Insights & Expertise
Expert perspectives on F&B operations, hotel management, sustainability, and the evolving hospitality landscape.
In 2026 Meaning Matters Again
What follows is not a list of trends for the sake of prediction. It is based on what I am seeing across hotels, owners, teams, and guests. Where pressure is building, where opportunity is emerging, and where focus needs to shift if hospitality is to remain both relevant and profitable.
By Michael Butler
After Growth, Performance Matters in 2026
As 2025 comes to a close, hospitality feels less like an industry in recovery and more like one trying to redefine itself after a structural reset. In many ways, this was inevitable given the focus we have seen on growth through acquisition and brand expansion. What continues to surprise me is how little corporate attention is still being paid to the fundamentals of existing operations, even as leaders manage larger portfolios with fewer people and tighter margins. Without naming names, there are hotel brands today that no longer consistently deliver the experience they promise.
By Michael Butler
A Living Sustainability System for Hotel
The DET Sustainability Stamp breaks sustainability into 27 focused areas, from energy and water efficiency to food waste, biodiversity, and community engagement. Each area has clear evidence requirements, update frequencies, and departmental ownership. It means sustainability isn’t handled by one ‘green champion’; it’s shared across engineering, housekeeping, HR, food and beverage, and finance. Every month, quarter, and year, teams contribute to a single, organised system that maps performance and accountability. It’s not a campaign. It’s an operating plan.
By Michael Butler
Why Do We Keep Operating Hotels with Yesterday Thinking?
We are still approaching food and beverage through the same old habits: the same way of designing the day, the same way of shaping outlets (venues) , the same measures of success, and the same assumptions about what luxury, four-star, or lifestyle hospitality must look like.
By Michael Butler