This metric tells you what percentage of a hotel's rooms are filled on a given night.
What is Occupancy Rate? (Rooms Sold ÷ Rooms Available × 100)
This short statement explains why a company exists, guides every decision it makes, and differs from a vision statement.
What is a Mission Statement?
This written document describes a business idea, its goals, and exactly how it will make money — including an executive summary, market analysis, and financials.
What is a Business Plan?
A plan that tracks money coming in and going out — the 50/30/20 rule is a famous example of this.
What is a Budget? (50% needs, 30% wants, 20% savings)
This formula — Room Revenue ÷ Rooms Sold — tells you the average price guests actually paid per room.
What is ADR (Average Daily Rate)?
How a company arranges its people, roles, and reporting lines — hierarchical, flat, or functional — is called this.
What is Organizational Structure?
This is the clear reason a customer should choose YOUR product over a competitor's — the benefit only you deliver.
What is a Value Proposition?
This number from 300 to 850 tells lenders how reliably you repay borrowed money. A score of 750+ earns you lower interest rates.
What is a Credit Score?
This single metric blends how full a hotel is AND how much it charges, making it the truest measure of hotel performance.
What is RevPAR? (ADR × Occupancy Rate)
When a DECA judge asks 'how will you measure success?', you should give one of these — a specific, measurable number tied to a goal.
What is a KPI (Key Performance Indicator)?
The initial money needed to launch a business before it earns any revenue — which can come from savings, loans, investors, or crowdfunding.
What is Startup Capital (Seed Money)?
Interest earned on your principal PLUS the interest it already earned — this is the formula: A = P(1 + r/n)^(nt).
What is Compound Interest?
The lobby, front desk, and servers are examples of this part of a hospitality operation — the part guests actually see
What is Front of House (FOH)?
This metric is calculated by dividing output by input and tells you how efficiently a business turns resources into results.
What is Productivity? (Output ÷ Input)
Surveying 200 students about lunch habits before opening a café is an example of this type of primary research method.
What is Market Research? (specifically primary research via surveys)
Total Assets minus Total Liabilities equals this — your overall financial position.
What is Net Worth?
A hotel has $8,000 in room revenue and 80 rooms sold. Calculate the ADR.
What is $100? ($8,000 ÷ 80 = $100 ADR)
In an org structure with this name, a CEO can speak directly to interns because there are very few levels of management.
What is a Flat organizational structure?
This section of a business plan is read first by investors and must hook them in under a minute.
What is the Executive Summary?
This factor makes up the largest portion of your credit score at 35% — it measures whether you pay on time.
What is Payment History?