Marriott\'s Customer-Focused E-Business Strategy

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ICMR Center for Management Research

Marriott's Customer-Focused E-Business Strategy

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This case was written by Konakanchi Prashanth, under the direction of Vivek Gupta, ICMR Center for Management Research. It was compiled from published sources, and is intended to be used as a basis for class discussion rather than to illustrate either effective or ineffective handling of a management situation.

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Marriott’s Customer-Focused E-Business Strategy “Marriott International is focused on leveraging eBusiness systems to drive customer service, profitability and growth. We need to be able to service our customers consistently, regardless of which channel they use to reach us.”1 - Mike Dalton, Senior VP of Marriott Lodging Systems.

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“We don’t want to just satisfy our customers – we want to delight them.”2

DELIGHTING CUSTOMERS

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- Stephen P. Weisz, Senior Vice-president of Sales and Marketing, Marriott International.

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Headquartered at Washington in the US, Marriott International (Marriott) is a world leader in the hospitality industry. In year 2003, it had a network in excess of 2,600 operating units in the US and a workforce of 145,000 employees, spread over 65 countries across the world. Marriott’s diverse portfolio of popular hotel brands included leading brands such as Marriott, JW Marriott, Renaissance, Ramada International, Courtyard, Residence Inn, and The Ritz-Carlton, among others.

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Marriott became the first hospitality company to win the CIO – 100 award3 from CIO magazine for four consecutive years (2000-03). The award was based on the company’s exceptional customer service and relationship capability. Reacting to the receipt of award in 2003, Carl Wilson, Executive Vice President and Chief Information Officer of Marriot said, “This award is the result of a culture and commitment among Marriott’s information technology leadership team, associates and business partners to create great value for our company.”4 Since its inception, Marriott has focused on providing excellent customer service. The company offered personalized services to its clients, whom it referred to as its ‘guests.’ It had introduced several innovative technologies and implemented them even before its competitors did. For instance, in the 1980’s, the company launched Marriott Automated Reservation System for Hotel Accommodation (MARSHA), a totally new concept of hotel reservation in the hospitality industry at that time. 1

As quoted in the book, “Taking Care of eBusiness,” by Thomas Siebel, Page 133.

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As quoted in the article, “The new rules of superlative service” by Faye Rice in Fortune, Autumn/ Winter 93.

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The CIO-100 award recognizes organizations around the world that excel in positive business performance through resourceful IT management and practices.

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As quoted in www.marriottnewsroom.com. 1

Marriott’s Customer - Focused E - Business Strategy

Marriott made continuous improvements in its business processes in its efforts to ‘delight’ its customers. In 1998, the company adopted an e-business strategy to re-orient itself to serve its customers better. The company was operationalizing a strategy to switch over from a decentralized property-orientation to a centralized customer-orientation in its services. The company invested $70 million (mn) over a two-year period to implement a variety of IT applications in diverse functional disciplines such as sales, accounting and personnel. A key component of Marriott’s e-business system was its CRM applications, developed in association with the leading CRM software company – Siebel Systems. By installing eCRM applications, Marriott was able to offer several new services that enhanced its hospitality services. The company’s website, www.marriott.com became one of the most frequently visited sites in the hospitality industry, giving clients access to the services offered by the entire Marriott chain of hotels and resorts. All these initiatives boosted the company’s ability to serve its clients, and also contributed to its own strong financial performance. For the financial year ending 2001-02, the company reported revenues of $84.41 billion (bn) and a net profit of $2.77 bn (Refer Exhibit I).

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BACKGROUND NOTE

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In 1927, J. William Marriott (William) set-up a nine-seat root beer5 shop in Washington. After some time, William started serving hot food along with root beer and named the shop as ‘The Hot Shoppe.’ In 1929, Hot Shoppe was officially incorporated as Hot Shoppes, Inc. In 1937, Hot Shoppe ventured into airline catering at Washington airport, serving the Eastern, American and Capital airlines. Over the next three decades, Hot Shoppes diversified into other businesses including food services management6 by starting a cafeteria at the US Treasury Building and Highway division. In 1966, the company ventured overseas, acquiring an airline catering kitchen in Caracas, Venezuela. In November 1967, its name was changed to Marriott Corporation (Marriott).

