Revenue Variance
Actual revenue versus plan establishes the first GOP effect.
Then separate rooms, food and beverage, events, and ancillary movement before discussing rate, occupancy, mix, or volume.
Enter the month’s plan and actual hotel P&L values to see what moved GOP, measure the financial effect of each driver, and open the owner-review questions tied to the largest movement before the monthly operating discussion begins.
What the month shows
The monthly review starts with the financial line that changed the result, then moves into the operating reason behind that line. The bridge keeps the three effects separate so the review begins with the largest economic movement.
Operating sequence
Actual revenue versus plan establishes the first GOP effect.
Then separate rooms, food and beverage, events, and ancillary movement before discussing rate, occupancy, mix, or volume.
Payroll and direct department cost are entered separately so the bridge shows which line added to or absorbed the revenue movement.
Review labor hours, wage and burden, cost of sales, commissions, supplies, and service cost against the activity that produced them.
Administration, sales and marketing, maintenance, utilities, systems, and other property-wide cost can change GOP independently of department performance.
Isolate the lines that moved before treating the total as a broad cost issue.
Plan GOP plus the four non-overlapping effects reconciles to actual GOP.
The largest absolute movement determines which owner-review questions open first.
The review then moves from the financial driver to the operating cause, accountable line, and next management decision.
The largest bridge movement opens its related questions first.
01. Which revenue line explains most of the variance to plan?
02. Was the movement driven by rate, occupied demand, mix, or ancillary activity?
03. Did the revenue change produce the expected department contribution?
04. Did labor move with occupied demand and department activity?
05. Which department created the largest payroll variance?
06. Was the movement caused by hours, wage rate, overtime, vacancy, or productivity?
07. Which direct operating cost moved furthest from plan?
08. Did cost of sales, commissions, supplies, or service cost move with the revenue that created them?
09. Which department lost the most contribution after direct cost?
10. Which undistributed line created the largest GOP effect?
11. Is the movement recurring, timing-related, or a one-time item?
12. Did the cost support demand, property condition, guest service, or commercial activity at the expected level?
13. Was the material variance visible in the latest forecast before month-end?
14. Does management’s explanation reconcile to the financial movement shown in the bridge?
15. What operating line, accountable owner, and review period should be carried into the next management decision?
