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Sometimes, we focus more about Robots replacing humans, but we don't see the whole picture. Robots work with better accuracy which reduces the amount of time and materials wasted. It is a fact that will impact people's jobs; However, by helping company saving money, the price of good will be more affordable.

This article discusses different approaches to tourism marketing through social media outlets. The author points to excessive advertising costs especially with printing brochures and guides that are usually tossed in the trash. E-Marketing strategies need to involve the users interactively by having them join, register, or enter and engage in activities. This way you are collecting user information, gauging trends, and possibly making more customers out of viewers.

The power of partnerships The tourism industry is partnering with other organizations to solve problems on how to bring a more sustainable tourism. Global impact is an international multi-stakeholders consensus to bring together companies, UN agencies, government and communities to support environment. The project need not only for NGOs to facilitate contracts but also for governments to have the right legislations dealing with sustainable tourism. Tourism can affect three key areas: * Communities: Tourism creates economic opportunity but should not affect negatively traditions and local cultures. * Individuals: Tourism should be creating the right safe working environment. * Environment: Tourism should not damage the environment. Any waste should be disposed of properly. Tourism can achieve positive impacts on the region such as funding wild life conservations. There are se several partnerships that develop to better control the tourism industry and its impacts on the region. To be successful a partnership must have appropriate stakeholders, mutually agreed goal and process, and sensitivity to the power members among other characteristics.

LEED certification for hotels. "You do not need to be a five start hotel or a large resort before considering an LEED certification. What you need is INITIATIVE!

In this article it talks about the new LEED certificate and what is it and why should hotel consider this certification. Government is starting to react to the environmental problems in the world and are starting to do something to reduce the carbon footprint. They are doing this by starting the LEED certificate for hotel buildings. Hotels right now have the option to stay as they are or to comply by the LEED certificate regulations, but in the future all the hotel buildings will have to comply with the regulations that the LEED certificate demands. Hotels are being pushed to change their ways in doing things from their regular way of electricity to their waste so they can help with our environment. the "LEED certificate is issued by the US Green Building Council, an independent, non-profit, third-party rating system." They have even created four levels of LEED certification: certificate, silver, gold and platinum. The LEED certification has various benefits some of them are: lower operation costs, increased property value and healthier and safer environments for occupants. Furthermore, some of the things hotels can do to be comply with the LEED regulations are: switching from evening to daytime office cleaning, installing motion sensors in all restrooms, telecom and electrical closets and adopting zero garbage or solid waste management.

I enjoyed this article. It would be very impressive to see all hotels complying with the LEED. It's not only about the amenities when your choosing where to stay, it's also about are they conscious of the environment. I definitely expect the five start hotel to be environmental friendly.

From computers and cell phones, to portable communication and music devices -- the United States of America is a global leader in designing and developing new and improved electronic technologies. With this vibrant innovation, however, comes the increasing challenge of protecting human health and the environment from the potentially harmful effects of poorly managed manufacturing, use, recovery, recycling and disposal of these products.

This article introduce a new energy and labor saving system in Japan. With a brain box of the touch screen system, the computer control all the electronic components, such as lighting, alarm systems. Only one user is required to monitor the system. It not only save the energy that may be wasted because of the negligence of employees, but also save the labor cost. Many buildings, such as hotels and schools, would benefit from this system.

According to in the Florida Department of Environmental Protection's Green Lodging Program, Rosen Hotels & Resorts are the first hotels in Central Florida to achieve the Two Palm status certifies. The state provides technical assistance, with which hotels can reduce waste, conserve natural resources and improve the bottom line. Harris Rosen said they will do everyday effort to continue the green standard, to increase sales, and it is right to do this for every company. Some green practices of Rosen hotels & resorts are various, simple and effective, such as, the water conservation measures, energy efficiency measures. They provide the more chances to recycle, purchase items in bulk, recycled materials and recycle ink and toner cartridges to reduce waste. The three Rosen hotels' special measure is to introduce several other eco-friendly programs. And also, they use a programmable energy management system to control temperatures in meeting rooms, after the using of meeting rooms, the lights would be turned off. They also emphasize the green materials. The hotels and Harris Rosen play a role in conservation of the area's natural resources. He made the Expedition Headwaters, An Everglades Journey to Remember, which aims to increase awareness of the ecological connection of the Orlando metropolitan area with the Everglades ecosystem. The team also invited students from elementary and middle, taught them about watersheds, wetlands and aquatic ecosystems.