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In 1982, Marriott acquired Host International, a leading hospitality services provider in the US, becoming the largest operator of airport terminal food, beverage and merchandise facilities in the US. In the 1980s, Marriott acquired several companies including American Resorts Corp. (vacation business, 1984), Gladieux Corporation (food service company, 1985), Service Systems (contact food service company, 1985), Howard Johnson Company (hotels & inns, 1985) and Residency Inn Company7 (1987). With the acquisition of Saga Corporation, a diversified food service management company in 1986, Marriott became the largest food service management company in the US. Marriott also diversified into the moderate price segment of hotels under the brand name ‘Courtyard’ (1983). In 1987, Marriott ventured into economy lodging by launching the first Fairfield Inn in Atlanta, Georgia. In the year, Marriott launched its worldwide reservation center (WRC)8 at Omaha, Nebraska. This center became the largest one-point reservation operation in the US hotel industry.

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A carbonated soft drink made from extracts of certain plant roots and herbs.

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Serving of food items at office buildings and large complexes through cafeterias. Normally, these cafeterias are fully dedicated to the particular office building in which they operate.

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An all-suite hotel chain targeted at extended stay travelers.

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WRCs are physical set-ups (like centralized train reservation centers) connected through computer networks. 2

Marriott’s Customer - Focused E - Business Strategy

Customers who booked a hotel accommodation through the WRC received a mail confirming their reservation. This was the first time that a service of this kind was launched. Marriott introduced this service after consumer research indicated that consumers wanted to get every thing on paper before setting out from home. Marriott also provided comprehensive information about their hotels including directions for driving, restaurants and the unique facilities offered. In 1988, Marriott entered into the Rental Retirement Community9 market, through the acquisition of Basic American Retirement Communities (BARC). In 1993, the operations of Marriott were split into two companies – Marriott International Inc. and Host Marriott Corporation. In 1997, Marriott completed the $1 bn acquisition of the Renaissance Hotel Group, adding three new popular international brands – Renaissance, Ramada International and New World to its brand portfolio (Refer Exhibit II).

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With its consistent expansion and diversifications, Marriott emerged as a leader in the US hospitality industry by the mid 1990s. Apart from hotel operations, Marriott had a presence in vacation ownership resorts through its Marriott Vacation Club International, Horizons, Marriott Grand Residence Club and Ritz-Carlton Club brands. Marriott also operated Marriott Executive Apartments, providing furnished corporate housing through its Marriott ExecuStay division, and operated conference centers. As part of its proactive efforts to improve customer service, Marriott launched its website (www.marriott.com) in 1996. Initially, the website aimed at providing information regarding its portfolio of hotels & restaurants to its customers. Within a few years, the website was offering a whole gamut of online services to Marriott’s customers.

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THE WEBSITE AND E-BUSINESS SYSTEM

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The website’s home page had five main icons including hotel directories, reservations, meeting planners, travel agents and a suggestion box. The hotel directories section had details such as the name of the hotel, the address and phone numbers of all the hotels in the Marriott chain across the world. Clients could select the city and the hotel where they wanted accommodation, on the screen.

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Clients could choose from a wide array of hotels in Marriott’s portfolio. Once they selected the hotel, they could get the location of the hotel through a map by clicking on the hotel icon. Along with the precise location of the hotel, the map also illustrated how far the hotel was from major landmarks and tourist spots in the city. This enabled the customers to locate the hotel easily even if they were new to the city. Customers could make reservations by clicking on the ‘Make Reservation’ icon that led to the ‘Click Hotel Availability’ page. They were then required to provide information relating to the date of arrival and departure and the number of people, and then click on the ‘Send Form’ icon. Following this, a page with details regarding different types of rooms and their rentals were displayed on the screen. The customer could select the room type and provide their credit card number to authenticate their reservation. The same process was used to make reservations in any hotel in the Marriott chain. The website was very user friendly as even first time users could operate it easily. 9

A rental retirement community is a senior living community that provides a resident with a combination of housing and other services in return for a monthly fee. Rental retirement communities offer financial flexibility to older adults; no upfront fees are required and residents can retain their savings to invest as they choose rather than using them to pay as an entrance fee. 3

