WILLIAMSBURG, VA. (October 17, 2017) — Newport Hospitality Group, Inc. (NHG), a prominent hotel management company in the Eastern United States, recently debuted its new team member insider mobile app powered by hubEngage™ and affectionately called “Mikey” (Motivation, Inspiration, Knowledge, Engagement and You) after the company’s Founder and Chairman, Michael Pleninger.
As an innovative tool for hotel team members, Mikey is specifically designed to strengthen NHG’s personal relationships with all associates as well as to heighten the camaraderie amongst employees working at different locations in the company’s hotel portfolio.
Such an online tool is unprecedented for the hospitality industry. With communication, a sense of belonging and meaningful employment all acting as vital components for maximizing team productivity, NHG saw Mikey as a means to enrich team members’ work life. The app has been loaded with rich internal content, social tools and exclusive program awards driving rapid adoption and boosting company morale.
“Mikey showcases our best practices and celebrates our successes, connecting all team members,” said Lizz Chambers, NHG’s Vice President of Associate Engagement. “We know that each associate can have a huge impact on the overall guest experience and ultimately on the property’s bottom line. Regular users of the app have better cultural awareness and help to drive hotel profitability. After all, happy, engaged team members create happy, engaged guests and a healthy bottom line.”
Mikey functions by taking an education-through-entertainment approach and utilizing gamification techniques. It informs savvy, information-hungry team members with regularly refreshed material, industry insights and enjoyable news stories. It provides a rewards-based, intimate learning experience and the ability to communicate directly with team members across the entire NHG portfolio. Associates also participate in an internal social feed network, challenges and contests. They can share stories, provide valuable feedback and have uninterrupted access to a message board where they are encouraged to interact with NHG’s Corporate Team.
The more a team member interacts with Mikey, the more points, badges and rewards he or she will earn, thereby furthering engagement with the app. Access to the program is by invite-only, and codes can be requested via email.
Newport Hospitality Group
Located in Williamsburg, Virginia is a leading hotel management company specializing in select and full-service hotels. They operate more than 40 hotels in the Eastern United States with a diverse portfolio including Candlewood Suites, Holiday Inn Express, Hilton Garden Inn, Homewood, Hampton Inn, Hyatt Place, Courtyard by Marriott, SpringHill Suites, Fairfield Inn & Suites, Residence Inn, TownePlace Suites, Sleep Inn, Cambria Suites, Comfort Inn & Suites and Days Inn.
About hubEngage™
hubEngage™ is an employee app communication and engagement platform that lets you push relevant news, content, surveys, gamification, rewards and much more to users via location-based technologies, segmentation, user behavior and feedback algorithms. Using hubEngage’s intuitive dashboard, you can instantly design, build and trigger mobile and desktop tactics for apps as well as analyze performance and retarget users with increasing relevancy. Visit www.hubengage.com.