David Lund
The Prosperous Hotelier: Engage Their Hearts and Minds First

The Prosperous Hotelier: Engage Their Hearts and Minds First
By David Lund
David Lund · 4 Sep

You might think that getting your hotel leadership team excited about accounting is like convincing them it is fun to go to the dentist.

David Lund
The Prosperous Hotelier: What is “Hospitality Financial Leadership?"

The Prosperous Hotelier: What is “Hospitality Financial Leadership?"
By David Lund
David Lund · 7 Aug

A few years ago, finding the three words "hospitality financial leadership” together in one sentence was not possible. I know because I tried to Goog

Why You Need an Internal Control Review (ICR) Program in Your Hotel - Hospitality Financial Leadership
Why You Need an Internal Control Review (ICR) Program in Your Hotel - Hospitality Financial Leadership

Why You Need an Internal Control Review (ICR) Program in Your Hotel - Hospitality Financial Leadership
By David Lund
David Lund · 19 Jun

You finally have a full-blown accounting policy manual in place. It has taken several months and a lot of work, but it is done. Something to be proud

Hospitality Financial Leadership – Why You Need to Reconcile Your Credit Cards Every Day
Hospitality Financial Leadership – Why You Need to Reconcile Your Credit Cards Every Day

Hospitality Financial Leadership – Why You Need to Reconcile Your Credit Cards Every Day
By David Lund
David Lund · 22 May

The dreaded credit card reconciliation need not be such a big deal if we bite-size it. That is what this piece is all about: How and why you should b

Use a Business Mindset: David Lund on Hotel Finance
Use a Business Mindset: David Lund on Hotel Finance

Use a Business Mindset: David Lund on Hotel Finance
By David Lund
David Lund · 13 Feb

David Lund, a financial consultant for hotels, shares his thoughts on how hotels should approach hotel finance software and tools, and the role techn

David Lund
Hospitality Financial Leadership – Why GMs Have Such a Hard Time Managing Their Financial Leader

Hospitality Financial Leadership – Why GMs Have Such a Hard Time Managing Their Financial Leader
By David Lund
David Lund · 6 Feb

This is not the case for all GMs, but it is definitely the case for many. The reason is simple: the GM has not been given any formal accounting train

David Lund
Hospitality Financial Leadership – Top 10 List for Controlling Hotel Expenses

Hospitality Financial Leadership – Top 10 List for Controlling Hotel Expenses
By David Lund
David Lund · 16 Jan

The word “expenses” needs to be defined and refined for this article. Expense broadly refers to any cost a business has including payroll, goods and

David Lund
Hospitality Financial Leadership – How to Write a Great Monthly Executive Commentary

Hospitality Financial Leadership – How to Write a Great Monthly Executive Commentary
By David Lund
David Lund · 19 Dec

They go by many names: owner’s commentary, monthly commentary, executive commentary and more. The names can be different but in essence, they are all

David Lund
F TAR W – The Secret Monthly Formula to Create Financial Leadership In Your Hotel

F TAR W – The Secret Monthly Formula to Create Financial Leadership In Your Hotel
By David Lund
David Lund · 12 Dec

To get your non-financial managers to play ball with their numbers in your hotel you need a system that they can follow, a sort of roadmap they can u

Why Hospitality Financial Leadership is More Important Than Ever
Why Hospitality Financial Leadership is More Important Than Ever

Why Hospitality Financial Leadership is More Important Than Ever
By David Lund
David Lund · 8 Dec

With the rapid changes we have seen since 2020 in hospitality comes many additional challenges. It seems like everything is up for grabs these days.

David Lund
Hospitality Financial Leadership – How to Prepare a 5-Year Proforma

Hospitality Financial Leadership – How to Prepare a 5-Year Proforma
By David Lund
David Lund · 5 Dec

Preparing a five-year financial plan for your hotel might sound daunting, but it is all in your head. Let’s lay it out. You are either dreaming about

David Lund
Hospitality Financial Leadership – What Really Counts and Why

Hospitality Financial Leadership – What Really Counts and Why
By David Lund
David Lund · 10 Oct

If you do not have all three of these metrics on your radar screen at the same time, you are flying the profit picture in your food operation with at

Why You Need an Internal Control Review Program in Your Hotel - ICR
Why You Need an Internal Control Review Program in Your Hotel - ICR

Why You Need an Internal Control Review Program in Your Hotel - ICR
By David Lund
David Lund · 5 Sep

Here’s the scenario. You have finally got a full-blown accounting policy manual in place. It has taken several months and a lot of work, but it’s don

David Lund
What Hotel Brands Don’t Know – The Secret to Creating Great Financial Expertise

What Hotel Brands Don’t Know – The Secret to Creating Great Financial Expertise
By David Lund
David Lund · 15 Aug

What brands don’t know is, they can create great financial bench strength in their hotels and their owners will pay 100% of the cost. Brands also don

David Lund
Hospitality Financial Leadership – Designing Your Financial Reporting System – A Wake-Up Call

Hospitality Financial Leadership – Designing Your Financial Reporting System – A Wake-Up Call
By David Lund
David Lund · 8 Aug

Having a financial system that produces regularly scheduled information about your hotel and the direction it is going is paramount to your survival.

