How the University Club of Washington DC Improved Hotel Operations, Revenue, and Member Satisfaction

About the University Club of Washington DC

The University Club of Washington DC is where “history and luxury collide.” The club has been in operation for over 120 years, with an extensive and exclusive membership base from the Washington, DC area.

As a private members club, they are a unique accommodation type, consisting of 59 rooms available exclusively to members and members of reciprocal clubs. While they aren’t open to the general public, they still operate similarly to a typical hotel. With boutique amenities, upscale design, and hotel-level service.

To manage hotel operations, The University Club of Washington DC relies on Jonas Chorum’s suite of software. We spoke with Naveen Meemanage, the Director of Hotel Operations at the University Club of Washington DC about his experience using Chorum PMS.

Before joining the club, he worked in a variety of operational management positions at high-end, luxury hotel properties worldwide. Since joining the University Club in 2013, Naveen has worked hard to raise the standard of every facet of the club’s lodgings and accommodations. This included changes to service, the property itself through extensive renovations, and essentially, the software the club uses to manage their rooms and inventory.  

Before Chorum PMS, the club was using generalized software without essential hotel-specific functionality. This created confusion amongst members and staff, as well as extra manual work for every department.

Chorum PMS for private clubs

After switching to Chorum PMS, all of this changed. With our hotel property management system, Naveen and his team can more accurately and precisely manage rooms, forecast revenue, and engage guests.

With their old system, basic tasks required 10 steps or 10 minutes to complete, and sometimes billings were still not properly processed. To verify accuracy, they were doing manual calculations because they couldn’t trust the numbers. It was time-consuming and required more staff to do basic accounting.

Switching to Chorum PMS was extremely easy. The implementation team provides tailored service, and they’re available 7 days a week to answer questions. Like most hotel directors, switching property management systems seems like a daunting process. The handover process’ organization, execution, and communication, assuaged any skepticism from Naveen and other stakeholders at the club.

After fully onboarding Jonas Chorum’s suite of software, they’ve seen amazing results. With Chorum PMS, their workflows are streamlined and simple. Not only that, but they have consistently tracked above their revenue target. When we asked Naveen how Chorum PMS contributes to their success he explained:

“Chorum PMS makes it easy to monitor and update rates. With the mobile app, I can track and update the rates from my phone and make changes on the fly. It’s easy to react to changes in inventory.”

 Naveen has also found that switching to Jonas Chorum has had a big impact on his team. “Housekeeping is very motivated,” he says. “They don’t have to wait for data from the front desk, and I can easily manage labor costs based on real-time, real-world data.”

A better software suite

In addition to their previous property management software, Naveen has used many hotel technology vendors in the past. He has been very happy with every element of Jonas Chorum’s software. The software and any supporting documentation are easy to read, easy to learn, and easy to train new staff. He can keep a holistic eye on revenue, including incremental and up-sell revenue.  

In Naveen’s own words, switching to Chorum PMS is “a no brainer: if you don’t you’re losing out on revenue opportunities.”

As a private club, the University Club relies on member support and satisfaction. They have also received glowing reviews of the new level of service the PMS has made possible. Switching to a better provider allows the club to implement key innovations, such as digital locks, improved email communications around accommodations, and more.

Jonas Chorum is a flexible and scalable suite of software tools that helps unique accommodation providers, such as the University Club, improve revenue, as well as guest and member satisfaction, and boost overall operational efficiency.