OPTiM Financial Solutions

was founded in 2006 by two key senior members of Great Southern Hotels management team.

The focus of the business is to provide tailored financial solutions to the hospitality industry. It assists hotel managers and owners by providing a comprehensive range of services with detailed management information and facilitating the decision making process that is vital to their business.

OPTiM’s strength lies in both directors’ extensive industry experience of over 30 years. They are members of  HOSPA (Hospitality Professionals Association) formerly called BAHA (British Association of Hospitality Accountants) which gives access to significant support resources and enables them keep up to date with the latest developments in the industry.

Rowena Parker has over 30 years experience in the hotel industry both in Ireland and UK where she was Assistant Financial Controller for the 550 bedroom Barbican City Hotel, Management Accountant of the London head office of Intercontinental Hotels and Financial Accountant in the 5 Star Savoy Hotel in London before taking up the position of Area Accountant in Great Southern Hotels.

Hotels under her control were the Great Southern Hotel Galway; Corrib Great Southern Hotel and the City Hotel Derry. During her time in GSH she also handled the industrial relations and negotiations with the Trade Unions.

Since early 2009, Rowena has been responsible for the financial management and restructuring of a country house estate comprising 2 hotel offerings with additional self-catering and equestrian facilities.

Michael O’Hare has over 30 years experience of financial management within the hotel industry. During this period, he has developed an in-depth knowledge of this complex and challenging business. Through his work with Great Southern Hotels, he has created a detailed budgeting model to assist hotels in control of their costs and analysis of revenue.

He is also very familiar with employment law as it affects hotels having been responsible for the systems administration of both payroll and personnel systems for the GSH Group. Michael has, in the past, undertaken a number of projects to improve the workflow and performance of back office systems with the use of latest technology. Since the formation of OPTiM, Michael has conducted numerous financial reviews of hotels on behalf of various financial institutions assessing the adequacy of internal controls and the validity of profit and cash flow forecasts.