Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - (Page 20) 20 News H&MM September 1, 2008 | HotelMotel.com www.HotelMotel.com/digital_edition Industry mourning Continued from page 1 ness and personal success, Porter’s real skill was his ability to connect with people, his friends and colleagues said. During his time at IHG, Porter led a team of executives who revamped the Americas operation. He did so by building quality relationships with franchisees and becoming a true industry leader. “People always knew he took an interest in how they felt and thought,” said Tom Corcoran, president and CEO of FelCor Lodging Trust and chairman of the American Hotel & Lodging Assn., who forged a friendship with Porter throughout his career. “He shaped people’s careers and made a strong impact with his ability to be a great people person. That’s a real skill.” Under Porter’s leadership, IHG acquired its sixth brand, Candlewood Suites, and launched its seventh brand, Hotel Indigo, one of the industry’s first branded boutiques. He was instrumental in 2007’s relaunch of Holiday Inn, a historical brand that many thought was in desperate need of change. “He was what saved Holiday Inn,” said Rick Takach, chairman of IAHI, a 3,000-member group of IHG brand owners. “He will be remembered as an individual who was passionate about IHG and the role he played in the industry.” But, Takach said, Porter would not want to be remembered as a successful businessman. Instead, Porter focused more of his energy on being a family man. Because his role in the industry required a great deal of travel, industry peers spent many trips getting to know his wife, Francey, and their two sons, Charlie and Steve Jr., as they accompanied Porter on trips. “It seems like wherever I was, Francey and Charlie were there,” Takach said. “We were in London one time for a chairman’s trip, and here come Steve, Francey and Charlie. They had just returned from Dubai.” “Everyone knew of his passion for his boys,” Corcoran said. “They say people are family guys, but Steve lived with his family as part of his career. He found that really good balance.” Prior to joining IHG, Porter worked with Hilton Hotels Corp., starting in 1990. He held roles of increasing responsibility and was, at one time, responsible for overseeing the management of nearly 350 hoRead full tributes from friends and colleagues at tels and more than 40,000 www.hotelmotel.com/porter. employees. P began his ca- reer in the hospitality industry in 1976 with Stouffer Hotels. “Steve saw himself as a hotel person from the very beginning,” Corcoran said. As the industry mourned the loss of a veteran, friends and colleagues sent tributes to Hotel & Motel Management. Here are some excerpts: Andy Cosslett, CEO, InterContinental Hotels Group: Steve was an Holiday Inn for the upcoming brand relaunch. Steve was certainly a leader in this effort. My hope is that Steve’s untimely passing will be a source of motivation for IHG and the licensees to complete this long awaited journey and, in so doing, add a piece to Steve’s fantastic legacy of leadership and service to our industry. Jay Fishman, principal, Associated Hotels: This has been a dif- Q2 reports Continued from page 1 are in record territories, consumer confidence is down and developers are having difficulty getting financing for new projects.” Interstate Hotels & Resorts is one of many companies pushing back its forecasts, reducing its fullyear RevPAR forecast to 1-percent to 3-percent growth and its forecasted EBITDA from wholly owned hotels by $2.5 million, because of disruption from two renovation projects and the economy. Interstate looks at these two metrics heavily, with “RevPAR being the driver for management fees and EBITDA [as] our scorecard with our owners and [as] our best indication of internal growth and our availability to fund our future growth,” said Leslie Ng, chief investment officer for Interstate. “We have begun to see some softness in the leisure/ Ng discretionary INTERSTATE transient business and, to a lesser extent, group business.” This decrease shows the effects not only for Interstate, but also for much of the industry. “Ultimately, it’s a function of fewer travelers (unwilling to pay more) to stay in hotels, which is a byproduct of the economic environment,” said Robert LaFleur, an analyst with Susquehanna Financial Group. The loss of guests means a loss of profit, which many companies have witnessed firsthand. For the first half of 2008, InterContinental Hotels Group felt a 26-percent loss in net profit worldwide, from $219 million in the first half of 2007 down to $163 million in the first half of 2008. For Q2 alone, the company’s net profits dropped from $128 million to $101 million. Similarly, in terms of Q2 net income, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide saw a drop of 28 percent, Marriott International faced a 24-percent decrease and Choice Hotels International fell 5.7 percent. Losses in profit can be attributed to decreasing demand at hotel properties, along with Continued on next page outstanding individual. A man of complete integrity and one of the leading hoteliers of his generation, he was enthusiastic and passionate in everything he did. He was, in every sense, a real “people person” and felt as comfortable in the break room as he did in the boardroom. We have lost a colleague and a friend. George Glover, CEO, Baystar Hotel Group: Steve Porter was the quintessential hotelier. He led by example, followed when appropriate. He understood branding was a marketing term, not to be confused with the flawless execution of the fundamentals—and he never lost touch of these fundamentals. The hospitality industry