Marriott’s Customer - Focused E - Business Strategy

The unique features of the website were the ‘Meeting Planner’ and ‘Travel Agent’ sections. The ‘Meeting Planner’ section targeted business customers who conducted frequent meetings. These clients could book a minimum and maximum number of guest rooms and meeting rooms of different capacities in different areas. They could also make enquiries regarding the availability of golf courses and voicemail facilities. The ‘Travel Agent’ section was targeted at travel agents, providing them the required information regarding the codes of different hotels and their respective queues so as to enable the booking of available accommodation through the major travel reservation networks. The user-friendly website provided great convenience to all Marriott customers - tourists, business customers and travel agents. Through the suggestion box, users could e-mail their suggestions on improving Marriott’s services to the customer service and guest relations department. The customers could also provide feedback on specific service offerings at Marriott. The suggestions were then forwarded to the concerned department/hotel to enable them take necessary action.

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By the late 1990s, Marriott’s management had realized that through IT, the company could make its services easily accessible to clients and boost the company’s finances considerably. Marriott wanted to install an e-business system which could provide it a single-point interface for all the customer transactions across the company. The system had to act as a storehouse for all customer information, and this would enable it to gain further insights into customer buying habits, tastes and preferences. For setting up the e-business system, Marriott partnered with Siebel Systems, a leading CRM software vendor, in 1998. Over the next two years, the company invested an estimated $70 mn towards the installation of major information systems.

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Marriott also employed a four-pronged e-business strategy. By employing this strategy, Marriott wanted to have greater control over the company’s worldwide operations. Commenting on the global applicability of the e-business strategy, Michael Dalton, Senior Vice President, Corporate Sales said, “Any software we bought or any supplier we did business with had to be global. We wanted the same system globally so we could execute our vision consistently around the world.”10

THE E-BUSINESS STRATEGY

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Marriott’s e-business strategy aimed at transforming itself from a property-focused to a customerfocused company Previously, Marriott measured its financial performance on the basis of the revenues earned for each of its individual property. The e-business strategy emphasized on increasing revenues earned per customer. The four key objectives of the e-business strategy included serving customers proactively, personalizing the service offerings according to the needs and preferences of the customers, enhancing brand loyalty and awareness, and cross-selling. SERVING CUSTOMERS PROACTIVELY Before implementing its e-business strategy, Marriott used to follow a reactive sales approach i.e. it merely responded to demand from customers, rather than proactively creating more revenue opportunities. Marriott felt that it should try and acquire more information about its customers, their tastes & preferences, business requirements, etc. If it could maintain a database of this information, the company could employ a more proactive sales approach. Marriott’s e-business system enabled its sales personnel to obtain data relating to their clients, take note of the leads and share new business opportunities with one another. Equipped with data, sales personnel could cultivate a long-term relationship with their clients and present the Marriott group as a whole, rather than selling space for a single property. 10

As quoted in the book, “Taking Care of eBusiness,” by Thomas Siebel, Pg No. 134. 4

Marriott’s Customer - Focused E - Business Strategy

Marriott’s e-business system had to address the needs of its owners/franchisees (O/F), which formed an important business segment in the company. Most of Marriott’s 2,000 properties across the world were either owned or franchised by several different independent companies. At any point of time, Marriott had to manage an estimated 2500 contracts, and also explore the possibility of entering into contractual relationships with around 500 prospective clients. The clients included hotels which either needed to be built or existing hotels which had to be converted into Marriott hotels. Marriott’s financial performance depended to a significant extent on how effectively it managed its O/Fs.

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Considering the significance of the O/Fs, Marriott created an application specially for O/F relations within its e-business system. Before the implementation of the O/F application, the owner company intending to construct a hotel had to interact separately with various departments of Marriott including legal, architecture and construction, finance, operations and HR. Data was simply not available at a single point resulting in co-ordination problems. Following the implementation, all Marriott employees working with the owners/franchisees exchanged data with various Marriott departments without any problem. By launching the application, the satisfaction level of Marriott’s customers rose significantly.

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Using its e-business system, Marriott launched the ‘One Touch’ customer service initiative that provided customers at select Marriott Hotels, Resorts and Suites, Renaissance Hotels, and conference centers, access to a wide range of Marriott’s services. By calling the ‘At Your Service’ number, customers were connected to an ‘At Your Service’ associate. The associate was trained to deal with wide range of customer queries related to housekeeping, the hotel business center, laundry/valet service, the hotel restaurant(s), recreational activities, wake-up call requests and directions to tourist spots. Through this service, Marriott could identify and react to the requirements of the customers more efficiently and effectively. It also enabled the hotel management to handle customer preferences with ease, and to provide them with a memorable travel experience.

