ORMS Configuration Booking Class

Note: This topic applies to ORMS ADF11.

The Booking Class Dashboard allows you to configure Booking Classes for each Yield Category. Booking classes allow forecasts in ORMS to be tailored to specific customer segments. This makes forecasts more precise and the expected price-level more differentiated. ORMS provides the possibility to choose the most appropriate from a number of ‘classifiers’ such as Market Code, Market Group, Source Code, Source Group and Channel to help focus on your specific market. This helps ORMS identify how your booking behavior is determined.

Access this screen by selecting Configuration>Booking Class.

Note: Booking Classes are not currently displayed in the ORMS Home or Hurdle Recommendation screens, but will be in a future version.

Prerequisites

Ensure that the application setting ORMS>Parameter>ORMS ADF11G is set to Y.
Ensure that the application setting>GENERAL>Settings>BASE ADF URL has the correct path for the ADF11 Application, for example: http://specialhoteladf:9003.
It is assumed that yield categories have been set up in ORMS from ORMS Configuration Yield Category.

Permissions

Users must be granted permissions to configure, delete, or edit booking classes.

Revenue Management>CONFIG BOOKING CLASS - When this permission has been granted, the user will be able to access the Booking Class screen as well as set up and change the Booking Class Type. If the user is not granted this permission, the Booking Class screen is grayed out.

Revenue Management>CONFIG BOOKING CLASS DELETE - This permission grants users the ability to delete existing Booking Class Codes.

Revenue Management>CONFIG BOOKING CLASS EDIT - This permission grants all users the ability to create or edit Booking Class Codes.

Workflow Overview

Your objective is to configure at least one booking class for each yield category by identifying within the customer segments (Booking Class Types), such as Marketing Codes, those that have similar reservation pace statistics. You will first identify your search criteria in the Search Tab and then after analysis configure the Booking Classes on the Configuration Tab (Please note that after Modelization, the Configuration Tab is view-only).

In a multi-property environment with more than one modeled or pre-modeled property, the Property LOV displays in the Title Bar . Users with access rights and permissions to other properties can select the LOV and choose either the modeled or pre-modeled property they want to work with. The sections on the dashboard refresh data specific to the selected property. In a single property environment or in a multi-property environment where the user has rights to only one property, the property field is read-only.
- When a modeled property is selected, both front-end and configuration dashboards will be available.
- When a pre-modeled property is selected, only configuration dashboards will be available.
  - Users can access other configuration dashboards (if they have permission) and make adjustments that are available prior to modelization.
  - Users can view the Verify Configuration screen to see the property configuration status and any warnings.
Select the booking class type whose pace you are interested in viewing from the radio buttons: Market Code, Source Code, Rate Category.
Select from the calendar the pace timeframe you want to view (i.e. the past six months) to generate the data.
Select the Search button and the pace information displays in the Overview and Detailed Graphs.
View the statistics in the graphs and proceed to filter your analysis by selecting the Yield Category, Days of the Week, and whether you want to view the active, inactive, or both status of your customer segment.
When you have completed your analysis, select the Configuration Tab to create the booking class (the last graph displayed on the Search Tab will carryover to the Configuration Tab).
Identify the Booking Class Type if it is for (T)ransient or (B)locks (Transient Blocks only) reservations.
Create a new Booking Class Code or edit an existing one.
Assign the Booking Class Code attributes.
Once Booking Classes are configured, the Booking Class radio button can be selected to display data.
After configuration, if you want to review or verify that the configured Booking Class has the correct amount of average daily reservations to make forecasts, select the Booking Class radio button and view the graphs.

Booking Class Configuration Dashboard

You will set up and select the booking class type and its booking class codes and attributes for the selected yield category. These will be used for forecasting. When the Booking Class Dashboard first opens, you will see two tabs: one for the Search Criteria and one for Configuration. The Search Tab is the first tab that displays when opening the Booking Class Configuration Dashboard.

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Search Criteria Tab

The Search Criteria Tab contains filters you can use to view pace reservation behavior that exists in OPERA. The criteria you select appears in the two graphs (Overview Graph and Detail Graph) on the right-side of the screen. Always select the Search button when you have made your selections

Select the radio button for the customer segments (Booking Class Types) that you want to view or create a Booking Class for: Market Code, Source Code, or Rate Category. The Booking Class radio button is only available after a Booking Class Code has been configured (in the Configuraton tab).
- When the Market Code, Source Code, or Rate Category radio buttons are selected, the Yield Category LOV is available. From the Yield Category LOV, select the Yield Category you want to work with and display in the graphs. You may select All or an individual yield category.
- When the Booking Class radio button is selected, the Booking Class LOV displays. You may select All or a specific Booking Class to view in the graphs.
Select from the Calendar, the date range where you will view an average number of daily arrivals.
You may select specific days of the week you want to view by selecting and/or deselecting the day-of-the-week check boxes.
Select from the Active Status LOV whether or not you want to view Active or Inactive (or Both) codes associated with the selected Class Type.
Of the list of Class Codes that appear associated to the Class Type selected, select or deselect those you want to view.

