The Modern Hotelier

How can hotels eliminate spreadsheets, improve financial transparency, and strengthen relationships with owners?In this special HITEC episode of The Modern Hotelier, David Millili and Steve Carran sit down with Brian McGeown, General Manager of Owner Relations, to discuss how technology is transforming owner accounting and financial reporting in hospitality.Brian shares the biggest challenges hotels face with traditional owner accounting workflows, why real-time financial transparency is becoming essential, and how automation helps management companies save time while improving accuracy. The conversation also explores seamless PMS integrations, branded owner portals, portfolio scalability, and the future of owner reporting as hotel organizations continue to grow.In this episode, you'll learn: Why spreadsheets create risk in owner accounting  The importance of real-time financial transparency  How automation reduces manual work and owner support requests  Scaling owner accounting across multi-property portfolios  Trends shaping the future of hospitality financial reporting Watch the FULL EPISODE on YouTube: https://youtu.be/FSDifQU_IqILinks:Brian on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-mcgeown-a0390213/Owner Relations Technology: https://www.ownerrelations.com/For full show notes head to: https://themodernhotelier.com/episode/305Follow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-..Join the conversation on today's episode on The Modern Hotelier LinkedIn pageConnect with Steve and David:Steve: https://www.linkedin.com/in/%F0%9F%8E...David: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-mil.

In this special HITEC episode of The Modern Hotelier, David Millili and Steve Carran sit down with Kevin Bidner, Founder and CEO of HCN (Hotel Communication Network), to discuss how in-room tablets are reshaping the guest experience and driving new revenue opportunities for hotels.Kevin shares HCN's journey from startup to industry leader, explaining why guest room tablets are becoming an essential communication platform for hotels. The conversation explores how interactive tablets improve guest engagement, increase room service revenue, reduce operational costs, and create personalized experiences through AI-powered concierge services. Kevin also reveals HCN's innovative revenue-sharing model that allows hotels to deploy tablets at no upfront cost while earning recurring income through network promotions.Key Topics: HCN's growth and acquisition of Crave  Why in-room tablets outperform hotel apps  Increasing ancillary revenue and operational savings  HCN's free-to-hotel revenue-sharing model  The future of hospitality technology showcased at HITEC Watch the FULL EPISODE on YouTube: https://youtu.be/9xA-wYZ5DGkLinks:Kevin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevinbidner/The Hotel Communication Network Inc.: https://hcn-inc.com/For full show notes head to: https://themodernhotelier.com/episode/304Follow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-..Join the conversation on today's episode on The Modern Hotelier LinkedIn pageConnect with Steve and David:Steve: https://www.linkedin.com/in/%F0%9F%8E...David: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-mil.

In this special HITEC edition of The Modern Hotelier, David Millili and Steve Carran sit down with Chris Zach, Senior Director of Product Marketing at ServiceChannel, to explore how hotels can modernize facilities management, improve guest satisfaction, and reduce operational complexity.Chris shares how ServiceChannel helps hotel operators manage external vendors from start to finish, streamlining everything from dispatching work orders to invoice approvals, while providing access to a network of more than 70,000 service providers. The conversation dives into the growing challenges facing hotel engineering teams, rising labor costs, and why proactive maintenance is becoming a competitive advantage.The discussion also covers how AI is transforming facilities management by helping hotel teams prioritize critical work orders, improve response times, and make smarter maintenance decisions without adding more technology complexity. Chris explains how ServiceChannel integrates seamlessly into existing hotel tech stacks while giving operators, owners, and asset managers greater visibility into property health and long-term capital planning.Key Topics: How ServiceChannel simplifies facilities and vendor management  The biggest maintenance challenges facing hotel operators today  Integrating facilities management into the modern hotel tech stack  Best practices for scaling maintenance across multiple propertiesWatch the FULL EPISODE on YouTube: https://youtu.be/XCSttDN1ATYLinks:Chris on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chriszach/ServiceChannel: https://servicechannel.com/For full show notes head to: https://themodernhotelier.com/episode/303Follow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-..Join the conversation on today's episode on The Modern Hotelier LinkedIn pageConnect with Steve and David:Steve: https://www.linkedin.com/in/%F0%9F%8E...David: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-mil.

In this special HITEC edition of The Modern Hotelier, hosts David Millili and Steve Carran sit down with Jake Lewis, President of Jonas Hospitality Property Systems, to explore how technology is reshaping the hospitality industry. With over 25 years of experience, Jake shares insights on the shift from disconnected software systems to unified hospitality platforms, why seamless guest experiences are becoming the new standard, and how clean, connected data is laying the foundation for AI-driven innovation.The conversation dives into the future of hotel technology, the importance of aligning tech with operational strategy, and why the most successful hoteliers focus on solving real guest problems, not simply adopting the latest tools. Jake also discusses Jonas Hospitality's vision for creating integrated ecosystems that empower both hotel staff and guests through smarter, more personalized experiences.In this episode, you'll learn: Why hospitality is moving from standalone systems to connected platforms  How guest expectations are evolving in the age of Amazon-like convenience  The role of clean, unified data in unlocking AI's full potential  Why technology should enhance—not replace—the human side of hospitality Watch the FULL EPISODE on YouTube:  https://youtu.be/H1Vn4jwLMJILinks:Jake on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jake-lewis-98985110/Jonas Hospitality: https://www.jonashospitality.com/For full show notes head to: https://themodernhotelier.com/episode/302Follow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-..Join the conversation on today's episode on The Modern Hotelier LinkedIn pageConnect with Steve and David:Steve: https://www.linkedin.com/in/%F0%9F%8E...David: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-mil.

In this episode, Steve Carran sits down with Mike Baldinger, Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer at Evention, live from HITEC San Antonio, to uncover one of hospitality's most overlooked profit leaks: OTA revenue reconciliation.While most hoteliers understand OTA commission costs, Mike explains why the real financial risk lies beneath the surface. From virtual credit card errors and overpaid commissions to billing mistakes and guest disputes, hotels could be losing hundreds of thousands of dollars annually without realizing it.The conversation explores:Why OTA revenue leakage often goes undetectedCommon billing and reconciliation mistakes hotels makeHow inaccurate guest charges impact online reviews and brand reputationThe hidden financial risks of disconnected hospitality systemsWhy Evention is building a "financial trust layer" instead of just another reconciliation toolPractical questions every GM and CFO should ask their finance team this weekWatch the FULL EPISODE on YouTube: https://youtu.be/vfM8Oa5ZkJoLinks:Mike Baldinger on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikebaldinger/Evention: https://eventionllc.com/For full show notes head to: https://themodernhotelier.com/episode/301Follow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-..Join the conversation on today's episode on The Modern Hotelier LinkedIn pageConnect with Steve and David:Steve: https://www.linkedin.com/in/%F0%9F%8E...David: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-mil.