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This article share us a new technology provided by Apple to make iPad as a guest list management device for events. This new app is called zkipster, which is worth to have for event managers to help them easily check-in guests at events. I think it is very useful and impressive. And now it has a free offline demo version available for download.

This article introduces several feature event plan companies for hospitality industry. In order to build customer loyalty and brand awareness, partyPOP.com revised their 2012 budget and are going to offer free wedding invitations to attract more engage couple in the United Stated, Canada and United Kingdom. PartyPOP.com is one of the accomplished companies that plan events for customer, there are some similar companies such as ABC Worldwide Chauffeured Transportation and The Theme Factory of Philadelphia. ABC Worldwide Chauffeured Transportation is an event plan company that corporate with the local transportation and travel industry and they have plenty of experiences to meet the client's demand, also they help the people who travel alone. However, The Theme Factory of Philadelphia is a company that provides solutions for planners and project managers for some private or special events.

This article comments on the perceived effectiveness of daily "flash" deals distributed through the internet to provoke the usage of services of a hospitality enterprise. It also addresses current industry challenges hotels face with regards to sustainability and corporate social responsibility. The first Cornell study surveyed approximately two hundred international hotels. The results showed half of the hotels have used the e-Marketing "flash" deals technique while the other half abstain siting concerns of brand reputation. However the issue of dissatisfaction from those hotels who use daily deals is also prevalent. The conductors of the study recommend those who use the deals to "start small," clearly define the reason for the deal and examine every aspect of the deal, including limitations, to increase ROI and satisfaction. If the deals are tailored to fit both the hotel and guests' needs they should attract and retain customers. The roundtable discussion then dives into an important branding issue of CSR. It highlights common misconceptions related to sustainability such as going "green" being being costly, guests not appreciating sustainable efforts, and the "wait and see" approach being smart for implementation. With education and communication the hospitality industry can inform their internal and external customers of their sustainable business practices and increase customer acquisition. Rather than being reactive, businesses should be proactive and concentrate on their "long-term brand focus."

This article talks about how events have changed throughout the years and especially because of 9/11. before this day the event planners and safety personel were focus on traffic control but now it is more safety concerns and the prevention of terrorist attacks. It discusses how and why technology can help them and shows many different examples that were real life like the super bowl an the presidential debates. it also stresses how important it is to know the technology and not to learn it in a crisis. Also it helps in choosing what technology to use. There are so many options out there and there is definitely a way to do all this without technology but technology can help and make it a lot safer and more effective.

Events can be successfully planned, executed and reviewed without the use of technology. However, there are affordable technology solutions that can ease the burden and provide enhanced situational awareness during an event. And the new high tech, E-Sponder, really assist in the automation of business processes, expecially the event planning. E-Sponder was used to automate many critical business processes during the debate and consequently provided real-time information sharing and reduced resolution time for unplanned events. In addition, it gave complete situational awareness both inside and outside the command center to all of those involved in securing the debate activities.

This article is very interesting because it does not focus solely on one type of technology, but rather summarizes several technologies and discusses the importance of their uses. Green technologies in hotels can vary from anything affecting the water heating system to air ventilation and even plumbing systems in hotels. As stated in the article, it is extremely important for hoteliers to be aware of these changes that are occurring. Hoteliers may not have to immediately alter their current systems but they should definitely be aware and in tuned to the ever-changing "green" technologies - for if they don't they may be putting their hotels at risk.

This article is basically talking about the different green ways that a hotel can operate. For instance in Denmark they have stations set up where a guest can pedal stationary bikes to produce energy which in exchange they receive a free meal from the restaurant. To make hotels more green the hotels are using higher technological systems like changing the ventilation systems that provide fresh air indoors and have timers on the exhaust in the bathrooms. These technological advances to the properties will be more pricey than normal systems but in the long run they will save these hotels money and help them be more earth friendly.

Having worked in the meetings industry for 5 years now, we have also seen the increase of the more eco friendly traveler/meeting planner/attendee. Our accommodations have taken an active stance to incorporate more of the green friendly features to meet the needs of this traveler, but also to cut costs and increase operations efficiency.

This article focuses on the success of using social media and event planning togther. The opportunity to be able to create events on facebook and linkedin is great and easy for the event planners. Social media and facebook changed the way of life for one guys company. He started using facebook to get his name out there and his business has been growing non stop ever since. This is just the way things are now and if you want to keep up with everyone else you must adjust to the way things are now.

The article is about the idea of scanning people's emotions (emotion harvesting) at events to measure the return on investment of the attendees. The article talks about how already existing technology could be adopted for event planners and businesses to gather real times response and feedback on events.

This article shows tips for event planner to facilitate the networking in an event. Among the tips, it is mentioned in the article that put the list of attendees' names online will let people know who is attending the meeting and the opportunity of whom that they can connect to. Event is for people to communicate. Therefore, if people can know in advance of the list of attendees online, they will be better prepared to attend the event.

This articles goes about descriping about how great and productive PSAV audio visual company is; and how it benefits for both hoteliers and guests "site inspectors". Nevertheless, Hotels such as The Westin has carry on a responsibility for its guests and future guests in providing the best quality as far as visuals and audio sounds is concern. Furthermore, PSAV has been producing large amount of revenue as well as new customers especially in the hospitality industry; as it is one of the most greatest and rapid growing industry in the United States Nations.

This is a company that is leading the way in IT related event planning technology.