will miss Steve Porter for so many of these characteristics. Most of us will miss him as a good friend. David P. Hart, president and CEO, Hart Hotels: Steve had the ficult time for the entire IHG family of employees and franchisees. Steve touched so many people during his time at IHG, and his leadership, business acumen and, most importantly, his passion were what we will all remember. When I talk about passion, I don’t mean his passion for the hotel business or for being successful. As far as Steve was concerned, these were the outcomes. His passion was for his people, his franchisees and his family. He knew that if he got that right, all the other things would fall in place. That is exactly what leadership is all about. Lorna E. Brown-Ray, marketing director, Fogelman Executive Conference Center—Holiday Inn: ONLINE EXTRA! innate ability to create a middle ground where parties on both sides of the license agreement could not only survive but thrive. Much work has been done to position I worked with Steve at Promus, now Hilton. Steve laughed all the time. To me, Steve was the Tom Hanks of our industry: universally liked, had a relaxed professionalism, successful without losing his childlike point of view and enjoyed the growth of others. Steve was the nice guy. jfreed@questex.com Impress Guests. And Keep Them Coming Back. PowerWave™ Connectivity options: Single HDMI cable connection to HD flat panel TV Unit interfaces with any third-party, in-room entertainment technology Power section provides two grounded electrical receptacles Two USB charger ports Desktop and wall-mount auto-sensing versions The first time your guests use the guestLINK PowerWave™ in-room device, there’s no doubt they’ll be impressed. With no effort at all, they’ll be able to plug in a laptop, iPod, mp3 player, digital camera, and even an Xbox and automatically receive connectivity to the HD flat panel TV screen. No confusion. No waiting. And no unsightly cords. For a free quote, call 800-679-9711 or visit guestLINK-cii.com. CIRCLE NO. 107 http://HotelMotel.com http://www.HotelMotel.com/digital_edition http://www.hotelmotel.com/porter http://guestLINK-cii.com http://guestLINK-cii.com
Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 Contents Element LEEDs Brand-wide Promise NABHOOD Speakers: Hold Rates Perspective Letters to the Editor Legally Speaking Satisfaction Trends AAHOA Update Energy Star Update Marketing Matters Events HotelWorld Update Trends & Stats Coffee Services Business Equipment Ad/Editorial Index Marketplace Classifieds Checking Out Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 (Page 1) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 (Page 2) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Contents (Page 3) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - NABHOOD Speakers: Hold Rates (Page 4) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - NABHOOD Speakers: Hold Rates (Page 5) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Letters to the Editor (Page 6) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Letters to the Editor (Page 7) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Satisfaction Trends (Page 8) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Satisfaction Trends (Page 9) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - AAHOA Update (Page 10) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - AAHOA Update (Page 11) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Energy Star Update (Page 12) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Energy Star Update (Page 13) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Marketing Matters (Page 14) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Marketing Matters (Page 15) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Events (Page 16) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - HotelWorld Update (Page 17) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Trends & Stats (Page 18) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Trends & Stats (Page 19) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Trends & Stats (Page 20) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Trends & Stats (Page 21) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Coffee Services (Page 22) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Coffee Services (Page 23) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Coffee Services (Page 24) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Coffee Services (Page 25) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Business Equipment (Page 26) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Business Equipment (Page 27) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Business Equipment (Page 28) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Business Equipment (Page 29) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Ad/Editorial Index (Page 30) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Ad/Editorial Index (Page 31) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Marketplace (Page 32) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Classifieds (Page 33) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Classifieds (Page 34) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Classifieds (Page 35) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Classifieds (Page 36) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Classifieds (Page 37) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Checking Out (Page 38) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Checking Out (Page 39) Hotel & Motel Management - September 1, 2008 - Checking Out (Page 40)
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