Hidden Costs of Manual AP in Hospitality: How Colwen Hotels Automated Accounts Payable - Ottimate

Hidden Costs Behind the Front Desk

How Colwen Fixed Manual AP for Its Hotel Group

Hospitality may run on great guest experiences, but behind the scenes, manual accounts payable can quietly drain time, money, and vendor trust.

In this fireside chat with the team from Colwen Hotels, you’ll hear what it really costs to manage AP through paper-heavy processes — from invoice bottlenecks and strained supplier relationships to the breaking point that made automation unavoidable.

You’ll hear how Colwen’s Purchasing Manager Stephanie Shea-Estabrook and Food & Beverage Purchasing Manager Ry Jones transformed back-office operations, what the adoption journey looked like, and the “never going back” moments that proved AP doesn’t have to be a constant fire drill.

If your hospitality finance team is still buried in manual work, this is a story worth hearing.

Webinar speakers

Kara Dion

VP, Customer Success

Kara Dion is the Vice President of Customer Success at Ottimate, leading Onboarding, Support, Account Management, and Customer Success. With nearly a decade in fintech, she brings a customer-first mindset and a proven ability to build high-performing teams that drive retention, adoption, and growth. Before Ottimate, she led customer success organizations at AvidXchange and FastPay, scaling post-sale operations during periods of rapid expansion.

Ryan Jones

Purchasing Manager

As Purchasing Manager at Colwen Management, Ry Jones leads procurement across a diverse portfolio of hotel properties, aligning purchasing strategies with financial goals, operational efficiency, and brand standards. Ry focuses on building strong vendor partnerships, negotiating competitive contracts, and ensuring reliable supply chains, while collaborating with property and corporate teams to support openings, renovations, and ongoing operations.

Stephanie Shea-Estabrook

AP Manager

Stephanie Shea-Estabrook serves as the Accounts Payable Manager for Colwen Hotels, overseeing accounts payable operations across a diverse hotel portfolio. With experience working in both property-level operations and corporate finance, she brings a well-rounded perspective to the payables process. She is actively involved in implementing AP automation, streamlining day-to-day workflows, and improving accuracy and efficiency across multiple properties.