David Lund
Hospitality Financial Leadership – How to Do a Breakeven Analysis Using REVPAR

Hospitality Financial Leadership – How to Do a Breakeven Analysis Using REVPAR
By David Lund
David Lund · 18 Jul

I have recently read more than one article on breakeven analysis and they all miss the mark in my books because they focus on what occupancy is neede

Hospitality Financial Leadership - Why Auditors Miss the Mark
Hospitality Financial Leadership - Why Auditors Miss the Mark

Hospitality Financial Leadership - Why Auditors Miss the Mark
By David Lund
David Lund · 27 Jun

I recently watched a documentary on fraud and why the auditors were unable to detect anything even when they were right on top of what was so obvious

David Lund
Hospitality Financial Leadership - The Bridge

Hospitality Financial Leadership - The Bridge
By David Lund
David Lund · 16 May

In our lives we are continuously evolving as people. When thought of most of the time, this evolution seems like a continuous stream of challenges to

Hospitality Financial Leadership - What is the Only Thing We Know for Sure About the Hotel Budget?
Hospitality Financial Leadership - What is the Only Thing We Know for Sure About the Hotel Budget?

Hospitality Financial Leadership - What is the Only Thing We Know for Sure About the Hotel Budget?
By David Lund
David Lund · 26 Apr

The budget is a BIG deal. Heck, it consumes so much time and energy in the hotel. Getting it right is a critical element to any branded, managed hote

David Lund
Hospitality Financial Leadership - Why Your Hotel Needs a Daily "Pick-up" Report

Hospitality Financial Leadership - Why Your Hotel Needs a Daily "Pick-up" Report
By David Lund
David Lund · 18 Apr

You might be reading this and saying to yourself, “Well, for sure every hotel needs a daily pick-up report.” But I bet you would be surprised how man

David Lund
The Key Attributes of a Proper Hotel Financial Statement

The Key Attributes of a Proper Hotel Financial Statement
By David Lund
David Lund · 4 Apr

Having a monthly financial statement for your hotel is the key to creating an effective management process inside your business. But, like many thing

David Lund
Hospitality Financial Leadership – Top 10 ‘MUST DO’ Separation of Duties and Controls

Hospitality Financial Leadership – Top 10 ‘MUST DO’ Separation of Duties and Controls
By David Lund
David Lund · 21 Mar

In your hotel internal controls are a mission critical element you must have up and working well to adequately safeguard your assets. If you forgo th

David Lund
The 6 Quadrants of GOPPAR

The 6 Quadrants of GOPPAR
By David Lund
David Lund · 7 Mar

GO PAR is the new and exciting measurement everyone is talking about in the hotel business. But let’s be honest. It is a bit of a stretch to comprehe

David Lund
Hospitality Financial Leadership - Balancing Daily Revenues and Settlements

Hospitality Financial Leadership - Balancing Daily Revenues and Settlements
By David Lund
David Lund · 21 Feb

The hotel business is a form of retail business. Every day we must balance our revenues with our settlements, just like you would if you owned a stor

David Lund
Why You Need a Month-End Schedule

Why You Need a Month-End Schedule
By David Lund
David Lund · 7 Feb

If you complete a regular monthly close in your hotel, and I certainly hope you do. And if closing your books takes longer than three-five working da

Hospitality Financial Leadership – Why Managing the Budget in Your Hotel is Like Playing Baseball
Hospitality Financial Leadership – Why Managing the Budget in Your Hotel is Like Playing Baseball

Hospitality Financial Leadership – Why Managing the Budget in Your Hotel is Like Playing Baseball
By David Lund
David Lund · 24 Jan

That’s a big statement because if you are involved in the budget in your hotel and you have played baseball then you are probably saying to yourself

David Lund
Hospitality Financial Leadership – Why is Hotel Accounting Different?

Hospitality Financial Leadership – Why is Hotel Accounting Different?
By David Lund
David Lund · 17 Jan

I heard this about 40 years ago and it has stuck with me. I was a newbie cocktail waiter working part time in my hometown hotel. One of my regular we