Long description. Case study: Leading Hotels of the World, Spencer Allen, Senior Brand and Product Manager,
October 2013 to November 2015. Two workstreams. First, the Leading Link internet booking engine: hired as
product manager for the member-hotel booking engine and stakeholder for Sabre's next-generation booking
engine development; expanded within one year into a property-facing distribution and marketing role. The
program existed to drive consistency in central reservation system data - room descriptions, content and
photography, and rate integrity - across the portfolio; tailoring the booking engine to each hotel's own
website and tying digital direct bookings back to the CRS kept pricing and content accurate across GDS
channels, call centers, and the broader sales organization. Led the sell-in process for the booking engine
and online marketing consultation calls with member hotels; managed a programmer who tailored the booking
engine to individual hotel websites and connected them to the central reservation system across both
years; drove the expansion through active sales outreach and
seven speaking engagements on distribution best practices at Leading Hotels of the World Distribution
Forums in Singapore (twice), Berlin, Dublin, Zurich, and Miami (twice). Reported results: over $140 million
in program-attributed revenue, a 40% year-over-year revenue increase, a 20% increase in same-store sales,
and a 30% increase in hotel participation. Second, the Remarkably Uncommon brand identity rollout: led brand
activation including brand guidelines, collateral updates, consumer segmentation, and internal training;
managed a team of four graphic designers based in Singapore, New York, and Frankfurt. A video example of
the branding rolled out during this period is embedded and linked below.
Leading Hotels of the World · Senior Brand and Product Manager · October 2013-November 2015
Scaling a member-hotel booking engine to $140M+ in revenue, then rebuilding the brand around it.
The mandate
I was hired as a senior product manager for Leading Link, the internet booking engine branded for LHW by Sabre (previously Trust International). After a year in role, a need for more property-facing engagement for content emerged, and my role expanded to take on brand identity rollout to the hotels, and to set the strategy of how the hotels would represent LHW.
Two workstreams from that period are below: the booking engine expansion, and the "Remarkably Uncommon" brand identity rollout.
01
Part one - platform & distribution
Leading Link internet booking engine expansion
Product ownership on the platform side, paired with direct sales and marketing consultation on the ground with member hotels.
The role
I managed Leading Link as the internet booking engine for LHW's member hotels and served as the LHW-side stakeholder in Sabre's development of the next generation of the booking engine. I also managed a programmer who customized the engine for individual hotel websites and connected each property to the central reservation system - an ongoing responsibility across both years in the role.
Why the program mattered
The booking engine program existed to drive consistency in the data feeding LHW's central reservation system - room descriptions, content and photography, and rate integrity across a portfolio of independently branded hotels. Tailoring the engine to each hotel's own website and tying its digital direct bookings back to the CRS meant that pricing and content stayed accurate everywhere else that data flowed downstream: the GDS channels, LHW's call centers, and the broader sales organization.
How participation grew
Growth came from direct sales outreach - leading the sell-in process for the booking engine and running online marketing consultation calls hotel by hotel - combined with a consistent speaking presence at LHW's own Distribution Forums, where I presented on distribution and digital marketing best practices to the member hotel network.
Distribution forum speaking engagements
Singapore
2 engagements
Miami
2 engagements
Berlin
1 engagement
Dublin
1 engagement
Zurich
1 engagement
Results
Revenue, YoY
+40%
Same-store sales
+20%
Hotel participation
+30%
$140M+
Program-attributed revenue
October 2013-November 2015. Reflects revenue generated through the Leading Link booking engine sell-in; does not include central reservation revenue, direct hotel bookings, or LHW distribution outside this program.
02
Part two - brand identity
"Remarkably Uncommon" brand identity rollout
Taking the booking-engine relationship with member hotels and using it to activate a new brand identity across the portfolio.
What the activation covered
I led brand activation for the "Remarkably Uncommon" identity: brand guidelines, collateral updates, consumer segmentation, and internal training for staff and member hotels adopting the new look and messaging.
Team
I managed a team of four graphic designers based in Singapore, New York, and Frankfurt, coordinating brand execution across three time zones and the member hotel network they served.
The brand in motion
An example of the "Remarkably Uncommon" brand identity rolled out during this period - watch on YouTube.
Leading Hotels of the World, Senior Brand and Product Manager, October 2013-November 2015. Revenue and growth figures are program-attributed to the Leading Link booking engine sell-in and marketing consultation channel and exclude central reservation and non-program hotel revenue. Video: "Remarkably Uncommon" brand identity example, Leading Hotels of the World. August 2026
