forty years of best practices

1
BortvYearsof Best Practic T his issue marks the 40th anniversary of the initial publication of the Cornell H.R.A. Quarterly.The Cornell Quarterly opened for business in May 1960 withvolume 1, Number 1, but a change in our publication schedule nearly ten years ago means that there is no longer a May issue. Conse- quently, we mark the 40th anniversary withvolume 41, Number 1. hotels included U-service restaurants. Thus, the Cornell Quarterly then and now examines not only the lodging and food-service industries, but also the vast panoply of the travel and tour- ism industry and its ancillary topics. Dean Meek’s mission statement has held up well over the journal’s 40 years of publication, even though the inter- pretation of that mission has changed It is entirely fit- ting that this issue continues the examination of the best practices of the lodging industry, because the section on best practices continues the 40-year tradition of providing valu- able information that was estab- lished with the Cornell Quarterly5 first issue. As we have pointed out pre- viously on these pages, that first issue contained a mission statement enunciated by the founding dean of the School of Hotel Administration, Howard B. Meek. That mission rings as true today as it did in May 1960: . . to provide a forum for the serious discussion of the problems and progress of the hotel industry; to re- port without abridgment the ideas of leaders in the field; and to bring to all hoteliers the results of investigations and studies by Cornellians and other researchers.” In examining that mis- sion statement, one must remember that in 1960 the operations of most over the years When Cornell were chiefly full-service properties located in urban centers. But the era was ending when hotels were central-city entertainment centers hosting radio stations and house bands. The automobile industry had blossomed during the 195Os, shift- ing the traveling public away from rail. By 1960 Dwight Eisenhower’s inter- state highways were under construc- tion, and Kemmons Wilson had already been selling Holiday Inn franchises for five years. More to the point, however, the indus- try started focusing on management and marketing strategy-and so did the Cornell Quarterly. One of the earliest series of articles (which eventually became a book) was C. Dewitt Coffman’s Marketingfor u Full House, which offered an early blend of mar- keting concepts and merchandising techniques. Co&an’s writing is em- blematic of the shift that was occurring in the industry, as it changed from techniques and tactics to management and strategy. Although a “full house” remains an excellent goal, today’s mar- keting managers seek to maximize revenue through market differentiation and revenue management, regardless of occupancy percentages. Marketing is not the only topic that the Cornell Quarterly has examined during its publication run. Another one is computer applications.The hotel school’s faculty members in the 1960s were early proponents of what was then known as electronic data process- ing. A particularly groundbreaking (but, sadly, premature) study involved the card-reader system at the New York Hilton’s front desk. In that in- stance, the concept of what computers should be able to do was far ahead of the equipment’s capabilities. Comput- ers have long since supported the kind of automated check-in envisioned by the Hilton’s original managers, of course, and now we are limited only by our imagination in ways to apply “electronic data processing.” As a concluding note, I commend the authors of the three forward-looking articles found in this issue: D;iniel Connolly, Chekitan Dev, Michael Olsen, Ken Greger, and John Peterson. Writing about the industry’s future prospects is always a challenge, but I am confident that readers will find these articles to be thought provoking. U CURNEIL HOTEL AND RESTAURANT ADMINISTRATION QUARTERLY February 2000 l 3

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BortvYearsof Best Practices T his issue marks the 40th anniversary

of the initial publication of the Cornell H.R.A. Quarterly.The Cornell Quarterly opened for business in May 1960 withvolume 1, Number 1, but a change in our publication schedule nearly ten years ago means that there

is no longer a May issue. Conse- quently, we mark the 40th anniversary withvolume 41, Number 1.

hotels included U-service restaurants. Thus, the Cornell Quarterly then and now examines not only the lodging and food-service industries, but also the vast panoply of the travel and tour- ism industry and its ancillary topics.

Dean Meek’s mission statement has held up well over the journal’s 40 years of publication, even though the inter- pretation of that mission has changed

It is entirely fit- ting that this issue continues the examination of the best practices of the lodging industry, because the section on best practices continues the 40-year tradition of providing valu- able information that was estab- lished with the Cornell Quarterly5 first issue.

As we have pointed out pre- viously on these pages, that first issue contained a mission statement enunciated by the founding dean of the School of Hotel Administration, Howard B. Meek. That mission rings as true today as it did in May 1960: “ . . to provide a forum for the serious discussion of the problems and progress of the hotel industry; to re- port without abridgment the ideas of leaders in the field; and to bring to all hoteliers the results of investigations and studies by Cornellians and other researchers.” In examining that mis- sion statement, one must remember that in 1960 the operations of most

over the years

When Cornell

were chiefly full-service properties located in urban centers. But the era was ending when hotels were central-city entertainment centers hosting radio stations and house bands. The automobile industry had blossomed during the 195Os, shift- ing the traveling public away from rail. By 1960 Dwight Eisenhower’s inter- state highways were under construc- tion, and Kemmons Wilson had already been selling Holiday Inn franchises for five years.

More to the point, however, the indus- try started focusing on management

and marketing strategy-and so did the Cornell Quarterly. One of the earliest series of articles (which eventually became a book) was C. Dewitt Coffman’s Marketingfor u Full House, which offered an early blend of mar- keting concepts and merchandising techniques. Co&an’s writing is em- blematic of the shift that was occurring in the industry, as it changed from techniques and tactics to management and strategy. Although a “full house” remains an excellent goal, today’s mar- keting managers seek to maximize revenue through market differentiation and revenue management, regardless of occupancy percentages.

Marketing is not the only topic that the Cornell Quarterly has examined during its publication run. Another one is computer applications.The hotel school’s faculty members in the 1960s were early proponents of what was then known as electronic data process- ing. A particularly groundbreaking (but, sadly, premature) study involved the card-reader system at the New York Hilton’s front desk. In that in- stance, the concept of what computers should be able to do was far ahead of the equipment’s capabilities. Comput- ers have long since supported the kind of automated check-in envisioned by the Hilton’s original managers, of course, and now we are limited only by our imagination in ways to apply “electronic data processing.”

As a concluding note, I commend the authors of the three forward-looking articles found in this issue: D;iniel Connolly, Chekitan Dev, Michael Olsen, Ken Greger, and John Peterson. Writing about the industry’s future prospects is always a challenge, but I am confident that readers will find these articles to be thought provoking. U

CURNEIL HOTEL AND RESTAURANT ADMINISTRATION QUARTERLY February 2000 l 3