Nobu Hotel London Portman Square supercharges productivity with Fourth’s Activity Based Scheduling
Industry
Hospitality
Employees
400
Solutions
HR, Payroll, Activity-based Scheduling, Analytics
The implementation of Activity Based Scheduling delivers an instant impact, with £200k of payroll savings in a matter of months.
£200k payroll savings in a few months
Increased accuracy of payroll forecasting
Greater visibility of agency hours
“Fourth’s activity-based scheduling is a really powerful tool. We can see payroll costs instantly, flex agency use, and manage recruitment approvals with ease. Chefs and department managers are using the system to spot issues, refine forecasts, and improve accuracy – something that wasn’t possible before.”
– Nisa Vasconcelos, Finance Director, Nobu Hotel Portman Square
Customer Profile
Nobu Hotel Portman Square is a luxury lifestyle hotel in the heart of London’s coveted Marylebone neighbourhood. Guests can experience Nobu’s iconic cuisine and renowned hospitality where Japanese minimalism meets London’s cosmopolitan culture. The hotel is owned by the L&R Hotels investment firm.
Challenges Faced
Nobu Hotel Portman Square is a large hotel known for providing an exceptional guest experience. It includes a standalone restaurant, an extensive events business, and a large agency workforce. Since labour demands fluctuate on a day-to-day basis, the hotel needed a highly flexible scheduling solution that could adapt to various activity volumes across different teams.
Payroll, being their largest expense, represented a significant opportunity to improve controls, particularly in the face of rising national minimum wage and employment costs. The hotel’s Finance, HR, and operations leaders needed real-time visibility of hours and costs across both permanent and agency labour.
Solution
In early 2024, Nobu Hotel Portman Square implemented Fourth’s activity-based scheduling. The project was led jointly by Finance, HR, and Operations, with strong buy-in from department heads.
Previously, labour forecasting was based on outdated or overly optimistic assumptions, meaning schedules didn’t always match operational needs. With Fourth’s system, forecasts now incorporate the data points and activity drivers that directly impact Nobu’s labour model, from occupancy, arrivals and departures, to covers, events and more. Department heads review and adjust these forecasts weekly, ensuring labour aligns with demand to avoid both under- and over-scheduling.
As part of the implementation, Fourth’s consultants helped define labour rules and identify inefficiencies. They uncovered practices such as scheduling hours unnecessarily ahead of events, which were quickly addressed. The system also brought much-needed visibility to agency hours, particularly in housekeeping, where agency labour accounts for around 40% of payroll. This has enabled far more accurate tracking of agency use and improved control of costs.
Results Achieved
Since implementing Fourth’s activity-based scheduling, Nobu Hotel London Portman Square has increased the efficiency of their scheduling processes, yielding a range of benefits:
- Identified and reduced unnecessary hours
- Saved £200k in labour costs in just a few months
- Increased accuracy in tracking agency hours
- Greater accuracy in payroll forecasting
