Technology business newsletter (2-pg, 11 x 17)

Selena Gomez and
Justin Bieber in
McAllen
Selena Gomez was staying at
the Renaissance Casa De
Palmas, McAllen, Texas while
performing at Border Fest last
March 7-8, 2014. During her
stay her former boyfriend and
pop star Justin Bieber joined
her. While there Justin Bieber
tweeted their location to his
fans and chaos ensued. So
many fans showed up and
surrounded the hotel that local authorities had to secure
the hotel.
ISSUE: second quarter 2014
Vesta Associate/SCAD Student Art Hangs at the Best Western
Ceili (Kaylee) Hering has been a Guest Service Representative at the Best
Western Savannah since October 2013. During their recent lobby renovation
the General Manager, Jeff Fouste, was in search of photography of Savannah’s Forsyth Park when Ceili mentioned that she had taken some photos of
the fountain at the park for a project at SCAD (Savannah College of Art &
Design) where she attends school. Her work was impressive and now it
hangs on the wall behind the Front Desk giving the hotel guests an amazing
view of one of Savannah’s Historic sights when checking-in.
Vesta Times
Great Teams, Great Experiences, Great Results
this issue
President’s Message P.1
A baseball team and a stray dog check-in to a hotel...
The Milwaukee Brewers made the Staybridge Suites Glendale, AZ home during baseball’s spring training
season but this year they have a special guest, a stray dog named Hank.
The Brewers arrived on February 17 and a stray pooch wandered on to the team's complex in Phoenix,
Ariz., looking a little roughed up. Team employees took him to a veterinarian for a
checkup and bath. The vet spotted a tail injury and some gray markings around his
right hind leg, a sign that he may have been run over by a vehicle.
The Brewers quickly took in the dog and named him Hank after baseball great Hank
Aaron, who began his career in Milwaukee. And no bones about it – the unofficial
mascot has been treated like a Hall of Famer ever since.
Associate Spotlight P.1
The Vesta Wheel in Action P.2
Vesta Tidbits P.2
Kudos & Congratulations P.3
Celebrating Team Spirit P.4
President’s Message
In March, Vesta Hospitality hosted our annual General Managers & Directors
of Sales conference (details on page 3). I always look forward to this event. I
enjoy getting our teams together, but this year I was particularly excited about
seeing the Vesta team assembled . There were times when I sat back and
observed everyone’s interactions. I was keenly aware of the vast experience
in the room, the years of service in the hospitality industry and with Vesta. I
also noticed a high level of motivation and eagerness with this group. They
were all sharing hotel success stories, brainstorming new ideas, and troubleshooting areas of improvement. The dedication to the Vesta Mission, Vision,
and Values was exceptional! The personal commitment to set goals, stop at
Rick Takach
President, CEO
nothing to achieve them, and share in their success was very inspiring. Every
year after the Vesta Conference is over, I leave with a reminder that Vesta Hospitality is lucky to
have the greatest team of individuals in our industry. These individuals possess an entrepreneurial
spirit that second to none. They bring success to their respective hotels, Vesta, and to them personally.
At almost halfway through the year, our hotels are exceeding expectations. Keep up the fantastic
work and have a great summer!
Vesta Times second quarter 2014
Vesta Principle: We create an atmosphere in which associates feel empowered, add value to our
company, and make a difference.
Vesta Hospitality Associate Spotlight
Sondra Pauly is a bartender/server at the Country Inn & Suites Hotel Portland Airport and has been
with the hotel for 11 years. Sondra’s dedication and commitment to her work and to the company
shines through. Her customer service, team work and professionalism are one of a kind: to prove it,
Sondra was recently presented a Silver Pin Award by Carlson Hotels as recognition for the excellent
comments received by guests.
When asked what Sondra likes about working for the Country Inn & Suites, she said that it has been a
rewarding career. She also stated that she is proud to be part of a team that continues to work closely
together, and appreciates their willingness provide a helping hand whenever necessary.
Sondra’s favorite part of the Vesta Mission is to provide Great Experiences. Working in the restaurant for the past 11 years has given her the opportunity to provide great service that many restaurant guests have come
to expect; the surprise on their face when she remembers their names,
what they like to drink and how the prefer their meal is priceless and a
perfect example of the Vesta Mission.
Sondra lives in Portland and commutes by public transportation an hour
each way to work. She is first generation German American so German is
her first language. She loves spending time with her German heritage
parents when they are in town. Sondra enjoys vacationing in Palm
Springs where she can swim and relax by the pool, her favorite activities
outside work.
Sondra Pauly
(360) 737-0442
Vancouver, WA 98660
900 Washington Street, Suite 760
Vesta Tidbits
After 5 years of managing the
Homewood Suites by Hilton in La
Quinta, California, Vesta’s Rick
Takach and Pathfinder Partners
out of San Diego, CA have officially purchased the hotel.
Takach is pleased to add the
hotel to our portfolio of hotels that
are not only managed by Vesta
Hospitality but also owned.
Vesta Wheel in Action: Our Guests
Holiday Inn Lincoln Problem Resolution Scores
Soars Above Brand
One of the goals for the front desk team in Lincoln was increasing their guest problem resolution scores. The hotel implemented the H.E.A.R.T (hear, empathize, apologize, react,
and thank) method of dealing with problems. The new program worked increasing their GSS scores to a level they never
have been at before. In the month of April their Problem Resolution score was 65%, nearly 20 percentage points ahead of brand average.
