Tour of the Sheraton Syracuse University Hotel & Conference Center, Oct 2011

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Sheraton Syracuse University Hotel & Conference Center is located right in the heart of the SU campus. The property is owned by SU and managed by Starwood Hotels and Resorts. Recently, it is finishing up a $5 million renovation. I am glad that my Hotel & Resort Operations class and I had a chance to hear about the renovation experience from the hotel executives and see the results of their hard work.

We all enjoyed the tour. I, in particular, liked the bigger-size and a more-modern-look Club Lounge, the more spacious workout room, and the clean design of the guestrooms. I believe that these changes reflect Sheraton’s vision very well under its system-wide $6 billion “revitalizing the brand” campaign.

I also very much appreciate the fact that every executive shared their work experience and advice with us. There are many takeaways from this tour, some of which can be found in my discussion of our previous tours. Here, I would like to highlight that regardless which executive position a person holds, s/he must know what is going on in the market, e.g. new laws and regulations, market trends, events, the directions that the competitors are moving to, and etc.

If you went on the tour, what are your takeaways? If you did not go with us, have you stayed in a newly-renovated Sheraton Hotel or Resort recently? What do you think of Sheraton’s campaign of revitalizing the brand?

Discussion of the Previous Two Tours:

The pictures show a corner of the Club Lounge and the workout facility. Want to check out more pictures about this tour? Please visit the album on my Facebook Page (don’t forget to Like my page when you are there).
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