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PERSONALIZING SERVICE OFFERINGS

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Estimates indicated that more than one mn reservations for Marriott services were made through various customer channels every week in 2000. Customers could make bookings/cancellations for hotel accommodations either through the website, over phone, through travel agents or through sales personnel. The e-business system was connected to a standardized database of customer data. This link enabled Marriott to provide customers with standardized information, irrespective of the channel through which they were interacting. The system automatically updated customer requests relating to reservation/cancellation/postponement through any of the channels. This facility was especially useful for Marriott’s business visitors who have to adjust their schedules frequently. The customer database maintained by the e-business systems also assisted sales personnel. It provided information regarding a particular customer’s spending across all Marriott group hotels. This enabled them to understand the customer’s buying habits, tastes and preferences better, enabling them to frame customized sales pitches and bag more lucrative deals. They could also make the customer experience more enjoyable by taking care of aspects such as their breakfast/lunch preferences. By doing this, Marriott aimed at increasing the amount of money customers spent at their hotels. In October 2000, Marriott launched a ‘personal planning service’ for customers planning vacations at select Marriott’s resorts. The service could be availed of by individuals, couples or families, who made their reservations a minimum of five days before their stay, and who intended to stay for more than one night at the hotel. The resort management assigned such customers a personal

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Marriott’s Customer - Focused E - Business Strategy

planning coordinator who would make bookings like dining at the resort, golf and tennis, treatments at the spa, child care and more, for them. The coordinator also made arrangements for off-site activities like local tours, shows and exhibitions and visits to other tourist places, according to the client’s wishes. The data relating to the customer was fed into the database. This enabled the coordinator to make similar arrangements for the customers’ next visit, if they so desired. Commenting on the service, Mike Dalton, Senior Vice President, Lodging systems at Marriott said, “The guest experience starts when we’re planning the itinerary, not when they arrive on the property. It’s a more lasting memory.”11

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ENHANCING BRAND LOYALTY

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Marriott revamped its website to add several additional customer-friendly features and personalization service in October 2000. The personalization service required customers to key in their profile indicating their preferences regarding the mode of payment, choice of the hotel brand, type of room, Marriott Rewards membership number and e-mail addresses. They could also make modifications in the data whenever they wished. Marriott took precautions to ensure the security and privacy of the personal data provided by the customers. Customers who signed up for this service got tailor-made sales pitches based on their profiles and previous travel patterns. Marriott used the customer data to analyze customer tastes and preferences and reward them by giving loyalty bonuses.

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Depending upon customer requirements and spending capability, Marriott offered accommodations at various price and service levels, from economy to luxury. An important application of Marriott’s e-business system was in making clients aware of its wide portfolio of brands. It helped Marriott to get customers hooked on to one of several Marriott hotels. The sales force automation system launched by Marriott provided sales personnel with the information required to make client bookings quickly and efficiently.

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Prior to implementing the system of sales force automation, Marriott’s sales personnel would key in information about customers into the computer systems of the hotels the customers had requested. If they found that a Marriott hotel in a city could not accommodate a customer, the systems did not provide any information on the alternative Marriott accommodations available. The customer had to explore other options. Once the e-business system was implemented, the Marriott reservation system could determine if the accommodation was available at another Marriott hotel in the city, enabling the sales personnel to make an immediate booking. Marriott boosted its revenues significantly by capitalizing on these opportunities. Previously, each Marriott property had its own hardware and software infrastructure with little or no global connectivity. Marriott developed the e-business system into a centralized integrated software suite. This enabled the sales personnel operating in different parts of the world and its customer support staff to provide the latest information about the accommodation available and new services introduced. This made Marriott’s personnel more responsive to the customers’ information related needs. CROSS-SELLING Marriott’s e-business strategy aimed at cross-selling other products and services to its existing customers i.e. earning more from existing customers while at the same time ensuring higher customer satisfaction levels. For example, Marriott could sell vacations package to its business customers. Once the customers agreed, it could develop a vacation plan as per their tastes and 11

As quoted in the article, Suite Returns, posted on www.cio.com, Aug. 15, 2000. 6

Marriott’s Customer - Focused E - Business Strategy

preferences even before their arrival. Marriott made all necessary arrangements for the customers, to provide them with the personalized treatment upon their arrival. Satisfied with the service, the customers wouldn’t hesitate to spend more than the planned amount, thereby boosting the revenue per customer for Marriott. As per 1999 estimates, Marriott earned a whopping $55 mn through cross selling.

