Independent Hotels Support
An Independent Hotel is a hotel that is independently owned and run. … Basically all of the hotels which are not related to a hotel chain are considered ‘independent’. They might sign up to so called ‘voluntary chains’, meaning they remain independent but adhere to the standards and requirements of a bigger brand, for example Best Western.
These standards and requirements generally relate to brand standards, quality of service, marketing and purchasing. They do not relate to financial operating standards and controls
The finance departments of large hotel chains are run very strictly with Standard Operating Procedures in place which must be followed. There are also regular checks, or audits, to make sure that hotels are complying with company standards. This reduces the risk of serious financial mismanagement being overlooked.
This is not usually the case for independent hotels. Finance procedures vary from hotel to hotel. It is generally very much dependent on the experience and back ground of the Finance Manager.
Hospitality Audit Services can help independent hotels implement controls and procedures to the standards of the large hotel chains, for example Hilton, Marriott or IHG. We audit a lot of branded franchised and managed hotels and have a great deal of experience working with some of the largest and most prestigious hotels throughout the UK and Europe. We can bring this experience to benefit independent hotel owners
We can help write robust operating procedures and work with finance teams to implement them.
All large hotel operators use management accountants to carry out monthly checks on profit and loss accounts and Balance sheets. This is an area that some independent hotels do not regularly review.
One other area where independent hotels are at a disadvantage to larger hotel chains is with continuity of service if a senior member of the finance team resigns. Large companies can cover this by bringing in support from another hotel. Independent hotels do not have this option
Hospitality Audit Services can help by providing short term interim support so that controls and the reporting function are maintained until a new employee is in place. We will then train the new employee so that they are not spending the first few months learning new accounts packages and processes
Hospitality Audit Services can offer the following support to Independent Hotels;
• We can help you write Financial Standard Operating Procedures
• We will work with your Finance Team to implement these procedures
• We will regularly review your hotel, checking that both Financial and Operational controls are in place and are being followed
• We can provide monthly Profit and Loss and Balance Sheet reviews
• We can provide Finance training
• We can provide on-site interim finance support
• We can provide support to current finance employees including mentoring
We offer these services as part of a yearly support package. One off requests, for example the writing and implementation of operation procedures, would be negotiated separately
This is a bespoke service and each hotel will have different requirements so we would always initially discuss fully the requirements of the business and then issue a detailed proposal and costing.
If you would like further information or a chat, please get in touch through our ‘Contact Us’ page
