1. On what competitive factors would you advise Alan to concentrate if he wished to improve the competitive performance of his operation?

Alan Ray was speaking after the publication of an article in the Conference Centre Journal. Alan was the owner and General Manager of Raydale Conference Centre. He had bought the centre, which used to be a country house hotel, just over 2 years before and was broadly pleased with the business he had attracted so far. The centre had managed to establish a presence in the fast growing and profitable conference market. His customers (usually large companies) would book some or all of his facilities for their sales conferences, training events and meetings. These events could be anything from one-day’s duration through to 2 weeks’. Raydale Conference Centre, together with three others in the area, had been reviewed by the Conference Centre Journal, a summary of whose findings is shown in the Table

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Table Reviews of conference centres Factor Raydale Miston Hexley Stannington Price Average High Average Low Size of menu Excellent Good Good Poor Quality of food Good Excellent Good Acceptable Quality of room Very good Good Good Good Courtesy of staff Very good Good Good Poor Flexibility to accommodate Poor Very good Good Good special needs Documentation errors Occasional None Very few None Special off-peak price discounts No Yes Yes Yes Room availability Good Very good Poor Poor