We spoke to Enrico Ieri,Director of International Business Development at 5stelle*.. 5stelle* is a Property Management System (PMS) for hotels, for which Enrico establishes and maintains relationships with global partners, while steering sales strategies in different countries.
Can you please introduce yourself?
I am Enrico Ieri,married with a daughter named Anna. After 20 years abroad, in 5 different countries, I now live in Italy. Passionate about languages, travel and foreign cultures. Curious by nature, always researching and listening: attentive to details and the needs of others, ready to grasp novelties and changes.
As far as my professional career is concerned, I started traveling after my translation studies in foreign languages. I came to London to study hotel management, I began my career in the hotel and tourism sector. After gaining experience in various countries, I’m now in charge of international development at 5stelle*.
What's your proudest accomplishment in your career?
Certainly all the missions that were proposed to me, which appeared to be very difficult to implement. Especially when new markets open up, there are a lot of difficulties at the beginning.
With perseverance and commitment, you understand that goals can be achieved. But I would say that my greatest professional pride is to have seen an international network grow.
And what's the hardest part of your job?
The most difficult part of my job is managing the taxation of different markets. The rest is a continuous learning process, a professional and human enrichment that requires me to adapt to the different needs of the markets in which I operate.
Can you tell us about your first encounter with Revenue Management?
I’ve lived through the transition to online booking portals. And I remember that hoteliers began, with great difficulty, to abandon their fixed rates in favor of dynamic rates. I remember the first courses organized by far-sighted consultants, with very few participants and a lot of skepticism from independent hoteliers. And the difficulty of getting them to understand that something had already changed, and that change had to be anticipated.
And your best RM experience?
I’ve had a lot of experience with RM, and all of it has been positive, helping entrepreneurs to optimize their income. The digitization of this process, with the advent of RMS, was certainly the moment that fascinated me most.
A few words about 5stelle*?
5stelle* is a cloud-based PMS that manages all the day-to-day operations of a hotel. It’s a real online sales tool, connected to your entire e-distribution. We can provide an all-in-one solution with PMS, Channel Manager and online booking engine. Connected to over 250 external systems and platforms, business intelligence, Hosuekeeping application, online check-in, CRM, POS restaurant and other management tools. Today, 5stelle* is present in 15 countries with almost 3,000 customers.
For those less experienced in Hospitality, what is a PMS?
Today, a PMS is a tool for centralizing a plant’s operations, managing and automating administrative, tax, accounting and sales processes. The PMS collects all data internally, enabling you to analyze your performance and put your strategies into practice. The PMS is the tool to which all external systems needing information to be efficient are connected. It saves time and reduces errors.
Where were you 10 years ago? And where do you see yourself in 10 years' time?
10 years ago I lived in Paris for 8 years, working for a French hotel group. Perhaps my greatest life and professional experience, where I completed all my hotel knowledge and built most of my working relationships.
And in 10 years’ time, I hope to still be doing what I’m doing today. Perhaps outside Europe, in increasingly distant markets.
Keywords: 5stelle*, Enrico Ieri, PMS, Revenue Management, Yield Management, RMS