Hospitality Daily Podcast

In this episode, Paul Mengacci, Chief Financial Officer at Desert Hospitality Management, shares how his teams evaluate different types of business, connect forecasts to operating decisions, and use lessons from the results to improve the next forecast. He also shares why better training and deeper use of technology can help improve profitability.
Learn more about Paul Mengacci on LinkedIn 
Mentioned in this episode:
Paul on Actabl’s webinar: From Momentum to Margin: The H1 Hotel Profitability Story
Actabl’s recap: H1 2026 Hotel Profitability: What Drove Revenue and Margin Growth
Actabl technology: ProfitSword and Hotel Effectiveness
A few more resources:
If you're new to Hospitality Daily, start here. 
You can send me a message here with questions, comments, or guest suggestions
If you want to get my summary and actionable insights from each episode delivered to your inbox each day, subscribe here for free.
Follow Hospitality Daily and join the conversation on YouTube, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
If you want to advertise on Hospitality Daily, here are the ways we can work together.
If you found this episode interesting or helpful, send it to someone on your team so you can turn the ideas into action and benefit your business and the people you serve!
Music for this show is produced by Clay Bassford of Bespoke Sound: Music Identity Design for Hospitality Brands

In this episode, Paul Mengacci, Chief Financial Officer at Desert Hospitality Management, shares the experiences that taught him to see the whole hotel business. He reflects on his career in operations and finance, the people who helped him grow, and how those experiences shape the way he leads today.
Learn more: Paul Mengacci on LinkedIn
A few more resources:
If you're new to Hospitality Daily, start here. 
You can send me a message here with questions, comments, or guest suggestions
If you want to get my summary and actionable insights from each episode delivered to your inbox each day, subscribe here for free.
Follow Hospitality Daily and join the conversation on YouTube, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
If you want to advertise on Hospitality Daily, here are the ways we can work together.
If you found this episode interesting or helpful, send it to someone on your team so you can turn the ideas into action and benefit your business and the people you serve!
Music for this show is produced by Clay Bassford of Bespoke Sound: Music Identity Design for Hospitality Brands

What does becoming an AI-first company make possible for hotels and their guests? Kevin King, CEO of Shiji International, shares how Shiji is building on years of investment in connected technology to develop AI with hotel companies, simplify complex workflows, and give teams more time with guests.
We discuss why Shiji took time to establish the right foundations for AI, how it's changing the way their teams build technology, and a late-checkout development example that shows what having work done for you could look like. Kevin also offers guidance on choosing technology partners and shares his vision for the "art of possibility": systems that learn how people need to work.
Learn more about the technology discussed:
Daylight PMS
Shiji Platform
Meridian Experiences
Read the article discussed: Shiji AI·R: Transitioning to an AI-First Hospitality Platform.
This episode is sponsored by Shiji International
A few more resources:
If you're new to Hospitality Daily, start here. 
You can send me a message here with questions, comments, or guest suggestions
If you want to get my summary and actionable insights from each episode delivered to your inbox each day, subscribe here for free.
Follow Hospitality Daily and join the conversation on YouTube, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
If you want to advertise on Hospitality Daily, here are the ways we can work together.
If you found this episode interesting or helpful, send it to someone on your team so you can turn the ideas into action and benefit your business and the people you serve!
Music for this show is produced by Clay Bassford of Bespoke Sound: Music Identity Design for Hospitality Brands

In this episode, Chris Anderson, the Professor and Area Chair of Services Management at the Cornell Nolan School of Hotel Administration, shares what he has learned as owner of a historic inn in Ithaca. 
You'll hear why owning a property where most guests return year after year gave him a different perspective on pricing than others, why the inn closes during its slower periods so his team can travel and be with family, and what getting close to operations—then stepping back from it—taught him. 
Listen to my earlier conversations with Chris: 
Why Hotels Can't Wait on AI
What I've Learned About How Hotel Leaders Learn
More from Chris: ckanderson.com
A few more resources:
If you're new to Hospitality Daily, start here. 
You can send me a message here with questions, comments, or guest suggestions
If you want to get my summary and actionable insights from each episode delivered to your inbox each day, subscribe here for free.
Follow Hospitality Daily and join the conversation on YouTube, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
If you want to advertise on Hospitality Daily, here are the ways we can work together.
If you found this episode interesting or helpful, send it to someone on your team so you can turn the ideas into action and benefit your business and the people you serve!
Music for this show is produced by Clay Bassford of Bespoke Sound: Music Identity Design for Hospitality Brands

In this episode, Chris Anderson, the Professor and Area Chair of Services Management at the Cornell Nolan School of Hotel Administration, shares what he's learned about how hotel leaders learn, from teaching both 20-year-old undergraduates and 65-year-old seasoned leaders. You'll hear how Chris keeps learning himself, why real learning is supposed to feel inefficient, and why AI is bringing hands-on, learn-by-doing skill-building back to leaders in their 40s, 50s, and 60s.
Chris's course: AI in Hospitality certificate (eCornell)
Listen to my earlier conversation with Chris: Why Hotels Can't Wait on AI
More from Chris: ckanderson.com
A few more resources:
If you're new to Hospitality Daily, start here. 
You can send me a message here with questions, comments, or guest suggestions
If you want to get my summary and actionable insights from each episode delivered to your inbox each day, subscribe here for free.
Follow Hospitality Daily and join the conversation on YouTube, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
If you want to advertise on Hospitality Daily, here are the ways we can work together.
If you found this episode interesting or helpful, send it to someone on your team so you can turn the ideas into action and benefit your business and the people you serve!
Music for this show is produced by Clay Bassford of Bespoke Sound: Music Identity Design for Hospitality Brands