Caesars Hospitality Research Summit: Panel Discussion on Revenue Management

The Caesars Hospitality Research Summit at University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) also hosted a panel discussion entitled “Emerging Trends and Issues in Revenue Management.” Overall, it was an interesting discussion, but I still have a question in mind which the panel did not address.

To me, the key concepts of revenue management include forecasting, market segmentation, room (seat or space) allocation, and price discrimination. The panel briefly covered some of those areas. One clear message I heard from the panel is that the industry is in great need of qualified revenue managers who know some hotel operations, have a general business background, possess good statistical and analytical skills and communication skills, and demonstrate leadership potential. The panel would love to recruit more hospitality students to fill in the revenue management positions, but very often, they end up hiring students with a business background. There seems to be a gap between what the industry is looking for and what training/education hospitality programs provide to the students. Overall, the panel agrees with one of our previous discussion on revenue management.

Another buzz word I heard from the panel is “social media.” As I am interested in revenue management and doing research on social media, I “must” ask the panel how they see these two concepts tie in together. I assume that the “open” environment in social media would make it more difficult to exercise price discrimination strategies. While the panel suggested that social media may help a company estimate demands and better communicate with their target customers with clearer “price restrictions,” I still fail to see how social media will directly enhance the practice of revenue management. More exactly, I have difficulty figuring out what could be the research questions if I am asked to initiate a research project that ties social media and revenue management together. If anyone comes up with a research question about social media and revenue management, please leave me a comment. I very much appreciate that.

Relevant discussions:
Revenue Management: Are You Ready?
From Yield Management, Revenue Management to Profit Management
Revenue Management: Are Your Guest and Staff Educated?
Fees: A New Revenue Stream for Hotels?
What Are Your Pricing Strategies?
What Is Your Decision in Managing Room Rates under Unexpected Circumstances?
Yesterday’s discussion on the Research Summit: Las Vegas as the Technology Hub

References:
The picture was downloaded from the UNLV Library website.