Skip to main content

Home/ Hospitality Technology/ Group items tagged guest services

Rss Feed Group items tagged

xsun015

Clock PMS: Cloud based hotel property management system - 0 views

    • xsun015
       
      Property Management System is an indispensable part of the modern hotel. A good property management system can improve the management level of the hotel, so the hotel's daily management more convenient. The powerful computers and modern management thinking combine to create a smart hotel. Emphasis on modern management, attention attentive service is the purpose of the hotel work. To improve the economic benefits of the hotel, the management level, ensure maximum value for money. Take the Clock PMS as an example. It is a cloud-based hotel PMS with guest-self service portal. Clock PMS could let customers use their smartphones and tablets to check your synchronized real time availability, book a room or a room type. In a word, PMS is very important for the hotel. 
yimengliu

Technology key to hotel success, yet few hoteliers investing in advancements - 0 views

  • Separate research by two companies – Samsung Electronics UK and hospitality IT Support company Cardonet – out this week, has revealed that just a quarter of hotels have money to invest in technology despite 82 per cent of hoteliers agreeing that spending out on the latest technology could boost customer loyalty and increase revenue. 
  • “The speed at which technology is progressing can be frightening, but when all is said and done, businesses simply want to use systems that work.
  • it is a higher expectation from guests for services such as free and fast Wi-Fi and remote check-in systems which is driving the need for investment, but many are still failing to do so. 
  •  
    This article is talking about more and more hoteliers would like to invest technology to their property in order to attract more customers. According to a research of Samsung Electronics UK and hospitality, IT Support company Cardonet 82% hotelier said they agreeing that invest technology can keep their royalty customers and increase revenue. For every hotelier, the goal is to boost occupancy levels which means hotel can increase their revenue. Most of the hoteliers believe technology can help them to achieve this goal. Being closer to the IT resellers and suppliers and always focus on how to invest the new service that will gain more customers and increase hotel's revenue. For most of the hotel, there still have a challenge for them to investment new technology such as customer not accept the emerging technologies and dear of changing the new technologies. Some customer may won't use Wi-Fi or the old school people they won't like to use the smartphone as a room's key. On the other hand, it's not easy to invest the new technology for a hotel, the old system may not accept the new tech or the system won't allow the old data and the new tech stay together.
tgore002

10 Must Have Features of A Property Management System - Financesonline.com - 0 views

  • A calendar allows property owners, managers, and employees to visualize their reservations and availability in different ways.
  • A good property management system will allow you to create rate plans and derived rate plans and then easily assign them to reservations.
  • robust reporting module built in.
  • ...7 more annotations...
  • Distribution is one of the major ways that small to medium-sized properties can compete with large hotel brands. Channel managers have become common and relatively cheap over the past few year
  • Online distribution channels that can bring more business to your property are great, but they come at a cost. And sometimes, that cost is significant as commission percentages increase. However, if a traveler has found their way to your website, you deserve to capture their direct booking.
  • sell the most sought after room types to the people who want them at the right time.
  • Email marketing is still very much alive and you can use your previous guests emails to keep in touch about local happenings, discounts, and other important information.
  • Accepting and modifying reservations becomes easy and seamless with a point of sale integration.
  • Pricing intelligence is the process of collecting and acting upon real-time consumer and competitor activity.
  • ost properties need some sort of POS to manage payments for their bar, restaurant, small store, etc.
  •  
    This article talks about important features that a property Management System need to have. The most important features are the following: A drag and drop calendar which will help managers to visualize reservation and availability. Rate plan management will help to create a rate plan and have them easily applied to reservation. Integrated channel manager since it is important for hotels to be able to join as many available channels a possible to make more sales. Reporting is also very important to be able to track performance real time and keep control of the health of the company. Another key important feature is shared inventory and direct booking support since if customers can book directly from the properties website the hotel will avoid paying commissions. The customer data base is great for marketing and to create loyal customers. The last features that a property management system should have are pricing intelligence, point of sale and the ability to track other revenues services from other services that are offered in the property. A PMS system that has all these features will help a company run the property very well. I would add a good customer support because if this system goes down basically the hotel cannot do anything so I think it is very important that if it is not working for any reason that it has be fixed very fast so that it does not affect customer relations.
lderi004

Marriott Bringing Beacons To 500 Hotels By The End Of 2016 | - 0 views

  • I was reading a lot about beacon technology, and I thought there were some cool things we could explore. We should put beacons in our hotel just to see who we target a message for most effectively.
  • Using Beacon technology, participating hotels could send guests push notifications on their mobile devices as they moved about the property
  • Offers were tailored to specific Marriott locations, ranging from food and beverage to spa to golf
  • ...1 more annotation...
  • Consumers want upgrades and offers that are tailored specifically to their needs.
  •  
    This article spoke about how Marriott had given proximity marketing an initial try in 2014, and how it was so successful, they decided to bring it to an extra 500 of their hotels in 2016. They originally started with this technology to see who they targeted most effectively. Once they saw how successful it became in driving sales, they started to improve their offerings, by adding promotions tailored to locations, from local food to spa services. Overall, Marriott believes its no longer about how loyal a consumer is to a brand, but how loyal a brand is to their consumers. 
elena_martynova

Why Cybersecurity in the Hotel Industry Should be a Joint Effort - 3 views

  • The global hospitality industry now sits in the top three of industries most frequently targeted by hackers, according to the 2015 Trustwave Global Security Report.
  • Thieves have seized the opportunity to capitalize on the wealth of data that passes through varying weak spots in hospitality networks, and they're now looking for more than just credit card data. Hotels hold contact details, travel plans, air miles, birth dates, passport data and personal preferences on millions of guests - all of which can be used by criminals in a multitude of ways, ranging from fraud to extortion.
  • According to the aforementioned report, 65 percent of the hospitality industry's security breaches were via point-of-sale (POS) systems, with weak remote access security contributing to 44 percent of those compromises.
  • ...6 more annotations...
  • But a number of breaches also affecting the industry targeted booking partners - companies that facilitate reservations on behalf of the hotel brands for services such as air travel, car rental and room bookings.
  • Regardless of where the initial breach occurs, one thing is certain: if customers can't rely on a brand's booking system, they will simply go elsewhere. Statistics show that nearly one in five shoppers have dropped out of an online travel booking because of security concerns around payment.
  • Understanding where critical data lives within your enterprise and how it moves, both internally and outside of the organization, is paramount.
  • POS attackers often take advantage of vulnerabilities, from configuration errors like easy-to-guess passwords to underlying flaws in the system itself, to access payment terminals and plant malware.
  • it is critical that hotel chains - and their partners - have experts regularly conduct deep-dive penetration to sniff out potential vulnerabilities before criminals can take advantage of them.
  • To mitigate the potential damage caused by unidentified malware, hoteliers and their partners should implement intrusion detection, security management and threat intelligence services, as well as scan inbound and outbound communication to flag data-stealing malware in real time and prevent information from leaving the door
  •  
    This article tells us about the fact, that now days the global hospitality industry is one of the industries which is most frequently targeted by hackers. In order to avoid any attacks there must be tighter control across a hotel and its network of partners. So the main 3 aspects which will help to avoid attacks are: -assess risks everywhere -protect the POS system -find malware and keep data protected
ehida004

