Tag Archives: Petra Risk Solutions

Hospitality Industry Management Update: “Should You Use Internal or External PR Staff?”

“…But in certain situations, outside agencies can bring their own set of attributes, including: a fresh, “out-of-the-box” perspective;Meeting specialized expertise on such issues as brand/property marketing or positioning, big events, labor relations, financial communications and crisis work; digital/social media; specific media contacts; and arms-and-legs support for internal staff. Additionally, from a cost standpoint, you can turn the faucet on and off as needed…”

When tackling a public relations issue (positive or negative), be it at the property or at a corporate level, the factor to be weighed most carefully and objectively is the understanding as to what resources are at your disposal and how they should be utilized.

Generally speaking, the most important decision is whether to use internal PR staff (to the extent it exists) or an outside PR firm. There is no one right answer, but this large and potentially expensive decision does require several factors to be carefully considered.

For more: http://bit.ly/1lTAd9H

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Filed under Hotel Industry, Management And Ownership, Social Media

Hospitality Industry Liability Update: “Hotels Don’t Need CO Alarms, New Rules Say”

“…CO is a very real danger, and CO alarms should be in hotel rooms,”CO says Stephen Thom, a University of Maryland professor of emergency medicine and a CO specialist. “CO incidents happen in every major city regularly, and people only pay attention to the need for CO detectors when there is a tragedy…”

New international building and fire codes that will be published this summer may provide hotel guests less protection from deadly carbon monoxide.

The 2015 codes eliminate a 2012 requirement that required a CO alarm in each guest room or a detection system in all common areas, according to Michael O’Brian, a member of an International Code Council committee that recommended the new codes.

For more: http://usat.ly/1jLdVBe

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Filed under Guest Issues, Health, Hotel Industry, Injuries, Liability, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Technology

Hospitality Industry Security Update: “Navigating Concerns and Identifying Solutions”

“…Hotels are held to extraordinarily high standards with regard to safety and security.hotelkeycard.security It is critically important that all hotel staff be trained on appropriate security procedures for all high traffic areas, including the lobby, front desk, baggage storage area, guest entry points, valet, and parking lot and receiving dock areas..”

A single act of crime on your property could diminish your brand.

Business and recreational travelers demand safe and secure hotel accommodations, as well as responsive and friendly customer service. How can hoteliers ensure that their property provides as secure an environment as possible, while maintaining friendly customer service?

Best practices for protecting sensitive business information while making people productive from

As Warren Buffet said, “it takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.”

With that said, here are nine things to consider when it comes to blending hospitality and security.

For more: http://bit.ly/T3dyv1

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Filed under Guest Issues, Hotel Industry, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Technology, Training

Hospitality Industry Health Update: “Food and Water Quality an Ongoing Challenge for Hotels”

“…While a wide variation of food and water quality practices exists from country to country,water it’s a misconception that safety concerns are limited to poor areas in developing regions. Many germs have no boundaries, so the NSF StaySafer program will play an important role in establishing a universal set of standards that can be used as a benchmark and complement local requirements…”

From the buffet salad bar greens to the ice clinking in drinks served poolside, hotel administrators are finding that protecting guests from food and water illness outbreaks is a continuous challenge.

It’s also a necessary undertaking to demonstrate the hotel’s commitment to its patrons’ well being. Travelers won’t soon forget the awful stomach cramps if they experience a sickness during their stay, and such episodes can cause nearly irreversible damages to a hotel’s reputation.

For more: http://bit.ly/1kVhmFd

For a brief video on some of the steps you can take to help prevent Norovirus outbreak at your hotel, check out the video below:

[vimeo https://vimeo.com/98741016 w=500&h=281]

Petra Risk Solutions’ Loss Control Manager, Matt Karp, offers a P3 Hospitality Risk Report – ‘Preventing Norovirus at Your Property’. 

P3 ( Petra Plus Process) is the Risk Management Division of Petra Risk Solutions – America ’s largest independent insurance brokerage devoted exclusively to the hospitality marketplace.

For more information on Petra and P3 visit petrarisksolutions.com or call 800.466.8951.

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Filed under Food Illnesses, Guest Issues, Health, Hotel Bar, Hotel Restaurant, Maintenance, Management And Ownership, Risk Management

Hospitality Industry Technology Update: “Handheld Hospitality to Showcase SmartHuest App at HITEC 2014”

“…With SmartGuest, hotels can provide their guests with up-to-date information on hotel services and activities,handheld hospitality including special offers, room service, and restaurant menu selections.  Management can also send notifications of any kind in real time…SmartGuest also offers the options of sharing information on social media, or one-click-dialing or emailing for reservations.  In addition, quick search and GPS mapping allow guests to find their way in and around the hotel properties with the touch of a finger…”

HandHeld Hospitality, LLC, a leader in mobile hospitality technology, announced today that it will showcase its SmartGuest app at HITEC 2014, the world’s largest hospitality technology show.  SmartGuest is a customizable application that enables hotels to communicate directly with guests and increase revenue.

