The COVID-19 situation remains unpredictable globally with the impact now being felt in the Australian tourism and hospitality segment as travel restrictions remain in force and mobility has been limited.

JLL Hotels and Hospitality Vice President for Investment and Sales, Andrew Langsford, said the agency was advising the following strategies for operators in the Australian tourism and hospitality sector.

Be transparent: Keep everyone within your organisation as informed as possible

Stay agile and aware: There are a lot of moving parts in the current environment, providing a fairly dynamic space for anyone involved in this business.

Constant communication: Communication channels are key if you are in a lease situation; keep lines of dialogue open with your landlords, banks and any other stakeholders in your business. In its Tourism management and destination recovery through the crisis report, JLL US encourageS your teams to maintain relationships by picking up the phone and ensuring customers that they’re important while also reassuring them business will eventually resume and destinations will recover, keeping in mind the utmost safety of all customers and staff.

Motivate with authenticity: Prioritise keeping your employees motivated during this challenging period and provide them with honest and open updates on where you see your business heading. Be available to your employees.

Keep finances in check: Having a detailed understanding of your costs is a key part of what businesses need to assess at the moment. According to industry expert Julie Hart, budget adaptivity is vital. Scope out the budget impacts conservatively for the next three months of the current fiscal year and see where you can make modifications. If you are funded by hotel tax, forecast future collections for the next budget cycle to minimize surprises when planning for next year. Align immediate decisions to more clearly validate strategic priorities.

Seek counsel: Keep in close contact with your advisors in legal and accounting in regards to all the updates from the government and subsidies that are available for business relief and continuity.

Remain positive: Think about recovery. There will be a point where the cycle will turn and everyone needs to be ready to take advantage of that.

Stay nimble: Businesses need to make sure they are able to react quickly if conditions take a positive turn.

Click hereto view the full JLL US report.

Similar to this: 

Sydney Airport Suites for sale - JLL

Brisbane's NEXT Hotel and CBD Retail sold - Tom Gibson, Simon Rooney JLL

Approved Canberra hotel development site for sale - Andrew Langsford JLL Hotels