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July 26, 2018 Integration Updates, Management Company Monthly Recap

July Monthly Integration Recap | SPG Hotels

Franchise Management Companies | Moving forward, we will continue to provide a monthly recap of the key changes shared with – and tasks asked of – SPG branded hotels related to the integration. We appreciate your support in ensuring your hotels remain informed and engaged throughout this process.

As part of our continued effort to keep hotels informed, SPG hotels will continue to receive weekly email content via The Check-In, and Change Crews will have the opportunity to participate in weekly integration webinars. The weekly integration Change Crew webinars are now segmented by Reservations Platform cutover wave. This new structure is intended to ensure hotels receive targeted and customized information for their specific cutover timeline, thereby reducing confusion. Properties will continue to receive details and registration information via the Weekly Update.

We have been providing your hotels with many learning forums such as webinars, job aids, and pre-shift materials to enable readiness in less than three weeks. Training in the Digital Learning Platform remains critical. We have received a tremendous amount of feedback as hotels are focused on completing this activity. We understand the system performance and access challenges continue to be worked and performance is improving. That being said, we continue to monitor and will do absolutely everything we can to improve the experience for hotels.

Above and beyond system performance, we continue to receive three common questions from properties:

  • My Front Office associates finished all of their Loyalty training. Why aren’t we compliant?
  • What are highly impacted functions and how many people have to complete Phase 2 LD1 training?
  • What training is due now and how do I know who has and has not completed required training?

Earlier today, we sent all hotels guidance to address these common questions. 

Franchise management company contacts also have the opportunity to participate in twice monthly webinars which are held on the second and fourth Friday of each month at 2 p.m. ET. Stay tuned to the weekly mi360 RUNDOWN for details, which will be shared the week prior to each webinar.

SUMMARY OF THIS MONTH’S KEY ACTIVITIES 

  • Loyalty Update: Prepare for August Launch
  • Group Sales Agreement Enhancement: Loyalty Program
  • Loyalty Update: Associate Earn
  • Loyalty Update: Hotel Category Placement and Change Guide
  • Complete Loyalty Launch Day Training
  • Marriott Channels Content Publishing Freeze
  • Q3 Game Plans Now Available

Loyalty Update: Prepare for August Launch  | Hotels and members received  communications on July 25 confirming the official August launch date and more details on members ability to combine accounts. Additional implementation tasks were also added to the Get Ready! Land-It tasklist.

Important Loyalty Updates also included:

  • Loyalty shipment addressed to Loyalty Champions will arrive on property starting Aug. 8. Properties should confirm receipt by marking the associated task complete in the Get Ready! Land-It tasklist.
  • View the Loyalty 2018 Shipments/Collateral MGS page for more details.
  • View the Hotel Engagement and Celebration MGS page and use the August Launch Day: Live Loyalty One-Pager to brainstorm how your hotel team can create an engaging experience for your guests and associates.

Group Sales Agreement Enhancement: Loyalty Program – Rewarding Events | In preparation for August Launch Day, all of the Rewarding Events clauses has been updated effective July 27. These clauses are applicable for all participating Marriott Rewards, The Ritz-Carlton Rewards and SPG hotels. Updates were made to the following: 

  • Standard Group Sales Agreement templates in the centralized sales systems (CI/TY, SFAWeb, ISAC)
  • Standard GSA templates on MGS (for Opera Sales & Catering and non-sales system hotels)
  • GSA Resources section in the MI and SPG Library of Clauses 

Loyalty Update: Associate Earn |  Beginning in August, due to limitations in the iT infrastructure, associates will no longer be able to receive individual points for enrollment or recognition incentives. If the franchise management company elects to participate, associates at franchised hotels will be able to participate in a Marriott Rewards group incentive program. Information on the existing Marriott Rewards group incentive program is available on MGS.

Loyalty Update: Hotel Category Placement and Change Guide  | In preparation for  August launch all General Managers should have received and reviewed a direct email from the Loyalty Property Support Team with their individual hotel’s category placement, base rate, and reimbursement policy information that will take effect in August.  Additional information is available on the Hotel Categories & Points MGS page.

Loyalty Launch Day Training |  Training courses on Loyalty, Mobile, EMPOWER: Guest Experiences, and Digital for all associates are available on the Digital Learning Platform. It is critical that associates complete this training as soon as possible to prepare for Loyalty Launch Day. Associates from the six critical functions (Front Office – Primary & Secondary, Property Leadership, Event Management, Revenue Management, Finance, and Sales) should have completed their training by  the July 19 due date. 

Marriott Channels Content Publishing Freeze |  As previously communicated, between July 16 and  August 18 Launch Day, there will be a content publishing freeze for Marriott Hotel Websites (HWS) and Apps (RC, SPG & MR), to enable testing to ensure direct booking channels are prepared for the migration of SPG’s websites and App to Marriott’s digital platforms. Content submitted during the freeze will be published after iT has confirmed all applications are operating correctly after Loyalty Launch Day.

Q3 Game Plans Now Available | GMs received their Q3 Game Plans via the July 2 edition of the Weekly Update. The Q3 Game Plans  are available for Marriott Rewards and SPG hotels. Game Plans are intended to aid hotels in their planning for the quarter by providing an overview of actions that will be requested of hotels by Marriott in the coming months. Review Game Plans and share it with your teams so they are aware of the topics and the activities required.