6.11.2023
Highpointe Hotel Corp., a full-service management and development company based in Gulf Breeze, Fla., has reaffirmed its commitment to Aptech through the recent adoption of its PVNG enterprise accounting software and NEW Execuvue Business Intelligence platform. Highpointe was investigating new capabilities to help them cut costs and maintain lean operations in today’s challenging economic environment and ultimately chose to remain partners with Aptech by investing in the company’s innovative and groundbreaking solutions.
“We are delighted to continue partnering with Aptech and migrate our accounting software to PVNG, one of the most effective and simple cloud-based accounting programs for hotels,” said Mark Pate, Assistant Controller/IT Director at Highpointe Hotel Corp. “Highpointe has been a partner with Aptech for 23 years, and we have no plans to look elsewhere. PVNG’s multi-property features allow us to set the same tasks and consolidate financials across our entire portfolio, saving our administration two to three hours of work daily. This technology would have been invaluable two years ago, but we are excited to put it to use today.”
Pate said PVNG is thoughtfully designed, especially the menu structure. He said other solutions the company considered came with a huge learning curve; but not PVNG. The solution features Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, General Ledger, Statistics, Financials, and Bank Reconciliation modules and seamless web browser navigation allowing hotels to upload their accounting data remotely. PVNG can be deployed as a hosted service and also offers OCR invoice processing, a myriad of payment options, drill-down capabilities in financial statements and reports, and the ability to handle single or multi-property accounting.
BI + AI = Smart Business
When it comes to business intelligence, Pate said Highpointe is excited to leverage IBM Cognos Analytics with AI capabilities – part of Aptech’s NEW Execuvue platform. He said the solution can easily pull data from PVNG into Execuvue and present data in an array of formats using simple AI commands.
“Business intelligence is a standard tool for most hotel management companies today,” Pate said. “Now that AI is becoming native to BI, it may soon be integrated with tools such as IBM Watson to ask analytical questions (such as ‘show me this or that’) and accounting teams can instantly present requested data in a visual format that is compelling, relevant, and easy-to-understand. Aptech is not bleeding-edge technology, but through its IBM Cognos partnership and AI tools, it is definitely leading edge.”
Execuvue features a dashboard that delivers stunning images of financial and operational data that hoteliers can act upon. The drag-and-drop environment creates striking visualizations based on data entered. Leveraging AI-powered analytics, Execuvue helps operators make smarter business decisions and respond to commands, such as “Show Me Room Revenues by State and by Property.” The AI tool links relevant data elements (number of rooms rented, ADR, RevPAR, occupancy, rooms out of order, etc.) with a list of properties or brands to analyze the information in visually compelling ways. It also configures data regionally, giving operators a performance snapshot portfolio wide, as well as by region, brand, and property. The scalability, flexibility, and integration capabilities of Execuvue sets Aptech apart from other BI providers.
Advice for Tradeshow Shoppers
“As we enter technology tradeshow season, people need to be careful when shopping for financial management tools,” said Pate, who also serves as the Global President of Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP®), producer of the Hospitality Industry Technology Exposition and Conference (HITEC®). “The integration piece is so important between back office tools and the hotel’s BI solution and a single database is key; numbers should all come from the same source. When visiting vendor booths, be mindful that salespeople will say their solutions can do just about anything. Before choosing a partner, talk to those on the support team, along with the product engineers. They are the people you will be dealing with on a regular basis, and it is they who will help determine if the software is a good fit. What happens after the sale is critical, and it is here that Aptech shines.
“In a word, Aptech’s accounting software, BI tools and customer support is ‘outstanding,’” he added. “The team is willing to do whatever we ask. We don’t make phone calls; we send them an email and the ticket is usually closed in less than an hour. Few companies have that fast response time. Over the years we’ve gotten to know the people on the other end of the phone. They get us, and the Highpointe way of doing things. We can’t wait to see everyone face to face at the Aptech annual dinner at HITEC.”
Cam Troutman, Aptech Vice President, had this to say: “Our relationship with Highpointe Hotels is a special one, and we are thrilled to continue providing support through our PVNG and Execuvue. Highpointe is growing. They currently manage 14 hotels and we expect they will be adding many more in the future. Aptech is proud to grow alongside them and assist them any way we can in preparation for economic changes in the future.”
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