The New Kid with Grown Up Ambitions
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Transforming the guest experience at Ormond Group’s hotels WRITTEN BY
WILLIAM SMITH PRODUCED BY
KRISTOFER PALMER
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ORMOND GROUP
Ormond Group’s CTO Julian Wong guides us through the technological solutions being implemented in the group’s hotels and the benefits that guests are enjoying
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n recent times, one-size-fits-all hotels are facing competition by locations that can cater to a specific type of customer.
Ormond Group is a Malaysia-based hospitality business which operates 13 hotels under its Tune 04
brand. With locations in Malaysia and the UK, its business model has undergone a change in response to an evolving market, taking it from a no-frills budget hotel chain where most amenities were add-ons to a more inclusive basic hotel model. Accompanying this change in its existing properties, the organisation is launching two new hotel brands in the coming months: MoMo’s, a social hotel brand featuring micro-rooms and fun communal spaces, and Ormond Hotels - its flagship boutique brand for the contemporary traveler looking for simplified luxury. Following the debut of both brands at the end of 2019, The Ormond Hotel will open in Dublin in 2021 while a MoMo’s and Ormond will open on a dual brand site on Flinders Street in Melbourne in 2022. Julian Wong, Chief Technology Officer for Ormond Group, has overseen the digital transformation
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SABRE HOSPITALITY SOLUTIONS: TECHNOLOGY FUELS EVERYTHING WE DO Ormond Group’s comprehensive digital transformation required the expertise and technology from established solution providers and chose to leverage on Sabre Hospitality Solutions’ industry-leading SynXis platform to propel their brand into the future. Built with evolution in mind, the platform generates a comprehensive overview of the traveler, allowing hoteliers to create a more personalized experience, and enabling revenue optimization at every touchpoint during the guest’s journey. This was exactly what Ormond Group was looking for, making their partnership with Sabre a natural fit.
EMPOWERED BY INNOVATION Migrating towards cloud technology was central to Ormond Group’s strategy, and Sabre’s innovative SynXis Central reservation systems (CRS) provides Ormond Group a single source of cloud-based solutions to put their unique distribution strategy into action. Reaching the broadest points of distribution in the industry, the versatile and scalable CRS now provides Ormond Group with the capability to drive higher direct bookings with SynXis Booking Engine and MetaConnect. A sound technology transformation also requires an optimal distribution strategy. Impressed with Sabre’s unparalleled connectivity with online travel agencies (OTAs), linking them to over 450 online channels across the globe, SynXis provides Ormond Group with a robust and reliable solution to support their operations, and ensure their rooms are available to the world’s leading OTAs. With SynXis CRS, Ormond group is also able to manage rates, inventories and descriptions on the Sabre’s Global Distribution System (GDS), enabling them to sell rooms to travel agencies worldwide.
ONE PLATFORM “Sabre’s SynXis platform is the technology partner hoteliers rely on to optimize distribution
and deliver millions of personalized experiences that maximize revenue with one hospitality platform,” said Frank Trampert, Managing Director & Chief Commercial Officer, Sabre Hospitality Solutions, APAC. “To this end, SynXis seamlessly connects with 120 property management systems as well as revenue, content and customer relationship systems. Because of this, data can be shared easily and simply, taking advantage of synergies and reducing costs,” he added.
PROVEN RECORD Serving more than 40,000 hotels, resorts and chains across 174 countries, Sabre Hospitality has pedigree in the hospitality industry. Having facilitated over 130m total annual bookings, driving room revenue of $25.2bn, Sabre Hospitality is trusted by Ormond Group and firms large and small to maximize value and optimize the process of hospitality distribution. Sabre Hospitality’s SynXis is the platform of choice for hospitality properties undergoing a digital transformation. “We partnered with Sabre Hospitality Solutions for their leading SynXis platform,” said Julian Wong, CTO of Ormond Group. “This forms the core of our hotel systems, working hand in hand with PMS and CRM to drive our business strategy – increasing direct bookings, enabling personalization, streamlining our operations and providing a superior guest experience.”
FRANK TRAMPERT
Managing Director & Chief Commercial Officer Sabre Hospitality Solutions
ORMOND GROUP
“As a group, we want to provide what is essential to our guests and look at ways of optimising the human touch, not removing it” — Julian Wong, Group Chief Technology Officer
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CLICK TO WATCH : ‘ORMOND GROUP’ 09 taking place across its current and
Tune is a limited service hotel, focused on
future locations.
the 5 essentials – a 5-star bed, hot power shower, cleanliness, 24-hour security
INFRASTRUCTURE
and finally high-speed wifi. Therefore we
For modern hotel guests, technology is
really needed to ensure that our WiFi
often the first thing that comes to mind
infrastructure could stand up to that
upon their arrival. “We realise that the
promise. After review, Ormond Group
most important priority for any guest is
employed the services of Ruckus
reliable and fast wifi,” says Wong. “That’s
Networks to provide a high quality,
normally the first thing that guests ask for
reliable service to its guests. “Ruckus
when they check into a hotel. ‘What is the
is a proven technology and the support is
wifi password? How do I log in?’” Owing
excellent,” says Wong. “In terms of speed,
to that, one of Wong’s first tasks was
our results show that Ruckus is the best
ensuring that network infrastructure was
option. It gives us peace of mind for the
fit for purpose in Ormond’s hotels. “As
next five, six, seven years.” w w w.o rmo ndho te ls . com
ORMOND GROUP
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Forming good relationships with
requirements is key to providing great
guests is vital in the hospitality industry,
service.” To manage its room bookings,
and Wong has implemented customer
Ormond Group partners with Sabre
relationship management (CRM)
Hospitality to leverage its SynXis Central
systems to better understand Ormond
Reservations system. Completing a trio
Group’s guests. “We went through
of core hotel systems is the property
a lengthy evaluation for all our systems,
management system (PMS), vital for
and picked Cendyn CRM,” he explains.
organising things such as maintenance
“One of the most important parts of our
and personnel. For its PMS systems,
data collection is knowing our guests.
