BERLIN — Pragmatism will drive the hotel industry forward, according to hotel executives who spoke during the International Hotel Investment Forum.

Now is not the time to throw out traditional operations or business models, but there is room to shift positions somewhat.

Speaking at the “Is It Time To Rewrite the Rule Book?” session, panelists said COVID-19 has in itself rewritten the rule book, and if this is not a time to further rewrite the rules, then when is?

Yotel is one company that is adapting. CEO Hubert Viriot said the micro-hotel company is moving into the franchise game.

“We realized we had to be far more agile,” he said. “Our owners were asking for the new model, and we said, ‘No, no, no, we are not ready,’ but we are now. We opened a hotel in London right in the middle of the pandemic, and London has been hit hard, but we saw we can break even with super-low [revenue per available room] and generate cash flow.

“We are starting the franchising program in the U.S., but we’re looking after the staff, as not everyone wants exposure to labor,” he said.

Yotel has built its capabilities to demonstrate to owners the franchisee process, Viriot said. The pandemic has hampered everyone, so hoteliers need to work together, he added.

Dimitris Manikis, president and managing director of Europe, Middle East and Africa at Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, said the survival of franchisees quickly became his company’s No. 1 priority.

“Do not differentiate. Everyone is the same. We all became relationship managers regardless of our role, asking, 'What do people want? How can we keep them alive?' And from that, they feel the power of the brand behind them, and that makes our teams feel better, too.

“I cannot underestimate the pride in our teams when we saw our franchisees surviving,” he added.

Michael Deitemeyer, president and CEO of Aimbridge Hospitality, said the rule book is useless if operators do not understand what owners’ objectives are.

“We looked at how we must pivot cash-flow modeling and support owners, and we’re already in the process of changing our reporting to specific hotel types, adopting dynamic analysis so our teams know they are analyzing a property in the correct way,” Deitemeyer said. “All properties differ, and we must look individually at assets."

Manikis said he is seeing an increase in hotel management companies in Europe. But he stressed it's critical to build relationships with all stakeholders in a hotel, from owners to employees.

“White-label [management firms] are increasing in presence and value, as in some cases it makes sense," he said. “The moment you start putting people in verticals, you lose the opportunity. What is required now is boots on the ground, get to know your local [general managers] and really get to know your local comp sets.

“In the Greek army, they tell you to learn the terrain. If you do not know it, you will be lost,” he said, referring to his years of military service.

Hoteliers' inability to meet owners during the pandemic has heaped anxiety and pressure on everyone, panelists said. Technology might be impressive today, and a Zoom smile is still a smile, but a lack of physical presence makes alignment and strategy a little more difficult.

“Waiving brand standards and clustering a lot of the roles does help to reduce the burden on hotels,” Viriot said.

Manikis said when he and his team realized the pandemic was going to be a long process, they went to the phone as a valuable instrument of human interaction.

“I am here for you, I am someone to talk to. It is going to be OK. I am here for you. Of our 480 hotels, we called them twice, three times,” he said.

The same is true for staff.

“In the U.S., state by state, the [COVID-19] rules were vastly different," Deitemeyer said. "What happened was that the world’s largest third-party management companies came together with daily calls to go through the issues.”

Investment across the board and implementation of new IT tools is helping maximize revenue in what remains a challenged time, Deitemeyer said. The company is developing new positions, such as ones related to technology and artificial intelligence, to look at the efficiencies in extended stay compared to resorts and to the economy segment. Understanding the nuances will help them operate better and differentiate the company from others.

“No one wants to be commoditized. We’re constantly working against that over 1,550 hotels, with another 300 [in the pipeline], leveraging procurement, insurance and what scale will bring,” Deitemeyer said. “In Europe, [the demand for] 60 cities will never disappear, but there will be a pause. Leisure is the top priority in pushing revenue. The plan has not changed, but the timing might."

There is still room for new hotel development, Viriot said.

“A lot of supply will replace old supply. It will be about regeneration, and that is an opportunity,” Viriot said.

Manikis agreed.

“Our pipeline in [Europe, Middle East and Asia] is for 100,000 new rooms, and they are all there for a reason. The majority will actually happen as they serve a purpose,” Manikis said.