Now more than ever, hotel owners and investors are recognizing the value a powerful, experienced procurement partner can bring, and HSM’s corporate procurement team is the driving force behind our company’s ability to move massive economies of scale for corporate services. Leveraging HSM’s size, scope and combined annual spend of $11B, the corporate procurement team sources contracts and negotiates industry-leading prices with best-in-class suppliers in a wide range of categories, including financial services, marketing, human resources, leased labor and information technology.

The HSM Technology Sourcing team, housed within the Corporate Procurement division, supports all technology contracts across Hilton and is focused on establishing enterprise-wide contracts through aggregated spend. As a centralized unit, they leverage Hilton’s scale to negotiate market competitive contracts and assess pricing and supplier performance through benchmarking and coordinated negotiations. The team has developed strategies to drive cost-competitive rates and strategic partner terms for category groupings such as hardware, software, telecom, professional services and cloud computing. By leading the competitive bid processes and streamlining supplier selection criteria, they maintain a level playing field for all suppliers while driving KPIs and metrics to ensure suppliers deliver on all contracted terms.

Beyond rate negotiation, HSM’s Technology Sourcing team shines as a strategic advisor both internally and for partnering properties, continually examining the technology landscape and identifying new opportunities to create value throughout the HSM network. They, along with all HSM Category Managers, utilize the newly implemented SmartSpend tool, which is an integrated spend management tool powered by Coupa. SmartSpend is a cloud-based platform that takes a comprehensive approach to spend management activities. With SmartSpend, corporate suppliers can receive electronic purchase orders (POs), submit invoices digitally, access invoice and payment status online 24/7 and enjoy increased visibility to all transactions.

A recent example of the work done by the HSM Technology Sourcing team is their support of Hilton’s SmartRoom initiative where they leant the necessary expertise to finalize the contracts for the hardware, implementation, and support components. In a coordinated effort with Hilton’s digital and product teams, HSM Technology Sourcing helped negotiate SmartRoom contracts for inventory management, network agreements, integration services and more. This connected SmartRoom empowers guests to control room temperature, lights, TV and more from their mobile device, as well as seamlessly access their personal streaming services through the room remote or Hilton Honors app. Guests benefit from the comfort, convenience and personalized experience afforded by SmartRoom, and owners benefit from HSM’s behind-the-scenes efforts to make SmartRooms more affordable.

Both Hilton and our partnering properties enjoy more efficient, streamlined technological solutions (such as the OnQ refresh program) at highly competitive prices thanks to the HSM’s strategic expertise and negotiating prowess. Team members employ a holistic enterprise view, seeking out ongoing avenues to drive technology savings both internally and for owners. Hotels interested in tapping into the strategic value of HSM’s Technology Sourcing team are encouraged to contact us at HSMx@hilton.com or connect with your Strategic Accounts advisor for more information.