The History of POS Use In Restaurants - 0 views

  • Mobile and cloud POS offer restaurant owners the ability to know: who their customers are how much they’re spending what their favorites are where they’re from and how long it’s been since their last visit
    • ehida004
       
      With the accessibility of mobile and cloud POS , we are able to meet the demands of our customers and provide a better service. The accessibility this system provides to both customer and owner allows for a seamless experience. This article talks about the history of POS system in the restaurant industry. Modern POS systems are changing the restaurant industry, levels of service are increasing and labor is decreasing. If a restaurant owner is away he or she could work from anywhere, as long as internet is available. This cloud based system also provides security to the customer. Having these portable POS systems in restaurant tables provide entertainment to customers and increase sales. Overall, providing a seamless experience to the consumer.
  • From the customer side, cloud and mobile POS gives guests the ease to not have to carry a wallet full of gift cards and instead have it all on their phone, or to have their debit card remembered on the system so they don’t have to pull it out or wait for the waiter to swipe the card.
    • ehida004
       
      The convenience of cloud and mobile POS is amazing and offers security by avoiding having to carry valuables, such as credit cards around the property that may get lost or stolen.
  • if a restaurant owner is away, he or she can actively react to something without having to physically be at the restaurant.
  • ...3 more annotations...
  • A cloud-based POS systems’ subscription not only covers features and upgrades; it also covers security, and you better believe that POS systems nowadays are serious about security
  • There’s going to be more tableside, interactive things for customers to do while waiting for their food. Perhaps each table will have their own POS system to log in to and order, that send food to the kitchen right away.
  • Of course, there are certain liability issues to worry about there, especially when it comes to liquor, but I think the future of the restaurant point of sale system is that it will combine both customer-facing and restaurant-facing features, to create a fluid experience.
bench7628

Are Waiters In Danger Of Being Replaced With Tablets And Robots? - iReTron Blog - 0 views

    • bench7628
       
      This article point the positive and the negative effects of robot waters and tablets in the restaurant industry. There is a high demand for eMenu and robots in the restaurant industry in the country like China.
  • A new report from Cornell University claims that table top technology actually benefits customers at full-service casual dining chains. By monitoring one chain restaurant’s service over the course of two Fridays and two Saturdays, research showed that table turnover rates improved and customer spending increased when a table top-placed tablet was used for ordering and/or settling the bill.
  • When you think about it, there can be advantages to robot waiters. They won’t spit in your salad when they get mad at you, and they certainly won’t give you a bad attitude. They probably won’t need to be tipped. But don’t people go to restaurants for human interaction?
  • ...1 more annotation...
  • Perhaps people who attend fancy restaurants won’t like the new technology completely taking over their experience. And then there are people who are completely sick and tired of technology taking over every other profession, including education and banking. But the replacement of waiters with tablets and (possibly) robots is certainly going to happen whether they like it or not.
jorgeegutivav

Why So Many Hoteliers are Upgrading Their Property Management Systems This Year | By Je... - 0 views

  •  
    This article discusses how many hotel properties are finally getting rid of their legacy property management systems (PMS) for more advanced ones which enable a more seamless experience for both guests and employees. These PMSs are huge data collection centers and being able to connect multiple facets of the hotel operations under one software is extremely advantageous. Many systems are now diverse enough to be used by departments other than Front Desk, Housekeeping, and Sales. Matter of fact, some PMSs now are been used for inventory management, group scheduling, and for other departments such as golf and spa. Adopting the right PMS is vital for a hotel's success. A full-service luxury resort will require a complex PMS being able to connect multiple departments, meanwhile, a limited-service budget hotel might still only require the most essential PMS functions.
bbast007

Restaurant Customer Self-Ordering System: A Solution to Reduce Customer/Guest Waiting T... - 0 views

  •  
    Introduction Many Fast Food Restaurants are using the Point of Sales Systems in their food and beverage establishments to take orders from their customers. These systems are being distributed rapidly at a fast pace and has become increasingly popular in the food and beverage industry to improve customer service, operational efficiency and food safety. Food and Beverage entrepneuers are also adapting to these emerging technological systems to remain competitive in their industry and to increase growth of the business. There are diverse Restaurant Management Information System components that are used in the fast food industry. They comprise of Inventory Menu Managements control Systems, Labour Scheduling and Time Management Systems, Reservations and Table Management. . This study reviews the constraints of the existing system used in the restaurants and proposes a potential System solution called Restaurant Customer Self Ordering System. Customer Self-Ordering Systems allows prospective customers to order for food electronically while in the restaurant. This system proposes to limit customers' wait time and improve customer service. However, it may have some challenges that include a high cost to implement the system, the intergration into existing systems and staff adoptability of the proposed system. It was further recommended that a solution to the implementation of the proposed Customer Self-Ordering System could be to implement a web-based system that allows customers to access food menu/beverages and order via the internet with the use of their mobile phones at any time and any where they may be. It is anticipated that this new system feature will attract a wider range of audience and potential customers.
jhazz003

Expedia Announces Suite of Software and Technology Products for Hotel Partners - 0 views

