Relationship Reality

PricewaterhouseCooper's Debi Scholar, CMP, CMM, CTE, loves technology — but she wishes that more hoteliers would share her enthusiasm. “I was speaking to an executive of a major hotel chain, and we were not on the same page with meeting technology,” she recalls. “And for the fourth time he said, ‘We want this to be about relationships.’”

She was tempted to just hang up.

“Relationships are important,” Scholar acknowledges. “We do participate in hotel advisory councils, and I feel fortunate about the relationships we have built, especially with national sales offices.” Nevertheless, she notes, “the word ‘relationship’ is not in any contract. Yes, if something goes wrong you may find yourself in a better position if you have a relationship. Still, our contracts must have all our requirements spelled out.”

Besides, she adds, “A hotel's sales department does the contract, but once you're on-site, your partner is conference services. And they usually are not aware of our global relationships. You have to select properties based on a procurement process.”