IHI HNN May 2025 Issue

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HOSPITALITY NETWORK NEWS

Doiran Kavanagh MIHI, appointed General Manager Brooks Hotel

There’s been plenty going on at the IHI over the last couple of months.

We held three Lunch & Learn Series including; ‘The Role of Coaching in Leadership’, ‘Personal Branding for Impact ’ and ‘How to be an Effective Mediator’. All excellent webinars with great takeaways.

We also had the privilege of attending our first college visit to DkIT Department of Hospitality Studies for a College to Career Event.

It was a fantastic experience, and we were joined by our members Deirdre Buckley, Alan Rooney MIHI and Patrick Mc Namara, who generously shared their valuable advice and insights with the students.

The morning seminar wrapped up with a great opportunity for students and members to network.

Sincere thanks to Maria Roddy-Freyne MIHI Kevin Burns and Lorraine Dunne for their hard work in organizing such a successful eve

A Munster Chapter Event was also held at the vibrant and stunning Montenotte Hotel in Cork

Attendees heard from guest speaker Pau Charles, CEO of the PC Agency. Paul shared insights on “What’s Trending: The Latest Outlook for Travel and Tourism.

WELCOME to our New Business Partners

The For-Sight CRM Platform is a marketing and hotel engagement solution designed to provide you with insights into your guests' behaviour and preferences, and to allow you to adopt a proactive approach to your marketing strategy. From building relationships and loyalty with your guests to making the most of upselling and direct booking, the solution can help you enhance each guest's stay to its full potential.

It allows you to understand your guests, deploy targeted campaigns for direct bookings, and boost revenue opportunities by delivering a personalised experience across the entire guest journey. For-Sight technology equips you with automation features, which are a substantial asset to ensure that all your guests receive the right message at the right time. For-Sight brings together data from your PMS and other core transactional hotel systems (Booking Engine, F&B, spa, Wi-Fi...) to create a central source of truth for each guest and their journey through every hotel touchpoint.

With For-Sight, we don't just sell our software and leave you to it. We support you with account setup, training sessions and educational resources so that you have the tools to use For-Sight to its full potential. For more information visit www.for-sight.com.

IHI President’s Dinner

15th May

Forbes Street by Gareth Mullins

IHI Annual General Meeting

15th May

Link to be shared

Munster Chapter Summer BBQ

June 12th

Aghadoe Heights Hotel & Spa

Leinster Summer BBQ

June 19th

The Croke Park Hotel

Webinar: Managing Customer Data From Awareness to Advocacy

14th May

13:00

Link to be shared

For more information on any upcoming event, please email cynthia.oneill@ihi.ie

Burren Amber Executive Recruiters are an established brand that focuses on connecting top hospitality and retail clients with the best available candidates in the market.

Burren Amber are a team of hospitality professionals whom were extremely successful in their field prior to joining and now utilise their in-depth industry knowledge to best understand both client and candidate’s needs.

We supply the hospitality industry from Hotels, Restaurants, and Bars including Corporate Catering Companies nationwide offering permanent solutions for your recruitment needs. Should you require assistance please feel free to contact us today.

, assuring your best interests at all times.

www.burrenamber.ie

Robbie Bailey

(01) 404 7141 (086) 042 8963 robbie.bailey@burrenamber.ie

Starting today, fans can catch Bellboy shelling out Hotels.com tips and catchy jingles on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube and on the site and app. Over the coming weeks, Bellboy will begin appearing in Hotels.com’s marketing globally.

Savvy Travel Tips

Here are a few of Bellboy’s favorite hotel hacks:

Be the first to know when prices drop: With Hotel Price Alerts, abrand-new feature on the Hotels.com app, track hotel prices and get alerts when they drop.

Work the loyalty angle: It’s no secret; members get all the best deals. On Hotels.com, there are thousands of member deals up to 20% on the site. Plus, members enjoy richer savings during big sales and earn rewards on every stay.

Get treated like a VIP: Members enjoy complimentary perks like food and beverage credits, room upgrades and free parking when staying at VIP Access properties – an exclusive group of top-rated hotels known for exceptional quality and service. Gold and Platinum members also earn extra rewards from VIP Access bookings, up to 6%.