THE BENEFITS In 1999, Marriott earned revenues of $150 mn from online bookings through its website. Estimates for the year 2000 indicated that every month, the website received three mn hits, making it one of the largest viewed websites in the US hospitality industry. By 2002, the website emerged as a money-spinner for Marriott with online sales of $1 bn.

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More than 75 percent of all Marriott’s international reservations were through marriott.com which reduced dependence on third party travel sites. Commenting on this, Bruce Wolff, Senior Vice President, Distribution Sales and Strategy at Marriott, said, “Unlike other major lodging websites, marriott.com offers the same hotel rates as the company’s other reservation channels. This enables customers to make reservations using the method that they are most comfortable with and eliminates the need to spend time searching for a better deal on multiple reservation channels.”12 On May 12, 2003, Marriott created a record in the hospitality industry by recording 20,000 reservations through marriott.com. It was the highest number of reservations on a single day since the launch of marriott.com.

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On August 25, 2003, Marriott was given the prestigious CIO-100 award for the year 2003 by CIO magazine. It became the only company in the hospitality industry to win the award for the fourth time and also the only hospitality company to be featured in CIO magazine’s 2003 CIO-100 edition (Refer Exhibit III for other awards and recognitions).

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Marriott was also ranked as the most admired company in the lodging industry in 2003 by the Fortune magazine. Fortune magazine selected Marriott on various criteria such as innovativeness, quality of management, employee talent, use of technology, social responsibility, financial soundness, long-term value and quality of products/services. JW Marriott Jr, Marriott’s Chairman and CEO said, “We are honored and gratified that the nation’s business leaders have ranked Marriott as the most admired lodging company and have also placed us among the forty most admired companies in America. We believe that our success stems from the soundness of our business model, which is built around service, our propensity for growth, our strong brand portfolio that provides outstanding value and a culture that celebrates change and values responsiveness.”13

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As quoted in the article, “Marriott.com Sets Record $1 Billion In Gross Sales in 2002”, www.marriottnewsroom.com, February 12, 2003.

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As quoted in the article, “Marriott is Most Admired Company in the Lodging Industry according to Fortune,” www.marriottnewsroom.com, February 25, 2003. 7

Marriott’s Customer - Focused E - Business Strategy

QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION: 1. Marriott, recognized as one of the most customer-focused companies in the hospitality industry, used IT proactively. Explain how the company used its website to enhance customer satisfaction. 2. Marriott’s e-business strategy aimed at transforming itself from a property-centric to customercentric company. Explain the key objectives of the e-business strategy and how Marriott went about implementing it. How did the strategy enhance the customer focus of the company?

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3. Marriott’s case is a classic example of how IT can be leveraged for customer relationship management. What other IT initiatives can the hospitality industry in general, and Marriott in particular, take to manage their customer relationships better?

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Marriott’s Customer - Focused E - Business Strategy

EXHIBIT I FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE OF MARRIOTT YEAR

SALES ($ mn)

NET INCOME ($ mn)

1998

6311

390

1999

7041

400

2000

7911

479

2001

7786

236

2002

8441

277

Source: Marriott Annual Report 2002, www.marriott.com

EXHIBIT II

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MARRIOTT BRAND OF HOTELS

Marriott International operates and franchises hotels under following brands:

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Marriott Hotel & Resorts JW Marriott Hotels & Resorts Renaissance Hotels & Resorts Courtyard by Marriott Residence Inn by Marriot. Fairfield Inn by Marriott Towneplace Suites by Marriott The Ritz Carlton Hotels & Resorts Ramada International Hotels & Resorts Marriott Conference Centers Marriott Vacation Club Horizons by Marriott Vacation Club The Ritz-Carlton Club Marriott Grand Residence Club Marriott Executive Apartments Marriott Execustay

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• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Source: www.marriott.com

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Marriott’s Customer - Focused E - Business Strategy

EXHIBIT III AWARDS AND RECOGNITIONS RECEIVED BY MARRIOTT (PARTIAL LIST)

