Property Management System (PMS) – Computer systems that mange a variety of task.

*A hotel PMS manages a guest’s check-in and check-out cash transactions at the front desk, outlet / ancillary transactions, reservations, housekeeping, night audit, and other tasks.

 

*PMS’s by nature differ greatly. Due to the wide variety of hotels currently in the market place, PMS’s have evolved to meet the differing array of needs.

Factors that influence the type of PMS: Conduct a needs analysis Need Analysis - Is a process where hotel

owners and senior managers determine the required scope of their PMS needs. The documents are exactly what process a particular hotel will require from its PMS.

Factors such as hotel size, product type, location and target market affect this analysis.

The appropriate software should be secured   PMS Software- Is a computer program

designed on a particular programming platform. There are several PMS’s on the market currently that operate on different software platforms.

Example: • Older PC systems are MS-DOS based• Newer PC systems use a Microsoft Windows™

platform• Other software platforms are available in Linux • Still others are written specifically for Apple

computers.

*The functionality of the software platform is important when selecting the PMS

Questions the decision makers should ask themselves:

-“How easy is the system to learn?”-“Does it do everything I need it to?”   Consider the requisite hardware needs

Hardware – Is understood to be the actual machine the software runs on. The

software itself often dictates the hardware needs. The chosen software will require specific processing speeds and memory capability of its hardware.PMS Workstation - the areas where an employee or manager can access the PMS. The end users of the chosen configuration are the hotel employees and

managers. Each PMS workstation will include software, hard ware and computer monitor.

 Consider the aesthetic impact of the hardware

* PMS workstation will need to be placed in many areas of the hotel. The workstations are most often located in front office (at the front desk; behind the front desk; in reservation, PBX, and accounting). However additional workstations are generally needed at the bell stand, concierge desk, in housekeeping, and at various outlets throughout the hotel.

* A PMS network also referred to as LAN (Local Area Network) allows each station to communicate with the other. This communication is vital, as hotels must know the status of their facility in real time. That is, every PMS station will know the status of every room and every guest.

The PMS station will show a room as checked out as soon as the front desk employee completes the transaction. The house keeping department will instantly realize that they have another room to clean. Once the room is cleaned, the front desk will immediately determine that they have another room to sell. The efficiencies created by PMS networks are very valuable in maximizing revenue.

*PMS’s are more than communication tools. They can also be thought of as extensive databases. They store guest information and preferences. This information is valuable because it enables a hotel to target its marketing effort. PMS’s capture demographic and other information on each guest. Direct mail, newspaper, and other forms of advertising media are much more effective when targeted to a specific demographic or region.

Most PMS’s are organized based on a series of menus. Within the PMS, the guest account tracks all the data that pertains to an individual guest. The guest account contains two separate menus they are:

 The guest registration menu – contains all

the pertinent information garnered from the initial reservation during the stay (i.e., name, arrival, room preferences, method of payment, and other miscellaneous information).

The guest accounting menu – will be used to track all credit/ debit transactions related to the guest’s stay.

Guest Registration Menu* Each PMS will contain this information in some

format. Though the order and verbiage may differ, the following list the information contained within the registration menu:

Required Field MeaningGuest Name: Name of individual's accountArrival Date: Date Check-inDeparture Date: Date of checkoutAddress: Address of guestPhone: Phone of guestReservation Status: This field is unique inm that it lists different information on one line. A guest's

reservation status will indicate two things: (1) Prioir to check-in, it will indicatewhat type of reservations was made; (2) After check-in, it will list the status of the guest's stay. Prioir to check-in the reservation status line will list a (G) for aguaranteed reservation or a number (4 or 6) which would indicate a non-guaranteedreservation (i.e., 4 or 6 P.M. hold). Once the guest has checked-in, the reservations line may indicate (I), which means they are in-house. An (O) would indicate they cheaked out. (D) would indicate a deleted reservation, which might happen if the guest cancels the reservation, or there was an obvious error in the reservationitself (i.e., duplicate reservation).

Required Field MeaningRoom Number: Actual room assignedRoom: Lists the room type, configuration, and designationRoom Rate: Actual rate paidRoom Status: Lists the curremnt room status of the room reserved (i.e., V/R, O/D)Method of Payment: Cash, check, credit, or direct billingBilling Method: EPO (Each Pays Pwn), SRT(Sign Room and Tax), SAC (Sign All Charges). Note, some

PMS's may combine billing method and mnethod of payment on the same line likethis: CA/EPO (Cash/ Each Pays Own) or CC/SRT (Credit Card/Sign Room and Tax),etc.