Spontaneous savings: No need to plan; procrastinators, “Type B” travelers and impromptu getout-of-towners can always find a last-minute deal up to 20% on Hotels.com.

Download the Hotels.com app and don’t miss out on big hotel savings now through May 26. About Hotels.com® (or Hotels.com™)

The Hotels.com® app makes it easy with almost one million places to stay around the world. So, whether you’re looking for value in Vegas, treehouses in Thailand or villas with views, it’s all just a search away. Now with One Key™, their comprehensive rewards program, get rewarded beyond hotels – earn and then use rewards on eligible flights, vacation rentals, and more on Expedia and Vrbo®. Members save 10% or more at select hotels when signed into the app, and Silver, Gold and Platinum members receive perks at select VIP Access™ properties, such as food and beverage discounts.

© 2025 Hotels.com, LP, an Expedia Group company. All rights reserved. Hotels.com and the Hotels.com logo are trademarks of Hotels.com, LP. CST# 2083949-50 # # #

For more information use our mobile app or visit hotels.com. Follow Hotels.com on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook and X. Media contact: press@hotels.com.

*Book by 5/26/2025 11:59 pm in hotel property local time. Stay between 4/17/2025-9/30/2025. Member Prices are available to Hotels.com® app users and One Key members. Limited availability, blackout periods may apply.

OneKeyCash is not redeemable for cash and can only be used on Hotels.com®, Expedia®, and Vrbo®.

Optimising for AI Overviews: Boost Your Hotel’s Visibility

Are you aware of Google’s new, game-changing update: AI Overviews?

This exciting feature is reshaping the search landscape by providing users with quick, AI-generated summaries directly in the search results. But what does this mean for your hotel’s visibility in search engines? And how can you adapt your digital marketing strategy to ensure your hotel stands out in this new search environment? Read on to find out.

What are AI Overviews?

AI Overviews are Google’s newest feature designed to streamline the search experience. These AIgenerated summaries pull content from various trusted websites to give users a quick, concise answer to their search query – without needing to click into individual sites. It’s all about speed, simplicity and surfacing key information in seconds.

What does this mean for organic traffic?

While AI Overviews aim to make browsing more efficient, there’s been concern around how they may impact organic web traffic – especially for original content creators. The fear? Fewer clicks to your website.

Google has responded by refining how these summaries work. They now include clearer links to source content, helping users dive deeper when they want more detail. But as this feature continues to evolve, it’s crucial that your hotel’s content is structured to remain discoverable.

Best ways to optimise for AI Overviews

To ensure your hotel stays visible in this new landscape, a strategic content update is essential. The goal? Position your content so it gets picked up by these AI-driven summaries.

Bracken Court Hotel Enhances Efficiency and the Guest Experience with CBE PixelPoint

Bracken Court Hotel, part of the esteemed Moriarty Group, is well-known for its exceptional service, hospitality, and its prime location in Balbriggan, Co. Dublin. The four-star hotel, offering 66 spacious rooms, a gourmet restaurant, bar, and extensive conference facilities, is a popular destination for both leisure and business guests. As the hotel continued to grow and expand its operations, it became clear that a more modern, flexible, and user-friendly point-of-sale (EPoS) system was required to keep up with the increasing demands of the business

Bracken Court Hotel recently upgraded their systems to CBE PixelPoint, a cuttingedge EPoS system that has since transformed its operations. The decision to move to CBE PixelPoint was driven by the system’s user-friendly interface and advanced features, which offered the hotel improved capabilities for managing complex transactions, guest promotions, and discounts. According to Yvonne Moriarty, Hotel Operations Director at the Moriarty Group, the move was required to make things run a little smoother at the hotel:

“We’ve always worked with CBE and have been using their systems for a long time. Moving to CBE PixelPoint was a great decision. It’s so much more user-friendly, and the ability to manage promotions, discounts, and sales directly into the right accounts has made a real difference to our efficiency. The system is perfect for our needs, and we’re really happy with how it’s working.”

