operational applications, and a suite of back office applications, including inventory, labor, and finance management, revenue management systems ("RMS"), an Internet based hotel reservation service called myfidelio.net (formerly named hotelBANK), and installation and support services associated with the various product sets. The PMS software provides for reservations, guest accounting, sales and catering applications, travel agent accounting, engineering management, and interfaces to central reservation and global distribution systems. The S&C software enables hotel sales staff to evaluate, reserve and invoice meetings and related events for a property. The CRS software allows hotels to coordinate, process, track, and analyze hotel room reservations at a central facility for electronic distribution to the appropriate lodging site. Advatanges: The CIS software allows hotels to efficiently capture and track relevant information of guests. The RMS software allows hotels to manage room rates, occupancy, and the mix of business between corporate and transient customers. The software systems run on PCs. MICROS also offers an Internet based hotel reservation service through its subsidiary called myfidelio.net. This subsidiary's service enables corporations, tourist representation services and consumers to create room reservations directly with Rydges hotel thereby bypassing third party reservation systems. MICROS market its hotel products under the MICROS-Fidelio brand name. The systems run on industry standard Intel-based PCs. Accounting Software. The adoption of a complete software suite called Opera has led to efficiency in terms of customer relation's management. (CRM). Opera includes modules for property management, central reservations, customer information systems, sales and catering, revenue management, and quality management. Opera is designed to run on PCs and large PC based servers. All the products are designed to share a common Oracle database. Opera will run under these three operating systems: Microsoft Windows(NT, 2000 and XP), IBM AIX, and Sun Solaris. The Opera software suite is deemed an important product line for Micro's continued growth in the hotel information systems market. The next generation product for European users of Fidelio Version 6.0 and 7.0 is Version 8.0, which is currently being developed in Hamburg, Germany. This product contains certain Internet based features and utilizes the Windows operating system with an Oracle database. Advantages Of GenaRes Engine: Rydges web site is "Powered by GenaRes," thus gaining seamless access to the hotel's central reservation system, providing real-time rates, availability and reservation booking capabilities to web site visitors. GenaRes' Internet booking engine system enables hotel companies to quickly and effectively implement Internet booking capabilities into their web sites without making expensive technology investments. Internet Booking Engine (Companies) are not all the Same Besides the obvious differences in the actual look and feel of the booking engine, there are many things to consider when selecting a company to provide this technology. Every hotelier wants to see GDS reservations move from expensive travel agent driven, airline system bookings to their own hotel web site and that is evident with Rydges Five Star Hotel. However, for the foreseeable future, they will continue to play a dominant role in online travel bookings. GenaRes not only provides great hotel booking engine technology, but also provides a single, easy-to-use, browser-based system that gets you into the GDS travel channel, and lets you manage it from a single entry point. Market Segmentation. The Purpose of Market Segmentation In marketing, market segmentation is one of the essential tools employed by Rydges hotel in order to commercialize its products and services towards a particular group, or 'market.' Technically defined, market segmentation is the process of subdividing the market into groups of customers that behave in the same way or have similar needs, wants, and tastes. Market segmentation provides companies and firms with information about a particular sector in the consumer society that will best fit a services or product's image or a segment that will subsist to a particular group or sector. In this respect however, Rydges uses a multiple-product strategies, this is to say differentiated marketing is applied in order to assign a particular image to the product that best caters the women, men, or children, or any particular sector in the consumer society. There are various kinds of market segmentation, according to consumer characteristics. These segments are demographic segmentation, either by age, gender, race/ethnic membership, socioeconomic status, and social/family influences. Other segments include geographic segmentation, wherein consumers are identified and divided into particular groups. Promotion Hotel Rydges has the Promotions Committee that relentlessly continues to produce the quarterly newsletters, brochures, T-shirts, the media outlets as a promotional tool and also not forgetting the electronic promotion that employs pop-up windows and through the hotel's homepage. Meetings of the Promotions Committee have been held via teleconference. The Promotions Committee again encourages all members to consider innovative ways to promote Rydges and to share them with others by submitting ideas and suggestions through the Chair of Promotions. Offline marketing has worked as good as online promotions. Rydges has also adopted Online Internet Hotel Booking Engine GenaRes. Every hotel wants (and needs) its share of the growing online reservations business. As the online travel reservations market developed, that meant getting reservations through someone else's web site or sales channel. Usually, that means Internet travel sites that market themselves as 'you', so that they can get your booking and charge you a travel agent commission, simply because their web site could be found easier than yours (if you had one). Taking Charge of Online Marketing Message also means that Rydges have an opportunity to take charge of online hotel reservations transactions. For a small flat fee per reservation, regardless of the amount of that online reservation, GenaRes' booking engine technology allows the "close the sale" on Rydges hotel web site. Online travelers expect to book real-time, e-mail correspondence that may take hours, if not days, is simply going to cost your hotel business. GenaRes' Hotel Booking Engine Technology Sets Free Spend hotel marketing budget driving online reservations traffic to your web site. Affiliation. Rydges Hotels and Resorts is part of the Australian Owned and Operated 5 star rated joint that is located on Exhibition Street, in the heart of Melbourne's vibrant theatre district. With an immediate benefit from it's $5.5 million refurbishment with AA. Rydges elegantly charms business and leisure travelers alike. The hotel now offers even more convenience, with facilities that are truly second to none. With the entire first floor of the hotel now dedicated to conferencing, inclusive of five conference rooms, Rydges has positioned itself as the hotel for Conferencing in Melbourne CBD. With the completion of two business centres within the hotel, featuring Telstra Wireless Hotspots, its obvious that Rydges is taking the corporate market very seriously. Corporate clients have no reason but to appreciate the new deluxe rooms complete with movies on demand, stylish armchairs, ottomans, dedicated workstations (for the truly dedicated), and broadband connectivity available through either the customer's laptop or the television. References: Dunphy D (2003). The Sustainability of Organizations, In Subir Chowdhury (ed) Organization 21C Financial Times Prentice Hall, USA Dunphy D (2001). 'Sustainable development'. Broadcast on Ockham's Razor, Radio National with Robyn Williams. 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