  • Omni Hotels & Resorts is the latest partner to take advantage of Expedia's package solution. "Omni Hotels & Resorts is excited to further leverage our marketing partnership with Expedia to bring our guests the option to book their total vacation experiences directly with us," said Peter Strebel, chief marketing officer and senior vice president of sales for Omni Hotels & Resorts.
  • Partner Loyalty Enrollment: Initially tested with Red Lion Hotels Corporation last fall, the technology has advanced to now allow hotel partners to enlist and sign up users from Expedia sites for their brand loyalty programs. This program has grown to include three other chains.
  • MICE Booking Technology: The MICE solution is the first tool that truly automates the booking process for meeting organizers and hotels in real time, making RFPs (requests for proposals) a thing of the past. Hotels can increase MICE sales efficiency by integrating the MICE online booking engine on their website, allowing customers to configure and directly book their meeting, including group lodging, online. This technology further enables hoteliers to yield prices for meetings and groups, based on multiple dynamic criteria to increase revenue. The MICE solution is currently live with Best Western Central Europe and the NH Hotel Group in Germany with promising results. A global rollout will begin soon.
  • ...3 more annotations...
  • Rev+:
  • As p
  • art of Expedia® PartnerCentral (EPC), the company's partner portal which helps hotels manage their properties and rates, Rev+ is a revenue management tool designed to provide actionable data and insights to empower partners to make smart decisions to optimize their revenue. Rev+, an essential tool for revenue managers, comes at no additional costs for hotel partners, and doesn't require additional sign-up.
  •  
    Expedia has announced new technology and software for hotel partners that will help hotel partners drive knowledge and efficiencies. "Expedia Powered Technology was born from rethinking how we work with our hotel partners - through listening to their needs, and leveraging our technology as a driver for industry solutions," said Cyril Ranque, president, Lodging Partner Services. It is vital for Expedia, the world's largest online travel company to listen to their hotel partners and to follow the growing technology advancements. Omni Hotels & Resorts has been the latest partner to join the Expedia's package solution.
mitchlaferriere

SiteMinder brings GDS representation in-house as hotel customers more than triple in on... - 0 views

  • Almost 900 hotels located in the world's top destinations are poised to receive personalized GDS sales and marketing representation from the global hotel industry's leading cloud platform. SiteMinder announced its new service at the 49th GBTA Convention Sunday on the back of a year that has seen its GDS connectivity solution, 'GDS by SiteMinder', gain its own chain code and more than triple in hotel users.
  • Jason Lewis-Purcell, Vice President, GDS at SiteMinder, says, "There is a tendency to overlook global distribution systems in today's digital age, but the truth is they are still some of the highest performing sales and marketing channels for hotels. Over the past year, GDS by SiteMinder powered nearly 200,000 reservations worth over $60 million in hotel revenue, showing how effective global distribution systems are in bringing guests hotels wouldn't otherwise attract, especially from Monday to Friday when properties need business most."
  • "SiteMinder has always known the crucial role the GDS plays, but we wanted to bring the legacy system into the modern world. GDS by SiteMinder uniquely brings cloud-based technology together with legacy GDSs that are as relevant today as they were thirty years ago, to provide hotels an incomparable total distribution platform. It's now used by about sixty percent more hotels than our industry's most renowned soft brands."
  • ...1 more annotation...
  • GDS by SiteMinder provides hotels a single point of entry to the world's major global distribution system providers – Sabre, Amadeus and Travelport – and travel agent network. In addition to sales and marketing representation, hotel users of the GDS connection receive free consortia advice, account management and local customer support.
  •  
    Relatively speaking, GDS's have been around for a while now, with iterations stretching back a few decades now. SiteMinder has worked to integrate cloud technology into traditional GDS models to streamline distribution. They have had strong success, powering over 200,000 reservations in the past year, generating over $60 million in hotel revenue. Over 900 hotels are now poised to receive SiteMinder services, making them the industry leading GDS cloud platform. To date, SiteMinder is represented in the globe's most influential cities, including New York, Los Angeles, London, Honk Kong, Paris, Munich, and Sydney. GDS technology has come a long way from the early models that airlines used solely for in-house purposes. New GDS's such as SiteMinder are both a testament to adaptation and the appeal of cloud technology.
sigomezsh

Creating an Irresistible Mobile Travel Experience with Proximity Marketing - 1 views

  • Online travel agencies can harness proximity technology to enable travelers to book hotels, rental vehicles, tickets for trains, airlines, buses and theaters; and even dinner reservations.
  • In 2016, 51.8% of travelers booking trips online will do so via mobile devices
  • By 2019, mobile sales could represent 46 percent of digital travel sales
  • ...8 more annotations...
  • Upon a tourist's entry into a particular zone or establishment, such as a hotel that the tourist has already booked, the OTA is able to send announcements and offers regarding restaurants, events and other attractions in the vicinity.
  • Online travel agencies can collect information such as the traveler’s age, marital status and number of children (if any), most visited places, preferences and travel behaviors to target travel services and deals.
  • n particular zone of a city, village or other tourist destination, a geofencing can be used to drive awareness and enable visitors to book local restaurants or hotels; buy tickets for attractions, museums, concerts or other events; or shop retail malls and outlets.
  • A beacon is a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) device that transmit signals normally up to 50 meters.
  • An OTA might use beacons to advertise deals on tickets. Guests in a hotel or resort can receive personalized offers, such as discounts with affiliated restaurants, nightclubs, retail stores and museums, through their mobile devices.
  • Proximity marketing affords flexibility and convenience for planning vacations or trips.
  • Now, travelers can explore on the go once they arrive and choices and arrangements can be made at the destination.
  • By using online data, mobile app data and location information, OTAs can provide personalized recommendations to consumers for booking additional services, enhance customer relationships with a sustainable brand loyalty and enhanced customer lifetime value (CLV).
  •  
    In article it will display several examples of how the consumers are leaning towards online purchases and the popularity behind why people are catering to these functions.
lamia elachchabi