Using the Calendar

The calendar displays 12 months where the last month is the current month in PMS. Select any date in the past on the calendar from where you want to start viewing the reservation pace statistics, i.e. 30 days, 60 days, 6 months, etc. The amount of time will give you an average in the graphs.

If you want to display a different set of twelve months, click on the (back) << < or (forward) > >> arrows at the top of the selected calendar month. The double arrow moves the calendar back twelve or forward twelve months, respectively. The single arrow moves the calendar back or forward one month, respectively. All other calendar months in the grid appear in sequence.

Depending on the active dashboard, various dates are already highlighted as configured:

Events - The days that are underlined, indicate an event is occurring. When moving the mouse over the date, a pop-up hint shows the configured Event occurring on that date. These were configured in Configuration>Seasons and Events.
Seasons - If the date is colored, it indicates that a season has been configured for this date. When moving the cursor over the date, a popup hint shows the description of the Season. These were configured in Configuration>Seasons and Events.

Selecting Dates

Individual Days - To select one day, simply click the one day. For several individual days not in a sequence (i.e. Monday Wednesday, and Friday) use Ctrl and click the separate days.

orms_adf11_calendar_individual_days

Same Days of the Week for the Month - To select a specific day of the week for the entire month, for example all Thursdays, simply place the cursor at the top of the day of the week (i.e. T) and click. You can also use Ctrl and select more than one day of the week for the entire month, for example, all Saturdays and Sundays.

orms_adf11_Thursdays_calendar_highlighted

Entire Week - To select the entire week, click the pointer for the appropriate week.

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Entire Month - To select the entire month, click the arrow at the top of the month.

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Graphs

There are two graph types, Overview and Detail. These can both be viewed by selecting the display button (+) for Show Overview Graph and Show Detail Graph. You may leave the graphs open while you select your search criteria and select Search. The charts immediately display the existing data for Class Codes that produced bookings. In both charts, if none of the selected Class Codes or criteria have any bookings for the time period, they do not appear on the graph.

When graphs are selected per Class Code and the user moves from one to another Class Code, the system remembers the last graph selected for that Class Code.
When the user views the graph type, the last one selected/viewed carries over to the Configuration Tab.

Overview Graph

The Overview Graph initially provides a numeric scale where you can compare the color-coded Class Codes and number of average daily reservations over the selected period of time, up to the day of arrival. There are two views: Numeric (default) and Logarithmic.

In the example below,

Numerical Scale Graph

The Class Codes are identified on the left-side with their specific color and alpha code identifier.
Next to the code identifier is the left axis. This displays the average number of daily reservations in increments.
The bottom axis identifies the number of lead days prior to the arrival day.
Hover the cursor over a line to view the statistics in a popup window (actual amount of arrivals for the lead day) at that point for the class code. All other lines fade in the background so you can focus on your selection.
If you want to see a different logarithmic view, select the option to Switch to the Logarithmic Scale. Once having viewed the Logarithmic Scale graph you can return to the Numeric Scale if desired.

Logarithmic Scale Graph

The Logarithmic Scale Graph provides smaller increments in the left axis for viewing Daily Average Number of Reservations. This provides a more expansive and detailed view of the lines for the Lead Day axis.

The Class Codes are identified on the left-side with their specific colored line and their alpha code identifier.
Next to the code identifier is the left axis. This displays the average number of daily reservations.
The bottom axis identifies the number of lead days prior to the arrival day.
Hover the cursor over a line to view the statistics (actual amount of reservations for the lead day) at that point for the class code. All other lines fade in the background so you can focus on your selection.
If you want to return to the numeric graph, select the option to Switch to the Numerical Scale.

Detail Graph

The Detail Graph provides a dynamic lead time bar that you can maneuver to change the number of lead days. When you select Search on this screen, the graph changes to your specifications. Additionally, this graph displays more detail in the left axis for percentages in Daily Average Number of Reservations and Lead Day.

As with the other graphs, you may hover the cursor over the line you are interested in and the other lines fade and a popup window appears with more details.