La Quinta Maintenance Team increase service scores
Homewood Suites La Quinta
On May 1, 2014, Vesta Hospitality assumed the management
contract for the Downtown
Shreveport Hotel in Shreveport,
Louisiana. The 191 room hotel
has close to 6,000 square feet of
meeting space and boasts a restaurant and bar. The hotel will be
undergoing a renovation to be
converted to a Holiday Inn full
service hotel.
The maintenance team at the Homewood Suites La Quinta
had a goal for the first quarter of 2014 to increase the
SALT/Service score for the Fitness Facility by 5 from the
final quarter of 2013. The score actually improved from
50.0 to 57.1. Richard and his team replaced the television
cable, thereby improving reception. They also replaced the
motor of the tread mill which had not been running up to
par and began checking the fitness facility twice a day as
opposed to one time per day as they had done previously. This extra visit enables the team to check to see and fix
any fitness equipment that might become unplugged or
hindered from top notch operation in some other way.
The InnVested Career Guidebooks and training tools are used
at every Vesta hotel for all new
associates, beginning second
quarter all associates will fill out
an InnVested survey upon completion of their guidebooks. This
survey will help our Training Development team to evaluate the
success of the program and determine improvement opportunities. InnVested is designed to be
a fluid type program and easily
changeable to adapt to new
trends.
Vesta Hospitality hosted their annual leadership conference in
Tucson, Arizona. The event was packed with exciting events, a
trade show with supplier booths, and presentations over the
week of March 25-29, 2014. The conference attendees included the General Managers and Directors of Sales from all Vesta
owned and managed properties as well as some select guests.
The conference started with a welcome reception and a
presentation on the growth and development of the company.
The attendees had the opportunity to visit supplier booths and
talk with representatives, there were planned team activities,
entertainment, and presentations given by team members as
well as outside speakers.
The key note presentation was “Shift Happens” which was also
the theme of the conference. The presenter was James Feldman who is the owner of the name and logo “Shift Happens”.
Jim is a keynote speaker, innovator and consultant who shifts the way you think, the way you do business, the way you
deal with change and the way you deal treat your customers. Jim was a very entertaining presenter and the day went
quickly. The GM’s and DOS’s left with great takeaways on incorporating the message into their professional lives.
Thank you to our conference sponsors: Awards Dinner Sponsor – Tradavo; Gold Sponsors – Swisher, Guest Supply, Eco
Lab, American Hotel Register; Silver Sponsors – HBO, Royal Cup, Proctor & Gamble, Sobel Westex, Hotel Systems Pro,
HD Supply, Interline Brands, Inc., Buy Efficient, ProfitSword, Quore
Shift Happens!® name and logo used with the permission of the owner, James Feldman.
Vesta Wheel in Action: Financial Responsibility/Our Revenue
McAllen F&B Department Focuses on Hitting Goals
Downtown Shreveport Hotel
Vesta Hospitality Hosts Annual Leadership Conference
2013 Vesta Recognition Awards
The Food & Beverage managers and staff at the Renaissance Casa de Palmas in McAllen
continue to monitor the purchasing guidelines for liquor as well as monitor the pouring costs
in so much detail that they experienced a 2% drop in bar cost month over month.
Guest Satisfaction Awards – Staybridge Portland, Comfort Suites Redmond, Homewood La Quinta, Homewood Vancouver
In addition, they have implemented a strict staffing guideline that has proven to be successful as they continue to outscore the brand in restaurant scores which in April was 78.9%
versus the brand 70.2%, a difference of + 8.8%. And their food quality current score of
64.1% versus the brand 59.0%, a +5.1% difference.
Accounting Team of the Year – Staybridge Suites Glendale & Holiday Inn Express Glendale (shared team)
Most improved RevPar Index Award – Holiday Inn Express Glendale
Most improved profit margin – Country Inn & Suites Portland
Associate Satisfaction – Best Western Savannah & Holiday Inn Express Glendale
F&B Team of the Year – Holiday Inn Lincoln
Shreveport HGI Achieved Their Food Cost & Dinner Quality Goals
The Kitchen and Restaurant “wheel
goal” at the Hilton Garden Inn Shreveport was to achieve budget food cost of
31.0% for the first quarter, not only did
they hit their goal they surpassed it ending the quarter at 29.7% cost of
food. Another F&B goal was to increase
dinner quality and service over the
brand average. The hotel was proud to
finish the month of March at 100.0%.
Front Desk Team of the Year – Best Western Savannah
Housekeeping Team of the Year – Holiday Inn Express Glendale
Maintenance Team of the Year – Homewood Suites Vancouver
DOS of the Year – Tracie Red Elk, Homewood Vancouver
GM sales leadership award – Kari Jonassen, Homewood Vancouver
GM of the Year – Kari Jonassen, Homewood Vancouver
Hotel of the Year – Holiday Inn Express Glendale
Hotel of the Year Award, Holiday Inn Express Glendale, AZ—pictured left
to right: Julie Hale, General Manager/Staybridge & HI Express; Brianna
Fischer, Director of Sales; Rick Takach, President Vesta Hospitality;
Oscar Urcino, Hotel Manager, Holiday Inn Express