POS Software Trends 2012 | Top Stories | | Hospitality Magazine (HT) - 10 views

  • In 2011, many POS software developers focused on launching new options to help mobilize operators, connect them directly with their customers, and allow more visibility across the enterprise. Social media, cloud computing and mobile solutions dominated this year, and most vendors report these trends only growing stronger in 2012. Their input is covered in the “Vendor Innovations & Predictions” section.
  • This year’s survey also suggests that hospitality operators may be growing tired of waiting for the vendor community to develop acceptable tableside ordering devices, and are considering mobile phone-based POS as an alternative.
  • . When comparing 2012 purchasing plans to last year’s survey results, a trend emerges: more investment in the year ahead.
  • ...2 more annotations...
  • Hospitality operators were also asked to share their POS purchasing plans for the year ahead . When comparing 2012 purchasing plans to last year’s survey results, a trend emerges: more investment in the year ahead. This is positive news for industry, as it shows that purse strings have loosened for IT budgets. In fact, it’s also a full reversal of the results of this survey from one year ago when, across the board, hospitality operators reported far less POS investment plans
  • The point-of-sale has undergone something of an identity shift over the past several years, as hard-wired, all-in-one units are being replaced by a variety of mobile devices.
  •  
    For recent years, the operators in the hospitality industry are looking for the suitable solutions that allow them to break down the tableside ordering barriers, such as the mobile phone-based POS. In the annual report analysis for the POS Software Trends, the hospitality industry takes a look at industry-wide innovation priorities for this system. Among the talking with the developers for the enhancements for POS software in 2011, many developers focus on launching new options for mobilize operators.In this year, social media, cloud computing and mobile solutions are the three top and will continually growing in 2012. A trend for 2012 POS purchasing plan is, more investment in the year ahead. It is a full reversal of the results of this survey. Greatest number of operators plans to add new functionality and features to their current POS software in the year ahead. A third of operators plan to expand the installation base of the POS software they currently use. Researching and testing new POS solutions for possible future deployment will be the focus for 20.5% of hospitality industry.
  • ...5 more comments...
  •  
    I ran across this article while I was researching for my paper. It's pretty interesting and it gives you a sense of what changes could be coming to your favorite restaurants. I'm not surprised to see online and mobile POS systems being the most in demand. Those systems are pretty cost effective and have the potential to really increases sales.
  •  
    Maybe in the future, smart phone can do everything.
  •  
    This article focuses on the topics of POS Software Trends 2012 in hospitality industry. In the past several years, the POS has been changed from hard-wired, all-in-one units to a variety of mobile devices. Hoteliers are looking for the POS which is industry-tailored and affordable. According to the annual POS Software Trends report, enhancements and plans has been pointed out. In 2011, social media, cloud computing and mobile solutions are the main R&D aspects. They plan to pay more attention to Vendor Innovations & Predictions in 2012. HT has also pointed out the trends from the POS Software Reader survey. Firstly, from the POS features in demand, the top three are online ordering, mobile phone-based POS applications, and interesting innovation. What's more, mobile phone-based POS would be possibly replaced the tableside ordering devices. Secondly, from the POS purchasing plans aspect, more investment will be occurred in the next year. But in fact, hoteliers reported far less POS investment plans. The top three plans are to add new functionality and features to the current POS software, to expand the installation base of the POS software they currently use, and to develop and/or deploy a POS for use on a mobile device.
  •  
    In the few years, the hardwires are replaced by a plenty of mobile device. For example, Motorola mobile companys retail the enterprise tables to the hotel operators. The hotel operator should pay for the enterpeise tables. The annual POS Solftware Trends report fingers out that the hospitality technology takes a look at industry-wide innovation priorities for POS software. POS features has a high demand in the hospitality industry.
  •  
    Great Post! There are some companies that are working on a new products that would allow guests to simply wave their room key on the POS system and the system will register their room key information versus charging to manually to the room with just the room number. One of the biggest issues in the industry is making sure that the POS system in the hotel interfaces with the PMS system. Without the interfacing, hotels face balance check variance and possible loses.
  •  
    This article introduces the trends of POS in hospitality industry. It lists some data to show the hospitality operators consider mobile phone-based POS instead of tableside ordering devices. It also list the information about the hospitality operators plans to add new functionality and features to their current POS software.
  •  
    The points of sale have changed over the years. The hard wires, all in one unit are being replaced by mobile devices. As the article mentions, hospitality operators have been looking for solutions to break tableside ordering barriers. After motorola released a tablet, the software community has been working in developing applications for both consumers and employees. The POS software developers are been asked about the improvement happening in the technology. Social media, cloud computing and mobile solutions are growing trends. Hospitality operators were asked which POS platform innovation are they looking for. The POS features in demand are: Online POS Mobile phone based POS ordering Enterprise wide centralized POS Table side POS ordering Cloud computing Software as a service Open source There is an increase in investment for POS development. The POS features purchasing plans: Add new functionality features and modules to POS Test and research new POS solution for possible implementation after 2011 Install POS on a wireless network.
jackyreis

The Role of Green Technology in the Sustainability of Hotels Essay - Free Argumentative... - 2 views