Guest Loyalty #: Frequent stay program numberFrequent Flier #: Airline incentive partnershipSpecial Requests: Early/late check-in or checkout request for an update, etc.Comments: This field s generally a " free form" field that lets front desk personnel communicate

to one another regarding a specific guest. This field may be used to notify the front desk that the guest ha s mesage waiting, or that a credit card has expired.

Market Code: The market code is used to track the accuracy of the guest room rate.

* The guest accounting menu will contain a limited amount of information relating to the guest’s reservation. Its primary purpose is to document every financial transaction relating to the guest. Each time a charge is posted, a credit issued, or a payment made, it will be reflected in this display.

Required Field Meaning

Guest Name: Name of individual's account

Arrival Date: Date of check - in

Departure Date: Date of Checkout

Room Number: Actual room assigned

Payment Method: Cash, check, credit, or direct billing

Reservation Status:Lists the current room status of the room reserved (i.e., V/R, O/D)

*The remainder of the accounting menu summarizes the financial transaction of the guest. Each transaction is issued a line number so that the record is easy to follow. The date of the transaction is also recorded. A reference space is usually provided as a free- form cell for any additional information needed to a document the transaction.

* For the front desk, the PMS is used continuously to check guest in and out of the hotel. This process, as has been reviewed, is crucial in effectively managing room inventory. It also a very good way to illustrate the operation of a PMS. This section illustrates the check- in of a walk - in guest, that is, a guest with no prior reservation.

The following series of PMS screens shows step by step what information is needed to check in walk - in guest.

  Step 1 is to identify the arrival and departure

information, and if need be, verify with management the availability of sleeping hours.

Step 2 is to identify the room type the guest prefers. The agent should do their best to match the guest’s room preferences with what is available.

  Step 3 is to use the PMS to determine what available

rooms in the hotel inventory match guest’s room preferences.

Step 4 is to assign a specific room number based on what PMS indicated was available.

Step 5 is to determine the tax status of the guest. If the guest works for agencies of the government, or certain not-for-profit organizations, he or she may be tax exempt.

  Step 6 is needed to determine method

of payment.  Step 7 In this step, the front desk agent

is able to make notes relevant to the guest for other employees. Because this guest is paying by check, a good practice is to note the check number in the registration menu. Also, this disabled guest may need assistance later, so another note was made.

Step 8 is to gather personal identification information, such as name, address, phone, and company name, if applicable. A driver’s license or some other proper form of identification should be shown.

Step 9 is to verify the rate market code. Every rate in the rate structure is assigned a market code in PMS. This code is read by the system and the company determines the appropriate rate. The market code is needed to serve as a “check and balance” to the sleeping room rate assigned. The market code must match the rate. This needed to uncover any possible fraud by front desk employees (e.g., reducing a rate for a friend).

Step 10 is the final step. The rate is typically assigned at the same time a market code is issued. However, because this was walk-in, and the walk-in rate changes, this rate was assigned last.

Registration card- summarizes much of information contained in the guest registration menu of PMS. The information on the card is used to verify the accuracy of that information in PMS. Arrival/departure information, spelling of the guest’s name, and assigned rate should be reviewed by the guest to ensure that both parties understand and approve the transaction. The registration card is the successor to the hotel registration book, or log. Prior to the advent of computers, hotel guest would “sign in” to verify that they were actually staying at the hotel. Arriving guest should sign the registration card as they would the hotel log.

Each PMS menu contains specialized information and reporting capabilities for a specific rooms- division area. Several of these menus lead the user to even more specialized menus and reporting options. The organization of these menus and their interrelationship is called a PMS hierarchy.

 A front office menu can then lead the user to

other menus, namely: Reservation menus Registration menu Night audit menu Housekeeping menu Uniform services menu

* Each of these menus, based on their position within the hierarchy, requires a specific level of authorization for access.

 * A PMS hierarchy starts with the most

broad menu (front office) and narrows its scope as each menu gets more specific.

* As the illustration showed, each rooms division areas was allowed access to only the options it needed to get the job done.

The PMS must be able to communicate with other hotel computer system in order to maximize efficiency.

The point of sale (POS) system may also be running on different platforms. In an automatic posting environment, a similar process of “passing along” occurs. Outlet/ ancillary charge data is given to the PMS. The difference between this and the information shared from the reservations system is that this information is passed along and posted to the guest account immediately. This is to ensure that the guest does not check out prior to paying for all incurred charges.

PRESENTED BY: MARY GRACE V. MANCAO

MAE BLANCH L. VILLOCERO