An Interview with Craig Couper

In in the present day’s quickly evolving hospitality business, know-how is enjoying an important function in shaping each operations and visitor experiences. Atlas Motels, a key participant within the UK hospitality sector, is on the forefront of this evolution with its progressive approaches to administration and operations. Shiji Insights had the chance to talk with Craig Couper, Product Operations Supervisor at Atlas Motels, to delve into the methods, challenges, and successes they’ve encountered of their journey towards operational excellence. Craig’s insights provide useful steering for hoteliers aiming to optimise their operations and undertake technology-driven options.

Evolving function and concentrate on Meals & Beverage

Are you able to describe your function as Product Operations Supervisor at Atlas Motels and the way it has developed because you took on the place?

My function inside Atlas Motels is to maximise non-room income and profitability. Since its introduction, there was an incredible focus and expectation from our Meals & Beverage operations with a brand new devoted function that solely focuses on that. It has since began to generate the grassroots of a extra invested and tradition from our accommodations round Meals & Beverage with new processes and practices.

Managing a various portfolio

What number of accommodations are underneath your administration, and what distinctive challenges come up from overseeing such a broad portfolio?

We have now 58 accommodations throughout our property within the UK, working underneath two completely different model homeowners and three completely different manufacturers. All our accommodations are distinctive, from Airport places to Metropolis Centres and Motorways to Enterprise Parks that stretch from Inverness to Exeter. Due to this, we have now many several types of friends and expectations in all places, which is a problem. However beginning with the fundamental ideas of nice service, we will make nice first impressions, which plenty of the time begin at our bars.

Put up-COVID restoration and F&B enhancements

After we spoke, you talked about that the concentrate on meals and beverage operations elevated considerably post-COVID. What had been the primary areas that wanted enchancment, and the way did you deal with them?

Shifting with the occasions and present traits was our greatest focus. Recovering from COVID was completely different for everybody; some bounced again instantly with the staycation growth of 2021/22, and others have taken longer. Nonetheless, what hadn’t modified was friends in search of an pleasant and value-for-money F&B expertise once they stayed with us. The secret is expertise; that’s what friends missed most throughout COVID days when drinks had been both exterior solely or sat of their front room.

We took the chance to utterly refresh our bar choices with a change in draught/bundle beer suppliers, an funding in new know-how to enhance high quality and yield, a refresh of our spirits, and the launch of a standardised drinks menu in all accommodations. The information within the UK on-trade market clearly exhibits a transfer to premiumisation, and we weren’t afraid to comply with that development. Company are after one thing they can’t get at residence, and with these modifications, that is what we intention to ship every time.

Implementing operational modifications throughout the property

What have been essentially the most vital operational modifications you’ve carried out in your accommodations lately, and the way have these modifications impacted general effectivity and visitor satisfaction?

We lately partnered with a brand new draught/packaged beer provider. We built-in their new know-how into our bars and cellars, which has seen an enormous enchancment in pour consistency together with improved product yield. This was considered one of our greatest modifications in 2024 because of the work required on-site for the set up in our bars and cellars, which we managed to finish in 85% of our websites to date, with work deliberate to maneuver nearer to 100% in 2025.

I additionally undertook, with assist from our coaching managers, a two-week UK-wide roadshow to assist solidify all of the modifications that had been made and had been nonetheless deliberate for over 160 of our staff. We additionally had assist from our spirits accomplice, who contributed to a hands-on coaching session for everybody every day on our new drinks menus.

Seamless integration of latest properties

Might you talk about the method of migrating new properties into your present system and the challenges concerned in making certain consistency throughout all accommodations?

We lately undertook this course of for 2 of our accommodations to maneuver over to our present Level of Sale, which accomplished all our accommodations underneath one system. The method was typically very simple, with glorious undertaking planning by our know-how supplier, common replace calls, and affirmation of deadlines at each stage. We had been in an excellent place with these two accommodations integrating into an already established system, and the implementation on-site with the assist of our Level of Sale system supplier and their on-site coaching ensured that the method was seamless.

Sustaining management and consistency throughout properties

How do you preserve management over inventory administration and pricing throughout 58 properties whereas making certain consistency and avoiding discrepancies?

We combine our Level of Sale system into our present procurement system, which provides our accommodations a standardised inventory counting system and supplies a centralised overview of all counts and consumptions primarily based on gross sales knowledge from Infrasys.

Centralised management by way of know-how

In what methods has know-how helped you centralise management and enhance operational effectivity throughout your portfolio?

It wouldn’t be attainable with out cloud-based know-how. Gaining access to all 58 websites’ reporting at our fingertips, additionally enhanced by our personal Tableau system, signifies that we will nearly immediately see the gross sales and income our lodge groups are working arduous to ship.

Leveraging knowledge for sensible selections

Reporting and knowledge evaluation are essential for operations. How have you ever built-in these processes into your day by day administration, and what instruments do you depend on?

I depend on the reporting from the Level of Sale day by day. We have now made many modifications this yr and carried out many different promotions and offers to try to maximise gross sales in several places primarily based on the variance of friends I discussed earlier. With the ability to see day by day gross sales and examine them towards completely different intervals rapidly helps me and others make higher and smarter selections.

How have you ever leveraged knowledge visualisation instruments to enhance decision-making and efficiency monitoring throughout your accommodations?

We use Tableau internally to assist us higher perceive our knowledge and create interactive and visible variations of the info obtainable to our accommodations. This has additionally helped us have interaction lodge groups in incentives that we have now run, as they’ll see up-to-date performances within the type of league tables, which boosts their competitiveness and encourages their efficiency. Additionally, from a central function, I can rapidly examine performances primarily based on numerous filters and intervals.

