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Most people are familiar with the concept of a dead man's switch that, for example, activates the emergency brake should a London Underground train driver become incapacitated.

Most people are familiar with the concept of a dead man's switch that, for example, activates the emergency brake should a London Underground train driver become incapacitated.

Much has changed in the business world since the birth of technology and the subsequent discovery of the world wide web (www) in 1989.

Much has changed in the business world since the birth of technology and the subsequent discovery of the world wide web (www) in 1989.

With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it has become even clearer that tourism is highly dependent on technological solutions.

Smart technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics, are creating an important driving force for travel

hospitality, and leisure (THL)

HG and Marriott International have eliminated plastic straws in thousands of hotels worldwide, removing an estimated 1 billion straws from the ocean and landfills.

Both brands also are cutting out single-use bottles in the hotel bathroom, estimating to remove more than 500 million plastic bottles every year from the environment.

the largest hotel brands will be rolling out room controls within their loyalty platforms that enable guests to preselect the room temperature, lighting mood, TV, music, blinds and more

A human resource information software system or HRIS system is one way that a lot of companies use to manage everything easily and become even more productive.

It is only fair that you treat all the information involving them with utmost confidence.

With the HRIS system, you can track down to which path your work-related decisions are taking you.

Smart controls Hotel smartphone apps have become industry standard, but hospitality industry leaders are using the ubiquitous smartphone in another manner: They’re giving hotel guests the ability to control their rooms via their smartphones. So-called smart controls have been growing in popularity, but major hotel chains are taking them on, leading smart controls toward becoming an expected hotel amenity.

Smart controls Hotel smartphone apps have become industry standard, but hospitality industry leaders are using the ubiquitous smartphone in another manner: They’re giving hotel guests the ability to control their rooms via their smartphones. So-called smart controls have been growing in popularity, but major hotel chains are taking them on, leading smart controls toward becoming an expected hotel amenity.

Beacons Providing two-way communication with nearby Bluetooth-enabled smartphones, beacons went mainstream two years ago. Retailers led the way in experimenting with the technology, primarily using beacons to track shoppers’ habits and send promotional messages to consumers. Big names in retail, including Target, Walmart, and Macy’s have employed beacon technology in their stores. Beacons have become so widespread that Business Insider's BI Intelligence projected that beacons would create $40 billion in retail sales in the United States in 2016.

For many businesses, the growing spending power of high-income consumers and the middle class in China has become a compelling growth engine. For luxury brands, China is already a huge growth market, and many Western companies have had a brand presence in China for many years, albeit often with counterfeit products and even whole counterfeit stores. But as the economy grows in China and consumer thirst for foreign brands increases, companies will be compelled to consider an online direct-to-consumer presence due in-part to the following factors:

eCommerce in China is growing very quickly. Online spending in China is poised to more than double over the next four years, growing to more than $356.1 billion by 2016*.

Driven by both new consumers online and by increased spending by consumers already online, it is expected government reforms will make it easier for both domestic and foreign companies to sell online and for consumers to transact.

people have been buying what's known as street food for generations.

Food carts were already a fixture in many cities back in the 1800s.

Food trucks are just starting to become popular in cities like Dallas,

Hotels, conference centers and other meeting venues are increasing group business with new technology, and it isn’t just a hotel app. To invest in the property’s overall capital, hoteliers are creating cool technology tools that market venues, increase group business and enhance the guest experience. Technology is just another way hotels are winning group business and marketing a hotel or conference center. What are some of these new hot tools for leisure and business travelers?

Investment in Hotel Technology Pays Off with Increased Group Revenue Tuesday, July 10, 2012 by Sarah Vining Hotels, conference centers and other meeting venues are increasing group business with new technology, and it isn’t just a hotel app. To invest in the property’s overall capital, hoteliers are creating cool technology tools that market venues, increase group business and enhance the guest experience. Technology is just another way hotels are winning group business and marketing a hotel or conference center. What are some of these new hot tools for leisure and business travelers? Virtual concierge service on guest room TVs At Hyatt Hotels with in-room HD TVs by Roomlinx Inc., guests are able make service requests, check email/weather, use the Business Center, print documents, and receive customized messages from meeting planners. Service requests like housekeeping and in-room dining are instantly sent through the system, improving the venue’s departmental efficiency. All of these virtual functions are hoped to appeal to new markets and drive group business. More efficient billing In the article, “Insert IACC blog post title URL” we learn that in 2012, meeting and group planners are prioritizing finance as very important during in their planning process (which made the top 10 list for the first time). Hotels making large investments in revenue management systems are taking advantage of new features that automate and process data to improve efficiency and increase revenue for properties. Virtual business centers Socialization through technology and food and beverage outlets is increasing revenue for TRYP by Wyndham in the NYC Times Square South property. Google TVs and access to Google Chrome laptops near the Gastro Bar in the hotel’s lobby offers guests an opportunity to enjoy a dining experience with the comfort of complimentary technology use. On-staff IT team When planners were surveyed, reliability was listed as a top concern of IT services in the white paper “What Do Planners and Trainers Really Want in Their Meeting Service?” All IACC-certified conference centers are required to have an on-site IT team to ensure technology functions properly. Now, the need for a knowledgeable IT team that really understands technology and can cater to individuals and group business is spreading to other hotel markets.   These impressive technology tools improve the guest experience and lead to a quick return on investment, especially in F&B. As we move beyond the discussion of required hotel Wi-Fi services, there will be a focus on technology amenities that provide the same comforts of home or the office. To increase group business, hoteliers are comfortable with this investment knowing there’s a return on investment with generated buzz/venue marketing and satisfied guests. Want to learn about other ways hotels are using technology to build relationships? Check out Enhancing Your Social Networking Site with a Social Concierge! to maximize social media and connect with guests, attendees and planners!