  • Throughout the life of hotels— from building construction, operation, maintenance and evolution—the environmental issue is the wasteful consumption of vast amount of resources such as water and energy and accumulation of air, soil and water pollution in a built environment. The unique service function and operations of hotel result to a stronger ecological impact when compared to other buildings used for commercial purposes. (Bohdanowicz, Simanic & Martinac, 2004)
  • It is imperative for hotels to construct buildings, design their facilities, operate, and refurbish structures in a way that causes the least possible harm to the environment. (Straus & Gale, 2006)
  • Protection of the environment through eco-friendly practices by hotels involves a radical change in operations and a long-term impact, which makes this a sustainability-driven strategy
  • ...41 more annotations...
  • The growing concern over sustainability in the business sector led to developments in innovative environment friendly processes and tools collectively called green technology
  • Green technology enables the eco-friendly practices of business firms.
  • The concept of sustainability emerged in the field of natural sciences in recognition of the scarcity of natural resources and the need to rationalize usage to secure sufficient resources for future generations (Kirk, 1995).
  • The concern of sustainability is ensuring the continuation of the well-being of people and protection of the environment from wasteful use or destructive activities.
  • The implementation of sustainability plans involves innovative methods and tools accessible to hotels and responsive to the multi-dimensional issues including impact of operations on the environment experienced by hotels. Green technology understood as eco-friendly tools and processes or environment friendly products support the successful implementation of sustainability plans in the hospitality industry.
  • 1.      Minimized pollution and rational energy and water consumption. 2.      Respect for culture and tradition. 3.      Community involvement in the hospitality economy. 4.     Consideration of quality instead of quantity in terms of the visitors to tourist destinations. 5.      Economic benefits redound to the community. (Robertson, 2007)
  • In relation to environmental sustainability, there are also considerations for inclusion into the sustainability plan of hotels to ensure that they meet environmental compliance (Butler, 2008)
  • However, even if sustainability planning is a tedious task, the expected outcomes are long-term and compelling because this determines the continuity or viability of hotels, firms whose future survival depends on sustainability (Butler, 2008).
  • 1.      Scale and distribution of operations in a given area. 2.      Hotel demand and means of alleviating the negative effects. 3.      Protection of key assets historic buildings, townscape or coastline. 4.     Contribution to other related areas such as economic development and cultural preservation. (Sharma, 2004)
  • Since the sustainability of hotels spans multidimensional aspects, the contribution of hotels to other areas such as employment or job creation also supports its sustainability.
  • Green technology received recognition as an aspect of human society and therefore part of sustainability. In a sustainability panel of representatives from the hospitality industry, sustainability as a strategy meant addressing today’s needs without adversely affecting tomorrow’s needs (Knowles, 2008).
  • Examples of product enhancement are energy saving appliances and fixtures such as fluorescent instead of incandescent lights or intelligent air conditioning systems that regulate room temperature depending on the presence of its occupant
  • The extent of reduction of waste varies since this could range from minimal to significant decrease in the volume of waste generated, capacity of landfills, and transportation needs. By benefiting the environment, economic benefits also accrue. (Billatos & Basaly, 1997)
  • dopting waste management processes and tools accrues financial, economic, and environmental benefits for hotels.
  • Key to these activities is the ability to harness the full functional value of materials and product components at the least possible additional processing cost for recovery and reuse. (Billatos & Basaly, 1997)
  • First is design of recycling or the cost-effective manner of recovering and reusing materials. The design provides support during the disposal stage to ensure low added cost for recovery. Second is design for disassembly encompassing the methods enabling the minimization of cost in segregating reusable materials. This leads to savings that accumulate when design interventions are made during the stages of material selection and assembly that already separates reusable materials
  • Third is toxics management comprised of the activities of controlling and eliminating toxic materials that are innate components of products such as cadmium or lead. Excessive levels of these toxic materials are hazards to health and the environment. (Billatos & Basaly, 1997)
  • Environmental benefits include reduced accumulation of waste and lesser risk of soil, water and air contamination of toxic production. (Billatos & Basaly, 1997)
  • Pollution prevention involves the elimination of processes in manufacturing that cause pollution. This requires change by redesigning the production process in a manner that prevents the accumulation of harmful by-products or the redesign of the finished products so there would be no use for processes that result in hazardous by-products. The prevention of pollution in production design exacts capital investments but the cost of redesign is deemed less when compared to the cumulative cost of controlling pollution, which would likely increase with new regulations imposing more active methods of pollution control. (Billatos & Basaly, 1997)
  • Green technology as a process and a collection of tools addresses four objectives, which are a) waste reduction, b) materials management, c) pollution prevention, and d) product enhancement (Billatos & Basaly, 1997). There are processes and tools specifically targeting any one, some or all of these objectives so that the appropriate choice depends on the priority of hotels.
  • The technological development of product enhancement innovations is escalating and promise greater functions for business establishments. (Billatos & Basaly, 1997)
  • Utilizing product enhancement technologies influence the sustainability of hotels in terms of savings on operating cost, lesser pollution and waste in the built environment, and value creation for environmental conscious customers (Yaw, 2005).
  • Overall, green technology supports the sustainability of hotels by decreasing a wide range of economic and non-economic costs to support the financial viability of hotels in the long-term and conserving the natural environment on which the hospitality industry depends for the continuity of business. By adopting green technology, hotels gain processes and tools it can use to secure its sustainability.
  • A range of energy saving technologies is available to the hotel industry. These technologies could make hotels green buildings by targeting various areas for energy saving.
  • One is electric heating pumps as alternatives to conventional electric boilers or condensing/non-condensing boilers requiring gas to run. The use of this green technology by a hotel in Hong Kong with a rooftop swimming pool showed a reduction in energy consumption by 26.5-32.5 MWh and a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 12,000 kg. When computed over a ten-year period, using this technology would save the hotel HK$226,400 in energy cost savings. The hotel can earn back the cost of adopting this technology in two years. (Chan & Lam, 2003)
  • Building designs able to harness alternative sources of energy comprise green technologies that support the sustainability of hotels. Solar panels continue to gain function in energy saving for hotels (“Building in a green edge,” 2008) although the payback period is longer than expected, the energy saving potential extends to the long-term. The use of building designs that harness natural light such as skylight atriums that do not use artificial lighting during the day are also green alternatives for hotels (Kirby, 2009).
  • Another direction of green technology for the kitchen is the reuse of exhaust heat from the kitchen by harnessing the heat from the exhaust or condensing hot air to produce steam for use in cooking. This is a means of recycling energy. However, this involves the integration of the design in the structure of the kitchen or the building itself, which means greater investment. (Higgins, 2008) Nevertheless, further innovations in this technology could enhance practical value for hotels.
  • In other areas of hotels such as rooms and bathrooms, e-sensor systems and LED lights comprise green technology options. E-sensor systems apply to different systems such as lighting and air conditioning. The e-sensors have the capability to change automatically the lighting or air conditioning settings depending on the area of the room where there are people or temperature changes in the room. LED lights offer greater energy savings than fluorescent lights so this represents the third generation in lighting technology. (Kirby, 2008) Systems thinking in energy management comprise a promising green technology in saving on energy costs (Sobieski, 2008).These technologies are widely available and accessible to different hotels. The energy saving is experienced in the short term and the payback period is shorted. The problem with this is hotel guests tampering with the system leading to added cost for repairs. This means that awareness and information dissemination are important for the effectiveness of these technologies.
  • Another green technology for rooms is the biodegradable key cards. These have the same life span as the conventional key cards except that these are biodegradable or recyclable. (Gale, 2009) These require little cost with high environmental impact.
  • This involves the placement of water treatment plants that recycle water used in baths for flushing in toilets. (Edwards, 2004) These comprise viable and accessible water conservation practices that would contribute savings on the cost of water to rationalize the consumption of water as a scarce resource.
  • One is the conscious involvement of hotels in the protection of the environment since the nature of the business of the hospitality industry and the closely connected industries such as tourism heavily rely on the soundness of the natural and socio-cultural environment for business
  • The other is the investment in environment protection in a manner that secures economic and financial as well as a range of non-monetary benefits for hotels in the long-term (Vermillion, 2008).
  • Energy consumption is also a benchmark of the eco-friendliness of hotels
  • The water conserving technologies provide the process and tools for hotels to achieve this benchmark.
  • Waste and pollution management are also benchmarks of the ecological involvement of hotels.
  • Green technology takes the role as an enabling process and tool for hotels to become sustainable.
  • With hotels competing to maintain its customer base and pull customers to shift to the hotel’s services, green technology could become an enabler for hotels to become competitive.
  • Investing in green technology enables hotels to significantly cutback on operating cost. This enables hotels a wider profitability margin and room to offer promotional prices to attract more customers (Jones, 2002).
  • Green technology has taken a central role in the sustainability of hotels. The concept of sustainability of hotels involves the aspects of environmental protection and business viability.
  • The use of green technology also contributes to the viability of business firms in terms of financial standing and non-financial competencies in the long-term. Going green attracts the niche market of environment enthusiasts that contribute to sales. Using the range of green technologies available would also result in savings from operating costs in the long-term, which increases the profit of hotels and gives them flexibility to invest in marketing activities.
  • It is a sound strategy for hotels to consider green technology as a process and a collection of tools in support of sustainability goals.
jwilc019