Sample Scenario

This scenario depicts users selecting the filters and graphs to find similar behavior among the Class Code to create a Booking Class, using MC (Marketing Code) as the example.

Users select the Class Code of MC and calendar timeframe to generate data for the last six months, or even up to a year, to see patterns where Class Codes have behaved similarly.
Once users select MC as the Class Code, they may proceed to select and experiment with other criteria to see the results in the graphs. Each of the graphs and time period may reveal more information.
In the example of the criteria selected for the display of the Overview Graphs (above), it appears that the Class Codes of N and M are similar in that they behave in a similar manner: guests start booking just a little at one year away from arrival; within 100 days prior to arrival the booking starts to pick up and slowly goes up from there; and then within 10 days prior to arrival the bookings greatly increase. This is significant related to arrivals per day (not room volume).
Please note that if a Class Code has less than 1-5 bookings within the timeframe, it should not be separated into a Booking Class of 'OTHER' because the data is sparse in comparison to the total volume and would therefore skew the forecast results. The Class Code should instead be grouped into a Booking Class of high volume where MC is included. For example, if the MC Class Code has a low volume and suddenly gets 2 or 3 more reservations - this would skew the forecast to perhaps more than 200 percent than expected.

Configuration Tab

Before modelization, and after you have determined your needs for Booking Class Types, Booking Class Codes, and Attributes, go to the Configuration Tab.

(After modelization, the Configuration tab is view-only.)

Booking Class Types

This section displays the selected Booking Class type which is the Booking Class used for forecasting. The displayed Booking Class type shows the configured Booking Class codes associated with it in the Booking Class Codes grid below and the associated Attributes.

Button Functions

Change. Select this button during first time setup or if after setup you want to change the Booking Class Type from the displayed booking class. This allows you to add class codes to the newly selected booking class and for ORMS to build (model) a new booking class table used for forecasting.

Select Booking Modelization Class Screen

After selecting Change, the Booking Class Types screen appears. At this screen, you can select (highlight) one of the existing Booking Class Type options that will represent your selection of identifiers by which you want to define your Booking Class. The Booking Class Codes will be used to build a new booking class table for forecasting.

Please note, that when you select the button Change Class Type after your initial configuration and prior to Modeling, all booking class codes for the previously selected/displayed booking class will be deleted. The new booking class type and new booking class codes will now be used for recalculation and forecasting, based on the modelization process.

At this screen, if you change your mind about selecting one of the existing booking class types, simply select the button Cancel Changes.

Booking Class Codes

This section lets you create, edit, and delete booking class codes for the selected/displayed Booking Class Type.

Note: You must create booking class codes for all yield categories.

Select. Select the radio button to specify the booking class code that will be edited or deleted.

Edit. Select this button to make modifications to the booking class code, description, or yield category.

Delete. Select this button to delete the selected booking class code.

New. Select this button to create a new booking class code. Enter the Class Code, Class Description, and select the Yield Category from the drop-down list.

Class Code. The Class Code for the Booking Class. The Booking Class Code should not exceed 20 characters.

Description. The description of the Class code. The Booking Class Description should not exceed more than 80 characters.

Yield Category. Select the Yield Category from the LOV for which this Booking Class Code applies.

Class Type. Indicates whether the Class Type is Transient (T) or Blocks (B) (Transient Blocks only).

Assign Attributes

Prior to Modelization, select and apply the Attributes to a Class Code for each Yield Category. All available attributes should be applied to a Class Code, for each Yield Category. This step needs to be repeated until all required Class Codes have been set up. There is no limit as to how many Class Codes can be configured. However, the following rules apply:

Each Booking Class should have a minimum daily average of 15 arrivals
Note: While 15 arrivals is the minimum, this is the level where forecasts begin to show decent results. For even better forecasting, create Booking Classes with 25 to 30 average daily arrivals.
Each Booking Class should contain at least 10% of the hotel’s daily volume of reservations.
If it was necessary to create a yield category that is at the minimum threshold for average daily arrivals, create only one booking class for that yield category.

As soon as an available attribute has been selected it will disappear from the 'Available Attributes' list, even though it may still be visible when selecting a Class Code for another Yield Category.

Attributes - Available

Attributes that are available to be assigned to the booking class code for the selected yield category. Move the Attributes Available back and forth to the Attributes Assigned by selecting the Move, Move All, Remove, Remove All buttons.

Attributes - Applied

Attributes displayed here have been assigned to the booking class code that is selected in the top portion of the screen. Move the Attributes Assigned back and forth to the Attributes Available by selecting the Move, Move All, Remove, Remove All buttons.