The system’s capability to handle complex promotions, such as dining credits, comped bills, and percentage-based discounts, directly within its platform has allowed the hotel to offer customised promotions without delays or errors. Integration with the hotel’s Property Management System (PMS) ensures precise sales recording, eliminating discrepancies and improving financial oversight

The hotel’s introduction of tablets for ordering has also transformed service efficiency, enabling staff to take orders swiftly without being tethered to traditional tills and also ensures no hand written dockets in the kitchen which helps to further protect food margins. The Clerk function enhances control by requiring proper authorisation for processing zero-cost items, such as Table d’Hote inclusive dishes or inclusive breakfast orders, further ensuring accurate financial management.

The system’s intuitive design has been another standout feature. Firstly it allows for real time change, if an amendment is made on the back end a simple push button operation now communicates that change to all tills immediately eliminating the need to perform an open on all tills. Its user-friendly interface allows staff to navigate effortlessly and to customise screen backgrounds and configurations for added convenience. Management can adjust settings easily, making the system adaptable to their varying needs. This flexibility extends to tailoring setups for different areas of the hotel, such as unique settings for the function room and bar, ensuring smooth operations across all spaces.

CBE PixelPoint also integrates seamlessly with the hotel’s internal floor plans, aligning the system with the physical layout of the property. This feature enables real-time tracking of guest occupancy and outstanding tables, for better service flow and guest satisfaction. Staff can quickly identify and address outstanding orders, improving efficiency and minimising wait times. Yvonne says, “I genuinely love it. The flexibility, ease of use, and ability to adapt settings as we need have all made a huge difference.”

In addition to CBE PixelPoint, the Bracken Court Hotel introduced VoCoVo communication headsets for ground-floor and kitchen staff. These headsets have significantly improved internal communication, allowing staff to address stock shortages, delayed orders, and other updates instantly.

The support provided by CBE throughout the transition has been excellent. “There’s a lot to be said about creating relationships, and we have that with CBE”. As an Irish company with local support staff, CBE’s quick and reliable service has strengthened the partnership further. “Their customer support is so quick and reliable. Even when emailing hospitality support, we’re not waiting 24 hours for a response.”

Confident in the benefits delivered by CBE PixelPoint, Bracken Court Hotel is already exploring plans to expand its use acr operties within the Moriarty Group The system’s adaptability and CBE’ e it will continue to meet the hotel’s evolving needs as the business gr

The David Fitzgerald Graduating Class of 2025

This March, we welcomed students back to the Shannon College campus from all across the Globe, to celebrate one last time together as a class

It has been an incredible pleasure to watch you challenge yourselves throughout your journeys here at the college, each one so unique

We are immensely proud of your incredible achievement’s thus far, and can’t wait to see just what the future holds for you!

For now, we thank you for being part of the student body, we welcome you as part of the Shannon alumni, and we encourage you to reach for the stars #keepthecontact

Shannon College Hospitality Skills Development Course

Do you have, or know someone who has an interest in pursuing a career in the industry? An interest in studying a Hospitality Management course, obtaining part time summer work, or upskilling?

We are delighted to be running our 3rd ever Hospitality Skills Development Course! This one day course will take place on Saturday 17th May on our Shannon Campus at a cost of €50 pp

This course will allow you the opportunity to meet likeminded people, make new friends and networks, explore the world of Hospitality as well as gain some valuable skills for part time work This is the perfect step for you if you are considering studying a degree programme at Shannon College of Hotel Management or pursuing a career within the Business and Hospitality Industry

Each student will be immersed into the world of hospitality, discovering the art of Food & Beverage and Rooms Division as well as seeing first-hand what it is like to be a student at Shannon College of Hotel Management.

Get involved in team building, quizzes, graduate talks and much more!

This is perfect for anyone between the ages of 16 and 18 or in TY/5th year. To register, follow the link... https://www.universityofgalway.ie/shannoncollege/courses/hospitalityskillsprogramme/ You will receive further information via email in the coming weeks.

We hope to see you there!!

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