Setting Course for a Post-COVID Era in Hospitality | By Jason Floyd - 0 views

  • harpening their focus on the kinds of technology that can evolve and align their businesses with where the industry is headed. They've been asking the essential question: How will we be doing business in the future?
  • A key step is uncoupling from legacy systems and their limitations in favor of the cloud and SaaS-based solutions
  • unify everything brand-wide during a time when responding quickly to external forces is essential.
  • ...8 more annotations...
  • more intelligently invest in new technologies that integrate with each other without putting undue pressure on technology teams.
  • so hospitality organizations are better able to share resources and insights no matter where departments and team members happen to be
  • For hotel property management systems, for instance, developments such as mobile reservations, self-managed upgrades, and the use of mobile devices as room keys supports a "high-tech not high-touch" approach to contactless guest experiences.
  • empowering service staff with greater visibility of timelines, schedules, and activities
  • gain greater precision in that process to avoid double-bookings, manage overstays, account for no-shows and other considera
  • tions
  • If the pandemic ended tomorrow, the value of developing a cloud-based platform with this kind of functionality would remain.
  • Consider our present times as a clarion call to hoteliers to create more visibility, deepen connections between teams, increase intelligence, and empower staff to better anticipate and be ready for that change.
  •  
    This article deals with hospitality businesses asking themselves how business will be done in the future and how will stay current or ahead of the curve. It also speaks directly to how to be better prepared for events like COVID moving forward. It states that hospitality businesses need to quit holding on tightly to their old systems and think to the now and beyond by switching to cloud-based systems. It highlights the concept of "high-tech not high-touch", empowering service staff, greater accuracy, and making use of every nook and cranny of a property in the smartest possible ways.
marble_bird