CIO Magazine

Customer Respect Group

Fortune Magazine InformationWeek 500 American Traveler Survey J.D. Powers Guest Satisfaction Survey German Business Traveler Award

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2002

Marriott ranked the top hotel chain in 1st annual hotel survey. Marriott was ‘the winner by a wide margin,’ chosen by 24% of respondents. Named as a recipient of the prestigious CIO-100 award, recognizing Marriott's positive business performance through resourceful IT management and practices. A study of travel industry websites ranked marriott.com as the best lodging website with a score of 8.8 out of 10. Marriott was praised for privacy, respecting customer data, userfriendly site, open and honest policies, simplicity and responsiveness. For the seventh consecutive year, Marriott was recognized as one of the ‘100 Best Companies to Work For.’ Marriott ranked second among companies with 100,000 or more employees, and is the only US-based lodging company on the list. For the 5th year in a row, Marriott International ranked among the top 50 companies in a prestigious listing of the most innovative users of information technology in the US. Marriott and Residence Inn were ranked #1 by business travelers for customer satisfaction. Residence Inn by Marriott rated #1 extended stay hotel brand.

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BusinessWeek

AWARD

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2003

INSTITUTION

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CIO Magazine

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Marriott was voted as the 2nd best hotel chain in the US and the 3rd best hotel chain in Europe. Awarded Marriott International with the CIO-100 Award for the 3rd consecutive year, which recognizes organizations that exemplify the highest level of operational and strategic excellence. Renaissance Hotels, Resorts, and Suites was ranked in the July issue as one of the nation's best hotel brands.

Consumer Reports Magazine

The Wall Street Journal

Forbes Magazine

The Wall Street Journal reported that The American Customer Service Index (ACSI) rated Marriott International, Inc., as best in customer satisfaction for hotels this year with a score of 77 out of a possible 100, up 4.1% from last year. Marriott was the only company in the "Hotels" category reported as improving its rating. Marriott International was rated as one of the magazine's ‘Magnetic 40.’ Forbes named Marriott as one of world's best companies with which to do business, and said, ‘The ability to attract partners and manage alliances, or as we prefer to call it, to be magnetic, is the new core competency of the networked age.’

Source: www.marriott.com

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Marriott’s Customer - Focused E - Business Strategy

ADDITIONAL READINGS & REFERENCES:

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1. Rice, Faye, the Rules of Superlative Service, Fortune, Autumn/Winter 1993. 2. MICROS-Fidelio To Provide Property Management System Solutions to Marriott's International Properties, online.hitec.org, June 30, 1997. 3. Marriott Helps Surfers Navigate, Lodging Hospitality, August 1997. 4. Shaw, Russell, Nothing but 'net. Hotel & Motel Management, September 1, 1997. 5. Yang, Catherine, The Spirit to Serve by Marriott Jr., BusinessWeek, September 29, 1997. 6. Marriott Launches Interactive Mapping, Lodging Hospitality, October 1997. 7. Sloan, Allan, Keeping It in the Family, NewsWeek, March 09, 1998. 8. Radcliff, Deborah, Aligning Marriott, Computerworld, April 10, 1999. 9. Hamblen, Matt, Hotel Tests Ethernet Access on Phone Lines, Computerworld, April 19, 1999. 10. Marriott to Offer High-Speed Internet Access in Guest Rooms, Meeting Rooms and Business Centers, www.marriottnewsroom.com, September 02, 1999. 11. Williams, John M., A Chat with Richard Marriott, BusinessWeek, September 22, 1999. 12. Marriott Conference Centers Adds Technically Advanced Kingsgate Conference Center to Its Portfolio, www.marriottnewsroom.com, September 26, 1999. 13. Marriott Receives Top Honors in Surveys by American Express and Trip.Com, www.marriottnewsroom.com, October 28, 1999. 14. Borrus, Amy, How Marriott Never Forgets A Guest, BusinessWeek, February 21, 2000. 15. Hamm, Steve, Hof, Robert D, an Eagle Eye on Customers, BusinessWeek, February 21, 2000. 16. Binkley, Christina., Marriott to Give Additional Perks to Frequent Guests, The Wall Street Journal, April 25, 2000. 17. Binkley, Christina, Hyatt Plans Internet Firm with Marriott, The Wall Street Journal, May 02, 2000. 18. Binkley, Christina, Starwood Links Up With Zoho Corporation, An Internet Firm, The Wall Street Journal, May 23, 2000. 19. Varon, Elana, Suite Returns, www.cio.com, Aug. 15, 2000. 20. Marriott International Receives CIO-100 Award Again For Mastering The ‘Customer Connection’, www.wiredhsyndicate.com, August 24, 2000. 21. Rosen, Cheryl, Talent Scramble Heats Up, InformationWeek, September 11, 2000. 22. Borrus, Amy, A Hotel That Clicks With Guests, BusinessWeek, September 18, 2000. 23. Thinking of You -- Marriott Launches New Services; Introduces New Bed, Web Site Enhancement and Guest Assistance Programs, www.southbeach-usa.com, October 6, 2000. 24. Tillett, L. Scott, Site Gives View of a Room, InternetWeek, November 13, 2000. 25. Zurier, Steve, Marriott's Site Brings Hospitality to the Web, www.internetweek.com, December 4, 2000. 26. Roy, Mark, Marriott Aggressively Moves into Interactive Meetings Market, www.internetnews.com, April 03, 2001. 27. Rosen, Cheryl, Marriott Uses CRM Application to Boost Sales, InformationWeek, June 25, 2001. 28. Marriott Golf Announces an Industry First with On-Line Tee Time and Lodging Reservation Capability, www.marriottnewsroom.com, August 09, 2001. 29. Tech TALK, Hotel & Motel Management, June 3, 2002.