The hospitality industry recognizes the importance of managing its properties in an environmentally responsible way.

The hospitality industry whose services span the management of large areas of land, real estate, energy and other resources, is no exception.

The industry is realizing that green practices contribute significantly to their bottom lines

Though cloud based PMS is gaining momentum in the global hospitality market, it still has a long way to go in India as hotels are hesitant to adopt it.

Today PMSs have become more powerful, with features that enhance efficiency, improve control over processes, enable faster delivery of services, and engender guest loyalty. But among the biggest trends in PMS is cloud computing. The introduction of cloud based PMS has revolutionised the hospitality industry globally as it has opened up a vast array of features, allowing hotels to work in a new environment that is highly efficient, secured and technical, and minimises human errors. It also allows easy accessibility anywhere across the world and can be customised according to the hotel’s requirements.

despite the benefits, cloud based PMS still hasn’t been able to gain the much needed impetus in the India market. Concerns over internet connection loss and data security are the two consistent arguments against cloud-based PMS.

The PMS has become the true workhorse of hotels, pulling in and pushing out data from a myriad of places, and increasingly expected to do more on both enterprise and customer-facing levels.

More than half (57%) of hotel operators already have or plan to migrate the PMS above property within the year.

HT’s 2016 Customer Engagement Study found that 62% of guests want mobile check-in, but only 39% of hotels offer it.

But what makes a hospitality successful? Your people

It’s likely the entire hotel industry will upgrade to the new Wi-Fi standard with seamless transfers from mobile networks and better encryption, but the cost of installation and guests’ lack of awareness of Hotspot 2.0 is tempering the pace of adoption.

The hardware on-site can’t accept that process right now

Moving to the new Wi-Fi standard will be a challenge for properties,

Since 2013, the travel industry has been replacing easy-to-lose room cards and cumbersome, old-fashioned keys with room-access wristbands.

These wearable room keys can be worn in the shower, pool and ocean, and won’t get lost at the bottom of your bag or dropped on the ground. Some can even be connected to your hotel account and your credit cards, so you can seamlessly make purchases during your trip. But because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the uses for these bracelets and wristbands have evolved. Some are now capable of tracking your whereabouts.

Room-access bracelets, which function with a radio frequency identification (RFID) chip, first made a splash in the tourism sector when Disney’s MagicBand appeared at the Florida theme parks in 2013. Taking the place of a visitor’s admittance ticket and FastPasses, MagicBands also allow parkgoers to make on-property purchases and enable keyless entry for resort guests.

Conventional wisdom has been that planning travel, whether for leisure or business, is still too personal and confusing for artificial intelligence (AI) to replace the travel shopping experience.

Answers may lie in Natural Language Processing (NLP). NLP is a subfield of artificial intelligence focused on the processing and analysis of both spoken and written languages. An NLP application could provide the mechanism for planning and booking a full travel experience. Only with exceptions and errors being sent to an experienced travel agent for analysis and discussion.

With NLP’s prediction modeling capabilities, the conversational chatbot could inspire a unique experience during the travel planning process.

Sit-down restaurants have traditionally abstained from digital innovations and other kinds of consumer-facing technology out of fear that these changes could cheapen the diner’s experience and undercut their value proposition

One-hundred percent of foodservice operators reported in a December Panasonic survey that the pandemic has intensified their sense of urgency to adopt transformational technology, and respondents are implementing tech that prioritizes safety and self-service in response.

This prioritization seems to directly reflect diner sentiment, with 21% of consumers planning to dine inside a restaurant reporting that contactless payment options would factor into their restaurant choice. This is especially true for younger consumers: 29% of Gen Z diners said contactless payment solutions would influence where they eat compared to 24% of millennials and 18% of Gen X consumers. 

Over the past several decades, hoteliers have turned their focus to the importance of sustainability in the hospitality industry as it relates to hotel development and operations, including the environmental, economic and social impact.

In fact, according to Cornell University’s Center for Hospitality Research, the reverse is true for both. Recent advances in technology related to renewable sources of energy (solar, geothermal, wind, etc.) have improved the economics of using these kinds of alternative energies at the property level.

Cost is always a driving factor and reducing operating costs provides a compelling incentive for hoteliers. Cost reduction and efficiency strategies can be achieved by investing in better operational procedures and emerging environmental technologies. Many hoteliers now employ a variety of strategies to reduce, reuse, and recycle waste. Other emerging areas include sustainable procurement, indoor environmental quality (focusing on air quality and chemical/cleaning product use), and staff training programs (which can facilitate improved performance and higher levels of employee satisfaction/retention).

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