http://www.microsoft.com/mobile/enterprise/casestudies/cs-carlson.asp

Carlson Hotels Worldwide

Solution Overview

Industry
Hospitality

Company Profile
Carlson Hotels Worldwide is part of Carlson Companies, Inc., one of the world’s largest privately held companies. Carlson Hotels Worldwide manages and franchises over 720 hotels under brand names such as Regent International Hotels, Radisson Hotels & Resorts, Country Inns & Suites By Carlson, Park Plaza and Inn Hotels in North America, and Radisson Seven Seas Cruises.

Situation
A three-year, $20 million rebuilding project encompassing its core strategic systems provided Carlson executives with faster and more detailed access to critical business information. Carlson wanted to extend this investment with hand-held, wireless technologies that could deliver valuable and timely business information to "mobile managers."

Business Solution
Carlson designed its Mobile Access for Carlson Hospitality (MACH-1) application on the Microsoft® Windows® for Pocket PC software, delivering it on Compaq iPAQ devices capable of modem or wireless connections to their corporate intranet.

Benefits

·         Hotel managers have fast access to vital information such as room availability and sales trends, enabling them to make real-time decisions that positively affect the property’s financial performance.

·         Wireless capabilities allow managers to “get out from behind the desk” to personally interact with hotel guests while retaining timely access to back-end systems.

Microsoft Software Used

·         Microsoft® Windows® CE 3.0

·         Windows NT® 4.0

·         Microsoft Internet Information Server

Case Study

“The real driving force behind the MACH-1 project was to get information into the hands of front-line people so that they can make timely decisions—for example, optimizing room rates in a tight market. Now they can make those decisions almost instantly using information viewed on the Pocket PC devices.”

Michael Murphy
Director, IS Support Services
Carlson Hotels

In the past several years Carlson made a $20 million investment in its back-office and reservations systems to enhance its level of service at every hotel under its large corporate umbrella. These systems contain vital information such as yield management and room status. However, because they require desktop access, their power is limited for hotel managers who prefer to be on the floor of their properties, providing personal interaction with guests.

To give its managers much greater mobility while letting them retain access to important business information, Carlson recently began deploying about 150 Microsoft Windows Powered Pocket PC Compaq iPAQs. The devices provide Carlson’s field managers with more than just access to static information: They deliver real-time business intelligence that lets field managers spot trends in an easy-to-use application that helps them make on-the-spot decisions that can, in turn, positively affect hotel performance. The next step is to begin deploying the MACH-1 to Carlson's hotel operators and owners.

Information Access Now in Real Time Instead of Weeks

"The application, dubbed Mobile Access for Carlson Hospitality, or MACH-1, was designed to get managers out from behind their desks and talking to the customers," says Michael Murphy. Based in Minneapolis, Murphy directs IS support services for Carlson Hotels, part of the Carlson Companies, a global conglomerate that operates in 140 countries and has nearly 190,000 people employed under its brands, which include the Carlson Leisure Group, the Carlson Marketing Group, and the TGI Fridays restaurant chain.

“In the mid-1990’s we made a commitment to be a more customer- and owner-focused operation,” Murphy says. “This entailed shutting down some remote sales offices and using technology to put information such as sales, operations, and key account profiles into the hands of field personnel so they could spend less time on paper work and more time with their customers.

“Going forward, we wanted to drive that next level of performance to the front desk and hotel managers, giving them access to the information stored on our reservation system in Omaha, Nebraska. In the past, it took anywhere from a week to a month for them to get reports with the information that formed their decisions. The real driving force behind the MACH-1project is to get information into the hands of front-line people so that they can make timely decisions—and to be focused on managing for optimum future performance rather than monitoring past history.”

"The MACH-1 application will change the way we do business. There will be less reliance on static monthly or even weekly reports being issued because people will use MACH-1 to get their business information. MACH-1 gives people the information they need, when and where they need it, to run their business," says Robert Richards, Director of Web Technologies for Carlson Hospitality Worldwide.

Pocket PC Functionality Delivers Powerful Business Tool

Murphy says that the company selected the Windows for Pocket PC software as the platform for its mobile software because of its multi-tasking capabilities, the application compatibility with the corporate environment, the ability to record sound, and the inclusion of Microsoft Internet Explorer for the Pocket PC. “From a design perspective, ” Murphy says, "the use of Internet Explorer is key to compatibility with our intranet. Color is also an important aspect of the application because we can use colors such as green, yellow, and red in our alerts to managers on the floor, letting them instantly understand the urgency of a situation.”

Carlson is deploying the MACH-1program in a multi-phase rollout, beginning with senior management and field sales representatives. The initial phase, which involves about 150 staff members, uses infrared connections on the devices to synchronize with back-end systems. MACH-1 Hotel, which includes property management information, is being piloted in spring 2001, with up to five Pocket PC devices distributed in a pilot hotel. Carlson selected the Compaq iPAQ 3630 and 3650 models for their elegant design as well as for their flexibility.

Using the iPAQ PCMCIA Expansion Jacket allows Carlson managers using the MACH-1 implementation to use wireless communications like the IEEE 802.11 and Bluetooth standards to access the corporate intranet. Tom Nalley, Senior Director of Application Development for Carlson, says the MACH-1 application communicates with an Oracle database on the back end, which contains over 200,000 rows of information on all of the company’s hotel properties worldwide. Managers can download room, revenue, and other information that is pertinent to the properties under their supervision.

Bringing Decision Making to the Front Lobby

“The Windows for Pocket PC platform is also important for the development of this project going forward,” Murphy says. “We use Microsoft Office and Microsoft Exchange, and we wanted a mobile solution that has the capability in the future of easily sending and receiving file attachments. We can use this kind of functionality for report generation and other activities.

Property management made easy.

“Ultimately, this solution is going to build better service for our customers, and its going to be a real performance enhancement for our hotel managers,” he continues. "And, the fact that the entire business solution is now pending patent protection in the U.S. and around the world, makes this a very valuable asset of Carlson Hospitality Worldwide.”

For More Information

To learn more about Microsoft products or services, call the Microsoft Sales Information Center at (800) 426-9400. In Canada, call the Microsoft Canada Information Centre at (800) 563-9048. Outside the 50 United States and Canada, please contact your local Microsoft subsidiary. More information via the World Wide Web is available at the following Web sites:

·         Microsoft Corporation http://www.microsoft.com/

·         Carlson http://www.carlson.com/

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