Roche2016_Article_RecreationalDivingImpactsOnCor.pdf - 0 views

shared by marble_bird on 07 Jul 20 - No Cached
  • Recreational diving on coral reefs is an activity that has experienced rapidly growing levels of popularity and participation.
  • the potential role of dive impacts in contributing to coral reef damage is a concern at heavily dived locations. Management measures to address this issue increasingly include the introduction of programmes designed to encourage environmentally responsible practices within the dive industry.
  • Coral reefs are a threatened, but globally important ecosystem, providing key services to local communities such as coastal defence, sediment production, and fisheries benefits
  • ...45 more annotations...
  • The role of dive supervision was assessed by recording dive guide interventions underwater, and how this was affected by dive group size.
  • Over recent decades, tourism activities benefiting from the pleasing aesthetics and biodiversity of coral reefs, primarily SCUBA diving and snorkelling, have experienced rapidly increasing numbers of participants globally
  • We found evidence that the ability of dive guides to intervene and correct diver behaviour in the event of a reef contact decreases with larger diver group sizes. Divers from operators with high levels of compliance with the Green Fins programme exhibited significantly lower reef contact rates than those from dive operators with low levels of compliance.
  • Damage to corals on dived reefs often occurs as a result of skeletal breakage, particularly in branching species (Guzner et al. 2010;H a s l e ra n dO t t 2008). Tissue abrasion can also result from diver contact (Hawkins et al. 1999), and a recent study reported a higher incidence of coral disease in areas heavily used for recreational diving
  • It is possible that other diver characteristics such as qualification level or dive experience may affect the ability to respond to dive briefings, although several studies have failed to find a correlation between divers’ reef contact rates and experience
  • Due to the difficulties of effectively addressing global stressors, an emerging recommendation is the focus of coral reef management on local scales (e.g. Anthony et al. 2014). A frequent challenge facing managers and policy makers at local levels relates to the maximisation of tourism benefits whilst simultaneously reducing its environmental impacts
  • Alternatively, previous experience and possible affinity and attachment to a specific dive site may influence how closely divers follow pre-dive briefings and affect their behaviour underwater, as suggested by place attachment theory
  • The methodologies which have been developed to minimise the environmental impact of SCUBA diving on coral reefs can be summarised as follows: (1) managing or restricting diver numbers, (2) regulating the locations in which SCUBA diving activities occur, (3) regulating the types of equipment used, and 4) implementing programmes which seek to manage the methods used by the dive industry in providing their services. Restricting diver numbers is based on the concept of a reef dive site’s ‘carrying capacity’; a level beyond which diving impacts become readily apparent.
  • Restriction of SCUBA diving equipment has focused on banning the use of accessories believed to increase reef contacts within marine protected areas such as gloves, muck sticks, or underwater cameras; however, such regulations are often unpopular within the SCUBA diving community
  • Governments and reef managers seek evidence that the effort expended in implementing programmes translates into measurable benefits; however, research into the effectiveness of such programmes at influencing diver behaviour and reducing diving impacts is limited.
  • In this study, we focused on dive operators participating in the Green Fins diving programme at three major dive locations within the Philippines.
  • Nonetheless, levels of dive supervision underwater would intuitively appear to be linked to rates of reef contact, and when examined, the willingness of dive guides to intervene in correcting diver behaviour underwater has been found to significantly reduce diver contact rates
  • Malapascua Island, Moalboal, and Puerto Galera.
  • divers may have been aware that a Green Fins compliance assessment was taking place, but they were unaware that diver contacts with the reef were being specifically recorded. Green Fins environmental assessments and diver observations were conducted simultaneously.
  • Dive guides and guest divers from 44 dive operators participating in the Green Fins programme were followed
  • Diver characteristics with potential to influence underwater behaviour were categorised as the following factors: diver qualification level (three levels), dive experience (five levels), and previous number of dives at site (three levels).
  • Divers were assigned a unique diver number, and then followed and observed underwater for the entire duration of their dive.
  • If the overall group was very large such that the dive guide could not be seen from the rear of the group, the pair immediately behind the dive guide was selected.
  • Compliance with the Green Fins approach was determined by utilising diver contact rates and dive guide intervention rates as at the dependent variables of interest, and by defining dive operators according to those who had received a high score (above the median score) versus those with a low score (below the median score) on the most recent conducted Green Fins assessment
  • The part of the body or item of equipment making contact with the reef was recorded as follows: hand, fin, knee, camera, muck stick (a handheld stainless steel or aluminium rod approximately 30 cm in length) and equipment (e.g. tank, submersible pressure gauges, octopus regulator), and multiple (parts of the body and equipment simultaneously). The time during the dive at which the contact occurred was also recorded.
  • If observable damage (i.e. breakage, obvious physical damage, or injury) occurred as a result of the contact this was recorded, together with the apparent awareness of the diver to the contact, regardless of damage caused.
  • Interventions were defined as an event in which the dive guide intervened in diver behaviour through signalling or demonstrating correct behaviour in order to minimise or prevent contact with the reef.
  • A total of 100 SCUBA divers were observed at three diving locations within the Philippines (Table 1). The majority (72 %) of these divers were male, and diving experience ranged from those completing diving training to those who were instructors elsewhere with experience of hundreds of dives.
  • Following dive completion, divers that had been observed underwater were asked to complete a survey to determine diver characteristics.
  • Most contacts were made with fins (45.5 %, n = 261); however, hands (19.5 %, n = 112) and dive equipment (15.9 %, n = 91) were also major contributors to the total number of contacts
  • Contacts made with a camera (77.7 %) accounted for the highest proportion of contacts which resulted in damage, followed by contacts made with the knee (43.3 %), multiple body and equipment parts (38.2 %), equipment (30.7 %), fins (29.8 %), hands (24.7 %), and muck sticks (23.5 %).
  • A total of 81 interventions were observed (in comparison to 573 reef contacts—see Fig. 4 for the distribution of contacts and interventions);
  • Camera systems were carried by 55 % of divers; camera-wielding divers accounted for 52.7 % of the total contacts made with the reef. Of divers who utilised a camera, 35 % carried a non-specialist compact type and 20 % carried an SLR type within a specialist underwater housing.
  • Mean (±SE) dive time was 49.3 ± 0.42 min. A total of 573 diver contacts with the reef were recorded during all assessed dives.
  • The difference in the frequency of interventions was statistically significant (ANOVA, f = 4.81, P = 0.03)
  • although a significant portion (36 %) appeared unaware of the contact they made with the reef.
  • In addition to overall contact levels, some studies have also quantified reef contacts either as the mean number of contacts per diver over the duration of a dive or the diver contact rate per minute of dive time. The mean contact rates of 5.7 contacts per dive, or 0.12 contacts per min, which we observed at dive sites in the Philippines are lower than those previously reported
  • All divers observed within the present study were diving with operators participating to various degrees in the Green Fins environmentally responsible diving programme.
  • Identifying factors and policy measures which influence SCUBA diver behaviour underwater can help coral reef managers determine where to most effectively focus effort and funding with respect to dive management. In this study, we found that 88 % of the divers observed made at least one contact with the reef at some point
  • Divers who are more conservation aware and who contact the reef less may preferentially choose to dive with environmentally ‘accredited’ dive operators; indeed, this assumption partially drives dive operator participation in such programmes.
  • Underwater interventions by dive guides have been suggested to be the most successful deterrent to diver contact with reefs (Barker and Roberts 2004). In this study, there was no significant difference in the intervention rates between dive centres of high and low Green Fins compliance. Therefore, we cannot attribute the observed difference in diver reef contact rates to differences in intervention rates between these two groups.
  • Studies examining the effect of carrying camera equipment on the frequency of diver contacts with the reef have produced conflicting results.
  • Additionally, the administration of a pre-dive briefing can influence diver contact rates underwater (Medio et al. 1997). The Green Fins programme incorporates the use of a pre-dive briefing that emphasises the importance of refraining from contacting the reef, which would be expected to result in lower diver contact rates.
  • A concern amongst representatives of the diving industry is the use of muck sticks to manipulate animals unnecessarily—pushing animals out of holes for better viewing, stressing animals to show customers their stress behaviour (e.g. an octopus changing colour), and physically breaking hard coral to be used in photographs.
  • When examining the part of the body or dive equipment which made contact with the reef, we found that the majority of contacts were made with fins, in agreement with Krieger and Chadwick (2013) and Rouphael and Inglis (1998).
  • It has previously been noted that dive guides customarily perform different roles at dive locations globally; at some locations, they act primarily to lead the dive group around the reef, whilst at others, pairing with and closely supervising individual divers throughout the course of a dive
  • this suggests that dive guides carry out the closest supervision during the initial phase of the dive and then switch to a ‘dive leader’ role at the front of a dive group.
  • This study provides evidence that the effective implementation of environmentally responsible practices, via programmes designed to reduce diving impacts, may translate to reduced diver reef contacts.
  • Many diver characteristics which might intuitively be expected to impact reef contact rates, such as level of qualification and overall experience, were not significant influencing factors in this study, and high versus low levels of Green Fins compliance did not influence the number of interventions made by dive guides underwater.
  • For continued economic benefit and conservation of Philippine reef dive locations, we recommend that management measures facilitate high levels of compliance with environmentally responsible diving programmes to reduce the impact of diving on coral reefs.
  •  
    This article discusses a study performed at various diving locations in the Philippines to determine whether or not measures taken by Green Fin diving guides were effective in reducing contact with coral reef systems. The study also recorded the average number of contacts with the reef during a dive, as well as the equipment or body part which came into contact with the reef most often, and which actions resulted in the most damage. The study finds that adherence to Green Fin standards or other policies may significantly impact diver behaviors and reduce the level of contact with sensitive coral reefs during SCUBA dives.
yijingyang