Ormond Group relies on Opera by
In the hospitality industry, understand-
Oracle. “Every question that we asked
ing our guests’ needs, wants and
Oracle with regards to Opera, they
responded back very quickly. They even took the trouble to come onsite to do workshops with us to ensure that we utilize fully all of Opera’s features. We’ll continue to work closely with Oracle to ensure Opera’s implementation in our new brand hotels.” Operating in unison, the three systems help to implement the group’s goals, such as increasing direct bookings, better understanding guests and streamlining hotel operations. To complement its food and beverage operations, Ormond Group deploys the Agilysys InfoGenesis point of sale (POS) system across its various hotels, interfacing with PMS and allowing
E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE
Julian Wong Julian joined the hospitality industry when he was hired as IT Manager for the pre-opening of Le Meridien Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia. He was promoted to Regional Director of IT for Southeast Asia at hotel chain Starwood Hotels and Resorts, where he had over 45 hotels and resorts under his stewardship. Julian moved on to join Tune Hotels Group, which, as of August 2017, is now known as Ormond Group following completion of the Marriott/Starwood merger.
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MODERNISE THE GUEST
EXPERIENCE...
…with consistent point-of-sale performance whether on fixed terminals or mobile tablets. Optimsing food & beverage operations demands a flexible, enterprise class point-of-sale system.
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Copyright ©2019 Agilysys NV, LLC.
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guests to seamlessly perform a room
include phones in rooms, leading to many
charge directly to their room folios.
of our guests having to go to the front desk for any basic information required.
EXPERIENCE
Now our guests can do so in the comfort
Aside from ensuring the smooth oper-
of their room, via a chatbot. Providing this
ation of its hotels, Ormond Group has
basic information via a chatbot also
found numerous opportunities to trans-
means we will never require manpower
form the experience of guests through
resources to man phones – allowing the
technology. One such initiative has
hotel ro run a lot more cost efficiently. To
resulted in the ongoing trial of an AI
date, on average, we’re getting about
chatbot. “We’ve been trialing the system
30 to 40 chats a day from guests, and
for six months in our airport hotel. As
if an unusual question is asked, staff can
a limited service, short stay hotel, the
take over the conversation in real time.
very bold decision was made to not
It helps improve our guest experience.” w w w.o rmo ndho te ls . com
ORMOND GROUP
C O M PA N Y FACT S
• Ormond Group has 13 hotels under its Tune brand, with locations in Kuala Lumpur, India and the UK • Ormond Group is launching two new hotel brands in the coming months: MoMo’s and Ormond Hotels
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ORMOND GROUP
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17 Wong faced some challenges in
especially to a company based in
making sure that the benefits of digital
Southeast Asia and at the mercy of
transformation were understood
currency fluctuations. “When it comes
throughout the organisation. “It’s very
to Malaysia, for example, the cost is
hard to show an immediate return on
four times more than it is in America
investment with IT systems – it’s different
once you factor in forex rates. This puts
from selling rooms,” says Wong. “If I sell
some things out of our reach. Based on
a room at $200 and my cost is $100,
the challenges that we have dealing
my ROI is $100. It takes a long time to
with vendors in terms of cost, we have
realise the value of putting, say, $1mn
evaluated the cost of hiring developers
into an IT system.” Wong is clear that
in Asia, developing a system and getting
such investments do bear fruit, even if
it up and running and it would still be
their effect is not immediately obvious.
cheaper than buying from Europe,” he
It can be the case, however, that some
comments. “We would love to look into
solutions are prohibitively expensive,
any possibilities of developing our own w w w.o rmo ndho te ls . com
ORMOND GROUP
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“ In the hospitality industry, understanding our guests’ needs, wants and requirements is key to providing great service” — Julian Wong, Group Chief Technology Officer
hospitality tech in the near future to overcome the various challenges we have, especially when it comes to cost feasibility.” It is clear that Ormond Group is a company with both ambition and a clear idea of the technological solutions needed to achieve its goals. Under the stewardship of Wong, there is a sense that Ormond Group’s digital transformation journey is far from over. Equally, however, as the company embarks upon the opening of its new brands, it is the pride the company takes in the hospitality it provides that is propelling it onwards: “As a group, we want to provide what is essential to our guests and look at ways of optimising the human touch, not removing it,” says Wong. “Our strategy isn’t to invest in hardware that can date quickly, but to stay focused on software that can enhance our guests’ experience rather than distract from them.”
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Ormond Group Ground Floor ECM Libra Building Damansara Heights 50490 Kuala Lumpur T +60320825799 www.ormondhotels.com