Back in the 1970s, the first hotel property management system was introduced. However, till the present time, not all hotel has one. A survey conducted on hotel management system in 2015 discovered that:
- only 34% of hotels used special software;
- 25% of hotels still depend on paper-based format; and
- 16% of hotels had no management system at all.
Hence, it can be deduced that there are still many hotels with a non-proper management system of which do not fulfill the criteria of a modern hotel. Thanks to the new-age trends in technology that has been a blessing to the hotel industry. The revolution of technology in the front office department has empowered hotel front desk staff to be more efficient, productive, and guest-centric.
Property Management System (PMS)
The PMS is the hotel front office management system. As a computerized system, it facilitates routine functions of all the hotel business departments and effectively organizes functions between them. Check out here to find out more on hotel PMS and its importance.
Core PMS Modules
Based on the PMS provider, the combination of modules and functions might differ. Nevertheless, it is necessary for every hotel PMS to integrate its reservation system with a booking engine and front-desk operations module. Other must-have modules for hotel PMS include channel management, revenue management, housekeeping, customer data management, report, and analytic. Point-of-sale (POS) services and back-office modules are surely essential for major hotels and resorts.
Major Front Office Modules
Reservation module
The reservation module holds guests’ room status update, delivering valuable guests’ information to the hotel front desk. It is crucial that the reservation system is incorporated with a booking engine and distribution channels.
Room module
The room module lets the staff manage hotel rooms as it updates the real-time room status. By controlling future room availability, it guarantees that during hotel check-in all guests will have their rooms ready.
Guest accounting module
The guest accounting module keeps data regarding payments and transactions made by hotel guests. It tracks specified guests’ credit limits and provides adaptability through separate, multiple folio formats. At checkout time, for further reference, previously authorized outstanding account balances are automatically transferred to a suitable file.
General module
The general module generates the reports of various individual modules like guest transactions, human resource module, energy management system, call accounting system, capacity management, POS, and electronic door locking system.
Choose Your PMS Wisely
There is continuous advancement of technologies in the hotel industry, introducing new functions and modules to automate daily hotel operations. A well-chosen hotel PMS can work wonders for your hotel business. Your hotel can increase occupancy by selling more rooms, get more direct bookings, reduce overbooking, and definitely save a considerable number of man-hours.
To ensure that their products stay relevant to changing technological requirements in the hotel industry, hotel PMS providers are adding new features. Hotels are able to attract more guests and increase revenue through smart hotel PMS that works closely with futuristic solutions like artificial intelligence, robots, and virtual reality.