RMS Announces Technology Integration with M3 Hotel Accounting Software - 0 views

  • RMS, a leading cloud-based property management system provider, announced today a partnership with M3, the leading cloud-based financial platform in the hospitality industry, to offer clients seamless hotel management solutions.
  • Hotels and resorts using M3 accounting and analytics technology can now
  • integrate their property management data from RMS for greater insight into operational performance.
  • ...6 more annotations...
  • automated, daily transfer of critical financial data and property statistics
  • Built by hoteliers, exclusively for hoteliers, M3 is a powerful cloud-based financial platform and services company serving the hospitality industry that drives cost savings, revenue enhancement and business insight
  • M3 touts a 95 percent customer retention rate without contracts.
  • the platform works seamlessly with other key systems and tools in the hospitality industry and offers robust accounting and financial analysis across entire portfolios with optional operations and time management features
  • M3's professional services team provides on-demand support for hotels of any size by offering a full range of customized accounting solutions to scale with a hotel's needs.
  • , RMS provides customizable, cloud-based technology for single and multi-property hotels and resorts. Fully equipped with a comprehensive suite of modules, RMS enables hospitality properties to increase revenue and streamline operations, allowing staff to spend more time attending to guests' needs.
  •  
    This article discusses the new partnership between Hotel Software companies RMS and M3. RMS is one of the industry's leading cloud-based property management systems, meanwhile, M3 is a hotel accounting software. Also, a cloud-based software, M3, was created by hoteliers, for hoteliers. This partnership creates a new level of immersion for properties that adopt the two platforms. Unrivaled communication between the two systems would generate more detailed reports and analysis combing the two largest databases used on property: the property management system and the accounting software system.
  •  
    RMS and M3 announced the cooperation to launch the cloud-base financial platform. This system will be able to integrate and transmit property management data from RMS and daily key financial data and property statistics of the M3 platform to help companies make more accurate decisions.
qyang010

5 Reasons Your Hotel Should Have Self Check-In | Hotel Marketing - 0 views

  • 2. Staff can focus on the things that matter most
  • 3. Self check-in creates upsell and revenue opportunities
  • 4. System interoperability
  • ...1 more annotation...
  • 5. Correct guest data in your system
  •  
    Self check-in hotel is automated check-in, check out, selected your own room, secure payments, and not waste each others time. Also self-service can improve work efficiency and reduce labor costs.
yvenisem

How Wi-Fi 6 is changing the hospitality landscape | CommScope - 0 views

  • Wi-Fi was originally designed to support basic network connectivity for limited services such as retail point of sale (POS) transactions in proprietary business environments.
  • Intel’s endorsement and integration significantly simplified connecting wireless clients and helped make Wi-Fi a standard requirement at hospitality suites across the world.
    • yvenisem
       
      Faster internet = happier customers in the 21st century
  • ...8 more annotations...
  • arly iterations of the IEEE 802.11 Wi-Fi standard were relatively limited in terms of speed, spectrum utilization and the efficiency of communications
  • The latest Wi-Fi iteration – Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) – offers a four-fold increase in speed over its Wi-Fi 5 predecessor, enabling hotels to smoothly stream a range of guest applications
  • Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) is revolutionary, rather than simply evolutionary.
    • yvenisem
       
      REVOLUTIONARY, changing the game, prioritizing efficiency
  • it is smarter (deterministic) and moves away from a ‘first come, first served’ model
  • This provides higher throughput and performance for networks, allowing everyone to move at 15 miles an hour instead of 10. 
    • yvenisem
       
      Efficiency
  • the dominant enterprise Wi-Fi standard by 2021
    • yvenisem
       
      shows how quickly technology can go
  •  
    This article was surprisingly a very interesting read due to how fast things actually are in the world of technology as it relates to the hospitality industry. In this article, I read about the origins of Wi-Fi when it was primarily used as basic network connections for POS software to where we are now with an expectation of the revolutionary technology that is Wi-Fi 6 to roll out in 2021. Currently, we as a society are only really familiar with Wi-Fi 5 that functions on a first-come, first-served basis. Wi-Fi 6, moves past the focus of getting faster internet to getting more efficient internet. While this is a factor of the technology in that it is 4-5 times faster, it actually goes about giving people better internet acces in a more intelligent manner. Based on the article, this intelligence means that instead of someone benefitting from 100MB download speeds when they're watching a short YouTube video since they logged onto the hotel internet first, a person that is streaming a live convention with several cameras and computers would benefit more because it would be more efficient than a simple YouTube video. Something that the author of this article makes very known is that this technology is not getting "better" interms of evolution of product. Wi-Fi 6 is actually entering a new era of intelligence, making it a more revolutionary development in the tech industry and hospitality. In the 21st century, new technology like this is essential because we see so many things moving onto online services when it comes to booking a hotel, buying event tickets, interacting with other people, etc. In a hotel setting, this new technology would lead to increased satisfaction since their Snapchat and Instagram stories are being uploaded at nearly instantaneous speeds, same with their YouTube videos, and Facebook photos. While this may not be the best thingsto do when considering how much of our lives we spend online, it is best to go along and welcome it since the advancemen
isabelladlp

How Can Small Hotels Work With Global Distribution Systems (GDS)? - 0 views

  • Global Distribution Systems (GDS) are just one of the many players involved in selling your rooms to a world of travelers.
  • a GDS acts as a middle-man that connects your small hotel to a network of travel agency professions
  • travel agents then sell your rooms to their customers (a mix of corporates and leisure travelers), and any bookings made are automatic.
  • ...9 more annotations...
  • Retail model
  • easy way to understand this model is if you think about how you would work with your local brick and mortar travel agency, that caters to walk-in customers.
  • Merchant model
  •  you would work with online travel agents (OTAs) like Booking.com via the third party service provider.
  • Opaque model
  • your guests don’t know they’re staying at your specific property until after they’ve made the booking.
  • Small accommodation providers can benefit greatly from using a GDS to connect to retail travel agents and corporate buyers.
  • However, we highly recommend that you steer clear of the merchant model, because you would be paying commission to both the third party service provider and the OTA.
  • n this kind of business relationship, it’s much better to retain full control of your rates and inventory, and cut out the middle-man by using an integrated channel manager to sell rooms through your OTAs.
« First ‹ Previous 1041 - 1060 of 1169 Next › Last »
Showing 20 items per page