I found this article very interesting. It deals with the development of a new website that incorporates all facets of event planning into one central hub. The website was coined "honey book" a conjunction between honeymoon and booking. It's creator Naama Alom, got the idea when she, herself, was planning her own wedding. She realized that there was not one place where she could store all of her event, vendor, and decor information. "Honey book" is also a medium to share your event highlights with family and friends. Naama decided that Facebook was not sufficient enough and when investors expressed interest, Naama and her husband packed up and moved from Israel to the United States. The US housed the billion-dollar target market that "honey book" was developed for.

Ever wonder what happens to the little soaps you use at the hotel you recently stayed at? Hyatt Hotels Corp. has become one of the major hotels to start recycling toiletries through the organization called Clean the World. When guests are done using their shampoos or soaps at a hotel, the housekeeping staff collects all of the used and unused products and recycles them or donates them to other countries. The organization has only been around for a few years, however other hotel chains are joining the cause to helping the environment and also humanity. It is not just in the United States that hotels are getting involved but it is expanding globally. Hotels are sending used soaps that has been re-sanitized to battered women's center and also to countries like Africa to local clinics and orphanages.

It looks like the industry is taking notice of what they can do and stepping up to the plate. It all comes down to the front line workers though, in this case housekeeping staff. Turning a room correctly is labor intensive and time consuming. Adding the step of separating the used soap and shampoo does take time. 1 minute per room per day in a 200-room hotel at 90% capacity comes out to 21 man hours per week. At $10/hr that's nearly $11,000 per year. I'm not saying it shouldn't be done. I think it's a great idea. It does many people (including the hoteliers) a lot of good. If we consider this as "goodwill" in our operating costs, it probably works out for everyone.

I have never pay attention to where the leftover of the toiletries would go, and it's nice to know that they are going to the charity. This is a great way to recycle, help reduce waste, and help support the people in struggle. Knowing such information doesn't help making the booking decision, but it sure does increase the hotel's reputation.

This article describes the importance of investing in training between front of house personnel, and the IT department. While maintaining the efficiency of both of these departments is half the battle, it is also important to make sure they understand each others roles and needs in challenging situations. Cross training for both of these departments enhances the guest experience, and helps both teams understand the other more.

Meetings are significant in that they are major events which generate dollars on a local and national scale. Those associated with tourism and hospitality, transportation and convention venues (among other industries) benefit significantly. Tax revenues increase as well. In addition to the economic impact, many jobs are created. Simply put, meetings are a lucrative income stream.

This article was very interesting and it was about how safety security is very important to the hospitality industry. This article also explained how a study shows the safety and security systems work in the hospitality industry. They also said that it is very important to update the emergency plan because you never know when something going to happen in the hotel and you always have to be ready for anything. This study just showed how an effective information system could prevent and being well prepared can definitely help prevent any emergency.

The article is a study that was conducted in regards to the security management within a hotel and how an effective security system can help in preventing accidents or emergencies from occuring. The main priority of a hotel or any establishment, besides the service provided, is having an effective emergency plan set in place to be able to respond and overcome a crisis. International hospitality being a focus over the recent years, has suffered crises, risks, and disasters causing negative impacts on tourism and the community. Hotels should "issue a check-list concerning a hotel's vulnerability to emergencies caused by natural disasters (hurricanes, earthquakes, tsunamis) or man-made crises (terrorist attacks, explosions, fires, spill, food poisoning)." Another part of the plan is to focus on the loss prevention aspect of a hotel by implementing information technology to secure or improve security. On technology mentioned was biometric to increase the hotel information system and also to help reduce cost and improve the way we recognize criminal activities. With the hospitality industry being one of the most vulnerable industries to crimes and disasters, it is important to recognize, improve and update the plans set into place to ensure accurate information. While it's impossible to say that these preventions are going to stop these problems from happening, it can help other learn about the proper steps to handling these situations. I personally think that as much as employers suggest different way, it's the job of the loss prevention team in every industry to construct a plan that address as many issues and conduct trainings that would help to prepare us for these occasions. Trainings are going to be the best way to properly analyze a problem and improve on the emergency plan set.

This article mentions 3 key signs on when you should consider upgrading to a full event management software. I found this article to be relevant as this weeks discussion post was about the pros and cons for event registration systems. The 3 signs mentioned in the article are; "1. You need more complex event marketing, 2. Your event planning process is overwhelming, 3. Your events have grown big enough to require housing and travel management." After reading the first sign, I believe that now a days event planners need to have a full event management software if they are going to do a big event. The article stated that full services have social promotion tools, email marketing, and the ability to create an event within an event. These are all such important parts of an event. You have to have someone to send out email reminders and you might have an event that is more like a huge production where you have events within and event. And there's so many events that could fit in your head before you forget something. The other sign which I found very important was the third one. If your event requires traveling or housing then you are definitely going to be overwhelmed and you are going to need the extra help, event if its to track someones flight details.

This article answers two major questions; what is the connection between event management and the hospitality field? Why exactly is event planning considered to fall under the umbrella of hospitality? The link between event planning and hospitality is that the set of skills needed to succeed in the various hospitality-related careers is similar to those required to be a successful event planner. Some of these skills include quick thinking, in-depth understanding of logistics, strong organizational streak and maintaining good relationships with people. Both require having the ability to understand and meet of the customers without exceeding the budget. Just like running a business, hosting an event is a difficult job and requires a person with the ability to handle pressure. The article concludes by stating that though people in the two fields may face different challenges, the approach of solving these challenges remains the same.