Automation in operational duties

Are you able to elaborate on how your POS system robotically manages sure operational duties, equivalent to stock management and pricing? Clarify how this automation has impacted your day-to-day administration and the general effectivity of your lodge operations.

As I stated, we have now accommodations in many various components of the UK and environments. Our POS system permits us to maximise alternatives and guarantee our pricing technique throughout all accommodations is appropriate for the market with out duplicating merchandise and menus inside the back-office system that different POS programs would have wanted.

We have now additionally carried out new promotions and offers with our Meals & Drink this yr, lots of which might have required the workers to handle every transaction. These have now been made simpler by implementing automation from the POS to identify and apply 2-for-1 offers, for instance, on particular occasions and days.

Enhancing menus for visitor expertise

Everytime you replace the meals menus, what methods have you ever employed round these updates to boost buyer expertise and drive incremental income?

We work carefully with our procurement crew and suppliers to identify and get on development with the patron market. We have now lately refreshed our meals menus with a extra on-trend really feel with the power to improve burgers, pizzas, pasta, and so forth., which, whereas offering us with incremental income alternatives, additionally supplies the visitor (lots of whom stick with us a number of nights every week) with the power to create completely different meals to the fundamental supplied on the menu beforehand.

The function of know-how in F&B operations

In your expertise, what are essentially the most vital areas in Meals & Beverage operations the place know-how can considerably enhance effectivity?

POS programs needs to be straightforward to make use of. Nothing is extra irritating as a client than standing and watching somebody struggling to conjure a complete quantity so that you can pay. Following some suggestions from our F&B roadshows, we have now continued to develop our POS screens to be as straightforward to learn and use as attainable, with a transfer away from a number of menus and clicks of a button to a one-screen web page for 90% of our merchandise to enhance the effectivity of the transactions.

Classes from system-wide upgrades

What had been the important thing classes discovered throughout your current system-wide upgrades, and the way did you minimise disruption to your operations?

Preparation and Communication had been key throughout our current integration undertaking for our two accommodations. With out both of those, you gained’t succeed, and one thing I’m very aware of when delivering tasks of change/disruption is explaining to the affected stakeholders why. Why are we doing this, and what’s the anticipated consequence/profit?

Making certain alignment with company requirements

How do you guarantee all of your properties align with company requirements, notably when integrating new know-how or operational processes?

Being a part of a world model equivalent to IHG and Hilton, our lodge groups are very a lot conscious of “Model Requirements” that have to be adopted always. This has made the brand new updates and obligatory processes simpler to ship as a message throughout change. Once more, explaining the why and the profit to them as workers/leaders helps them be on board with change.

Information-driven choice making

What function does knowledge play in driving selections in Meals & Beverage operations, and the way can accommodations leverage know-how to higher use this knowledge?

It’s a very powerful. With out it, you’re making selections primarily based on emotion, and as people, everybody’s preferences and preferences differ from individual to individual, which won’t work in any enterprise mannequin. Motels that don’t have entry to gross sales knowledge, the power to identify traits, and the power to make reactive modifications when issues aren’t going as deliberate gained’t reach the long run.

Influence of F&B income on enterprise efficiency

When it comes to general enterprise efficiency, how does meals and beverage income contribute to the entire income combine at Atlas Motels? How have current modifications impacted these figures?

It contributes vital income to our enterprise. Whereas our foremost enterprise is in bedrooms, F&B delivers a major annual return and is now seeing substantial development inside our enterprise in 2024.

In closing

Craig’s intensive insights present an in depth view into the operational methods that drive success at Atlas Motels. From leveraging know-how for effectivity to making sure constant high quality throughout a various portfolio, Atlas Motels units a benchmark for the hospitality business. For hoteliers trying to improve their operations, Atlas Motels’ journey affords useful classes and inspiration.

Key Takeaways:

• Maximise Expertise: Make the most of cloud-based programs for real-time knowledge entry and centralised management throughout a number of properties.
• Consistency is Key: Implement standardised processes for inventory administration and pricing to keep up high quality and consistency.
• Keep Pattern-Targeted: Adapt to market traits, particularly in F&B, to fulfill visitor expectations and drive income.
• Efficient Communication: Clear communication and thorough preparation are important throughout system upgrades or main operational modifications.
• Information-Pushed Choices: Depend on correct knowledge for decision-making to make sure enterprise success and adaptableness to altering circumstances.

Atlas Motels is a Shiji Infrasys buyer.

About Craig.

Craig Couper is a Product Operations Supervisor with over 18 years of expertise within the hospitality business, specialising in meals and beverage operations. All through his profession, he has held key operational roles in accommodations underneath main administration firms, together with Kew Inexperienced, Interstate (now Aimbridge), and Chardon Administration. His experience spans throughout managing and optimising meals and beverage providers, enhancing visitor experiences, and driving operational effectivity throughout a number of properties.

In his present function at Atlas Motels, Craig oversees end-to-end meals and beverage operations, implements strategic initiatives, and ensures excessive service high quality requirements. His hands-on method and robust management have improved efficiency, elevated buyer satisfaction, and enhanced model popularity.

About Shiji Group

Shiji is a multi-national know-how firm that gives software program options and providers for enterprise firms within the hospitality, meals service, retail and leisure industries, starting from hospitality know-how platform, lodge property administration options, meals and beverage and retail programs, cost gateways, knowledge administration, on-line distribution and extra. Based in 1998 as a community options supplier for accommodations, Shiji Group in the present day includes over 5,000 staff in 80+ subsidiaries and types in over 31 nations, serving greater than 91,000 accommodations, 200,000 eating places and 600,000 shops. For extra data, go to www.shijigroup.com.

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