How Norway’s Largest Hotel Saved 464 Hours Per Month With Flexkeeping

After digitizing operations and connecting all departments in one app, Clarion Hotel The Hub saw productivity soar by 91%. 

Running a hotel with over 800 rooms and 28 conference spaces in the center of Oslo is no easy feat. Just ask Marianne Høybakk, Assistant General Manager at Clarion Hotel The Hub, Norway’s largest and most dynamic property. 

With multiple departments, shifting guest needs, and a high volume of daily turnover, her team needed a smart, scalable way to collaborate and operate seamlessly. That tool turned out to be Flexkeeping.

»For the first time, every department is using the same system. Housekeeping, reception, maintenance, F&B, even events. Everyone is connected.«

From phone call chaos to real-time clarity.

Clarion Hotel The Hub used to rely on a patchwork of calls and manual admin to run daily operations, especially when it came to room status and guest readiness. This led to stress, delays at check-in, and frustration across teams. Housekeeping was often several steps ahead, but without a central system to communicate progress, front desk staff were left in the dark.

Now, housekeepers update room statuses in real time on the mobile app. Reception instantly sees what’s clean and ready for guests, without needing to ask. 

This was echoed by Antonija Delas, Clarion Hotel The Hub's Welcome Office Manager: 

»Before Flexkeeping, you’d have to call 10 times. If they didn’t answer, you had to wait or try again. Now I just send a task and I can see if it’s done—live. It’s much more efficient and trustworthy.«

Major milestones, thanks to automation.

Automation is a key part of Clarion Hotel The Hub’s time-saving puzzle. Flexkeeping integrates seamlessly with Mews to ensure every upsell, guest request, and operational task is automatically assigned and completed. Supervisors can also automate scheduling and forecasting.

By passing off this time-consuming manual work, the team has sped up work allocation by almost 78%. Strawberry executives have taken note. Sven Ellingsen Ephithite, Director of Tech Hotel Openings & Systems, particularly called out the success of Automated Services: a tool that scales special touches by automatically turning PMS data into bespoke services. 

»At one hotel, we automated 13,700 tasks, which gave back nearly 150 hours to spend on the guest experience.«

Clarion Hotel The Hub has seen the impact on its efficiency goals, says Style Manager Iluta Skromane-Almo.  

»After implementing Flexkeeping, we hit our efficiency KPI for the first time since opening 6 years ago. This year, we’re aiming even higher.«

Staff feel empowered and less stressed.

At Clarion Hotel The Hub, staff wellbeing is top priority. Flexkeeping has removed the roadblocks that used to cause friction and delays, and that investment has transformed team morale.

Reli Badescu, Assistant Housekeeping Manager, told us: 

»Since using Flexkeeping, I haven’t had to stay overtime. Previously, I stayed overtime 2-3 times a week. I can handle a lot, but if we had continued with the old tech stack, I wouldn’t have lasted a year. I can now cook dinner for my family.« 

The newfound ease and clarity has also helped staff feel more confident in their work and overall performance. Marianne again:

»Flexkeeping makes me better at my job. It helps me keep track of details, delegate faster, and actually get things done.«

A smoother onboarding than expected.

Implementing a new system across a large team, many of whom speak different languages, could have been a challenge. But onboarding Flexkeeping was remarkably smooth, even for the less tech-savvy staff. Marianne said it best:

»You basically don’t need training. If you can use a phone, you can use Flexkeeping.«

The platform’s auto-translation feature was especially helpful for Clarion Hotel The Hub. It eliminated language barriers, and made it easier for management to onboard new staff quickly and efficiently. Iluta told us: 

“Onboarding new hires is so much easier. Even during summer, when we had 30 new employees, they were ready to go in just one day.  The faster they adapt, the sooner they can contribute, allowing management to save valuable time and focus on operations.«

More time for exceptional service.

With operational friction reduced, teams can focus on what truly sets Clarion Hotel The Hub apart: delivering unforgettable experiences to guests. Antonija said it makes her a "better front office manager".

»I can give better service to the guests and the team can too. Things are more clear, and we don’t waste time following up or calling around.«

This shift has contributed to Clarion Hotel The Hub’s high service quality standards. Guests experience fewer delays and more consistency. Rooms are ready 30% quicker than before, and issues are resolved 50% faster. Antonija again:

“Guest satisfaction is the most important KPI. If something’s broken, we send a task and it gets fixed before the next guest arrives. That’s how we improve every day.«

Current analytics = future success.

Flexkeeping provides actionable data to identify bottlenecks and improve performance. It’s Iluta’s favourite part of the platform. 

»The analytics help me give real feedback to employees. We can track who cleaned which room, how long it took, and what problems or delays are occurring along the way.«

Room changes were a prime example. After the data showed an increase in guests requesting to switch rooms, Iluta dug further into the analytics. She discovered that ventilation issues were largely to blame. They fixed the problem and room change requests dropped dramatically. 

»We can now see what actually happened and how we can be better in the future. And we have the data to back it up.«

A measurable impact for all departments.

• 570% return on investment.

• 91% optimized productivity.

• 463.5 hours saved monthly.

• 78% faster work allocation.

• 75% reported boost in staff satisfaction. 

Want these results for your group?

Download the full case study to see how Clarion Hotel The Hub used their hours to nurture happier staff and very satisfied guests.