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Marriott’s Customer - Focused E - Business Strategy

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30. Marriott International Enhances Customer Services by Implementing Applications From Radiant Systems, www.radiantsystems.com, June 11, 2002. 31. Marriott Leads Industry In Providing High-Speed Internet Access, www.marriottnewsroom.com, July 09, 2002. 32. Marriott International Adds Enhanced Vicinity Location Services To Web Site To Provide Greater Information To Customers, www.vicinity.com, August 27, 2002. 33. Marriott Offers High-Speed Internet Access and Unlimited Long Distance Phone Calls For $9.95 At Washington Hotels, www.htrends.com, September 18, 2002. 34. Marriott Launches Wireless Internet Access at 400 Hotels, www.marriottnewsroom.com, December 18, 2002. 35. Berniker Mark, Marriott to Offer Wireless Internet In Hotels Worldwide, www.internetnews.com, December 19, 2002. 36. Marriott on Fortune’s “Best Companies to Work for List, www.marriottnewsroom.com, January 08, 2003. 37. Marriott Introduces Web Site Features That Make Leisure Travel Planning Easier and More Affordable, www.marriottnewsroom.com, February 12, 2003. 38. Marriott is Most Admired Company in the Lodging Industry according To Fortune, www.marriottnewsroom.com, February 25, 2003. 39. Marriott and Intel Promote Wireless High-Speed Internet Access at 400 Hotels, www.intel.com, February 27, 2003. 40. Customer Study Ranks Marriott.com Best among Lodging Web Sites, www.marriottnewsroom.com, April 09, 2003. 41. Marriott Enhances Website Interactivity. Lodging Hospitality, April 2003. 42. Marriott.com Breaks Single-Day Booking Record with More Than 20,000 Reservations, www.marriottnewsroom.com, May 16, 2003. 43. Overby, Stephanie, The Keys to Marriott’s Success, www.cio.com, Aug. 15, 2003. 44. Marriott International Receives CIO-100 Award, www.hotelnewsresource.com, August 25, 2003. 45. Marriott Brands Highly Ranked in 2003 J.D. Power, www.marriottnewsroom.com, August 26, 2003. 46. Marriott International Receives CIO-100 Award, www.traveldailynews.com, August 27, 2003. 47. Marriott International Named One of the 100 Best Companies for Working Mothers for the 13th Year, www.hotelresource.com, September 24, 2003. 48. Marriott Surpasses 1,000 Hotels with High-Speed Internet Access, www.hotelresource.com, October 28, 2003. 49. IBM and Marriott Sign Agreement for New Group Sales and Event Management PROJECT, www.wiredhotelier.com, October 31, 2003. 50. Walsh, John P, Marriott Maps Internet, Growth Strategies, Hotel & Motel Management, December 8, 2003.

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