For more: http://bit.ly/1rbWmzo

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Filed under Guest Issues, Hotel Industry, Management And Ownership, Technology

Hospitality Industry Risk Management Update: “Why You Need to Track Your Travelers”

“…Another factor reducing traveler safety is lack of awareness by travelers themselves about the risks they might encounter, experts said.risk management A recent survey by travel assistance provider International SOS found that while most international travelers carry smart phones, nearly three-quarters (73%) do not use travel-related applications before or during travel. Survey respondents said they would like information about medical services and risks in their destination – but apparently they don’t want it badly enough to bother looking…”

Do you know where your travelers are? Sure, you say. “I’ve got some people in Europe and a bunch headed for a meeting in the Bahamas.” Sorry, that’s not enough information. You need more than a general idea of where your travelers are, according to safety and security experts. Not knowing where travelers are or the risks they could encounter can open your company to legal and financial liability.

For more: http://bit.ly/1ilhLGc

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Filed under Guest Issues, Hotel Industry, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Technology

Hospitality Industry Legal Update: “Atlantic City ‘Fake’ FBI Agent Convicted of Casino-Hotel Robbery”

“…With the assistance of Borgata security, police located and arrested Jonathan P. Zembreski,new jersey casino then 32, of East Northport, N.Y., inside the casino. Zembreski was charged with robbery and impersonating a public servant or law enforcement officer and lodged in the Atlantic County Justice Facility in default of $200,000 bail…”

A New York State man has been convicted of impersonating an FBI agent inside an Atlantic City casino-hotel last year in order to gain entry to a hotel room and rob the occupant.

On March 1, 2013 at 3:49 a.m., Atlantic City police responded to the Borgata Hotel and Casino for a report of a strong-arm robbery that had occurred inside the hotel/casino.

For more: http://bit.ly/1kKjsaX

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Filed under Crime, Guest Issues, Hotel Industry, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Theft

Hospitality Industry Risk Update: “Hospitality’s Fight Against Human Trafficking”

“…While the $32-billion human trafficking industry is on the rise, now the hospitality industry must take steps.gavel (1) With leaders like Nelson, the hospitality industry is just starting to push back, which means traffickers are going to hit obstacles never seen before. We cannot just rely on the strength of victims and the federal government to fight alone. All of us have a responsibility to stop the epidemic in our country…”

The hospitality businesses, especially hotels and restaurants, have become a harbor for human trafficking in the United States. Human trafficking comes in two forms: commercial sex trafficking and forced labor trafficking. Victims can be domestic or international. Whether it is commercial sex trafficking victims being moved through motels, or subcontracted foreign labor utilized in restaurants or hotels, traffickers have identified the hospitality industry as a vehicle for modern-day slavery.

For more: http://bit.ly/1hMzfem

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Filed under Crime, Hotel Industry, Management And Ownership, Risk Management

Hospitality Industry Bed Bug Update: “How to Search Your Hotel Room for Bed Bugs”

“…I also found “joke” apps pretending to be bed bug detectors for the purposes of freaking your friends out,bedbugs2 and some highly bogus “ultrasonic repelling” apps that suggest they turn your phone into a sonic threat to bugs of all kinds. There is no evidence that bed bugs or mosquitoes are repelled by ultrasound. Don’t waste your money…”

You’re packed for your trip, your boarding passes are downloaded… and then that little moment of terror hits. What if the hotel you’re going to stay in has bed bugs? It’s a real concern, but by being vigilant, you can reduce your chances of bringing home some unexpected souvenirs.

I don’t put a lot of trust in online hotel bed bug ratings or reports; infestation status can change from day to day, and there is no reliable way to verify that reviews are not fake.

Here’s how I search for bed bugs when I arrive at a new hotel. I can’t promise this is foolproof, but knowing how one slightly-paranoid entomologist deals with the threat of bed bugs might be useful to some readers.

For more: http://wrd.cm/1odGOha

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Filed under Bed Bugs, Hotel Industry, Maintenance, Management And Ownership

Hospitality Industry Safety Update: “Hyper-Vigilance Helps to Keep Guests Safe”

“…If an incident does occur, whether it’s an act of violence or a minor theft,safety responsibility rests with lodging management to respond immediately, Chartier says. That may mean correcting the physical surroundings, barricading an area, having appropriate security personnel respond, or calling the authorities. Situations will be further complicated once an incident spreads via social media or a news crew shows up…”

The autopsy photos still haunt Norm Bates, Esq. “She was stabbed 96 times,” says Bates, president of Liability Consultants Inc., in Bolton, Mass. “I’ve done hundreds of murder cases, but this was the worst one I’ve ever seen.”

Roughly a year prior to the October 2007 murder of 21-year-old Layla Banks, the former Stamford Sheraton Hotel in Connecticut had cut the property’s security staff of 10 to one as a cost-saving measure, says Bates, who served as a security and liability expert for the Banks family in the case against the hotel. The security office became a storeroom, and the director of engineering doubled as the director of security, a position that he was “incompetent” to serve.

For more: http://bit.ly/1ki7zc2

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Filed under Hotel Industry, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Technology, Training