Our Work: Payment with Points Program

“We’re amazed at how far we’ve come in just seven months. MODIV’s leadership and strategic approach were exactly what we needed to push this project over the finish line. The progress we’ve made is a game-changer for our rewards program.”

Senior Director of adjacent Commercial Function

OPPORTUNITY

For three years, the client's rewards program had struggled to implement a critical feature—allowing members to pay for reservations using loyalty reward points. Despite the importance of this functionality in maintaining competitive parity and enhancing customer loyalty, the project had stalled. The absence of a solid business case and the lack of alignment among key stakeholders contributed to the delays. The client turned to MODIV to break through these obstacles, provide leadership, and deliver a comprehensive solution that would bring this feature to life.

MODIV was brought on board to address the stalled project and drive it to completion. Upon engagement, it became clear that the original scope had significantly overstated the actual progress and status of the project. The project required more than just support—it needed a foundational business case to align all stakeholders and provide a clear roadmap for implementation. MODIV quickly adapted to the situation, taking the lead in resetting expectations and steering the project in the right direction.

As we engaged with the teams, it became clear that, despite the project's long history, there was significant misalignment across the various stakeholders. Many team members were unclear on the objectives, the purpose, and their own role in the project. Given this confusion, our first step was to take a step back and articulate the project's goals on a single page, which we then socialized across multiple teams. This allowed us to develop a comprehensive business case that outlined the importance of the "Payment with Points" functionality and clarified the key project deliverables. This business case became essential for aligning the various teams involved and setting the project on a clear path forward.

Recognizing the complexity of the project and its interdependencies, we identified multiple workstreams, each requiring specific expertise and collaboration across different departments. MODIV took the lead in facilitating cross-functional collaboration, breaking down silos, and ensuring that every team member understood their role in the project. We also introduced a regular cadence of meetings to maintain momentum and address challenges as they arose.

The business case enabled MODIV to quickly identify three critical workstreams: defining key financial parameters, automating the invoicing process, and ensuring seamless system integration for the new functionality. Given the three-year delay, the timeline was aggressive, but MODIV immediately focused on driving the following three deliverables forward.

Financial Model and Point Value Definition: MODIV developed a financial model that defined the point value. This model balanced profitability for the client while improving the reimbursement percentage for hotel owners and maintaining value for members.
Automated Invoicing Solution: A major pain point was the manual invoicing process. MODIV identified a path to automation, significantly reducing the time and effort required to process over 5,000 invoices annually. This not only streamlined operations but also improved accuracy and efficiency.
System Integration Requirements: MODIV coordinated across multiple systems—CRS, PMS, CRM, and SAP—to create a comprehensive requirements document. This blueprint provided the technical teams with clear steps for seamlessly integrating the "Payment with Points" functionality across the client's systems.

Throughout the project, MODIV navigated complex organizational dynamics. First, the increasing involvement of the client’s parent company added layers of complexity, as decision-making processes were unclear and fragmented. Additionally, we had to consider how the point redemption functionality would integrate with the parent company’s existing loyalty program. Finally, the integration of several new software systems further complicated the project. Despite these challenges, MODIV remained focused on the project’s objectives, pushing toward successful implementation.

MODIV's efforts brought the client's loyalty rewards program up to industry standards, closing a competitive gap that had persisted for years. By aligning the financial model, automating invoicing, and laying out a clear technical roadmap, we provided the client with a solid foundation for future loyalty program developments and enhancements.

Building the foundation for future loyalty program developments. Establishing the foundation towards a global program with H World China. Closing competitive gaps. Improving overall operational processes, avoiding timely and manual invoicing. Enabling a seamless booking flow. And all this will be done in order to improve the overall attractiveness of the rewards program, increase IDS share, improve RevPAR through dynamic pricing, build loyalty among the member base, and improve guest experience and satisfaction.

The progress made within just seven months was a testament to MODIV’s ability to drive complex projects forward, even in a challenging environment. The client expressed their appreciation for the clarity and direction we brought to the project, noting the significant progress achieved in such a short time.

MEASURABLE RESULTS

Time Saved on Invoicing: The automated invoicing solution significantly reduced the time spent on processing invoices, freeing up resources for other critical tasks

Proposed invoicing alternative will reduce manual invoicing labor, an expected opportunity cost of 50-100K EUR/year

Proposed PWP solution will increase owner reimbursement, while also maintain program profitability and guest experience

Payment with Points Loyalty Rewards Program: Strategic Development and Implementatio

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