This article is interesting and in my opinion inspiring as well. According to the article "65% of Copenhagen's hotel rooms, representing nearly half the city's supply, have a globally recognized eco rating". IN the year of 2009, the United Nations climate change summit took place in this city, which started the rise of all the green hotels in Copenhagen. All of the hotels that participated in this summit had to be green certified which rose the percentage of green hotels by 30%. According to the Danish hotel, restaurant and tourism trade association there is also higher demand for green hotels by leisure and mainly business guests. Companies want to make sure that they take their employees to green certified hotels to show their support and awareness of sustainable behavior. The Crowne Plaza Copenhagen Towers hotel is truly represents a green hotel with first groundwater-based heating and cooling system and the largest solar panel coverage in northern Europe. The hotel also uses all kitchen waste and has it turned into organic fertilizer. Even smaller hotels in Denmark are turning towards being green and taking the matter seriously. "We practice this with energy-saving devices, sorting of (garbage), recycling of paper and organic foods. And we work with suppliers who share our beliefs," says owner of a small hotel Nicolas Hall. I enjoyed reading this article as it relates to the video we watched this week about who should take responsibility in waste management. I stated that the nation should take action in this matter but here we can clearly see that even companies can make a huge difference as they are the drivers of the economy and they can decide which product to choose.

Green meetings and environment concerns are becoming more and more known and hotel are opting for green programs in their hotels. This article talks about a hotel in Vail, Colorado that has committed to decreasing their environment footprint by going more green in many ways. As an event planner you should ask your hotels that you are using how they are making an effort to being green in specific areas.

Water conservation is a big green initiative that we are seeing in a lot of hotels by having signs up if you want your towels washed leave them on the floor but if you will reuse them to hang them up. This is conserving a lot of water by saving on laundry. Hotels that have conference centers can really make use out of the green initiative with an alternative to bottled water. If they give out complimentary refillable bottles and put in water dispensers in easy and convenient locations it will help to support waste reduction.

POS is quite widely used in the field, at least in some restaurant chains. But this article points it out that although many restaurants are using POS, they still underestimate how useful this system can be. So this article introduces five features that POS can have if managers integrate these into POS. All of these features introduced in this article can be summarized into one word, that is tracking！POS can help to keep a track customer information and their preference to build a customer loyalty; POS can track inventory without counting every item in storage; POS can track employee's working hours and give managers alarm; POS can even track the menu information to help managers to make judgements if the menu item are profitable.  It is an investment to have a POS and it is also a waste of using only part of POS features. 

This article discusses how the traditional vendor RFP (Request for Proposal) model is no longer the ideal way to integrate the right technology marketing that a hotel needs. The traditional vendor RFP model is time-consuming and expensive, and with the way that technology is constantly expanding and changing, hotels need to stay up-to-date with technology more and more frequently, which can mean this process is wasting time and money on an ever-increasing scale. Furthermore, it is not always an accurate indicator of the kinds of technology a hotel might need, especially what a hotel might need in the future, and it is difficult to determine who would best be capable of knowing what the property will need or what exactly to ask for in an RFP. The article talks about three alternatives to the traditional model: the Scorecard model, the Digital Marketing Partner Interview model, and the Trusted Partner model. With the Scorecard model, hotels have a checklist of things they need and can check off each point from each potential vendor. With the Digital Marketing Partner Interview model, which is similar to the traditional vendor RFP process, except that the interview focused on finding a Digital Marketing Partner that aligns with the hotel's management philosophy, values, and culture in order to find the right partnership. With the Trusted Partner model, the hotel works with one particular company with whom they share common goals and objectives, and they work together to solve problems and adapt new technology as the hotel's technological needs are manifested over time.

The current trend hotels executives and owners are adopting is green and sustainable practices. First, because of the marketing and positive public relations it brings to the image of the hotel and second, because of the energy and cost savings to the bottom line. The implementation of these practices with new technologies and software's designed to streamline processes and keep routine calendar of projects make easier for management to keep track and follow through.

This article speaks about the possibilities in social media marketing for hospitality outlets as well as the method in which to effectively use these outlets without wasted efforts. Some of the things that this article suggests is simplicity. Once the social media use becomes too complex then employees won't continue to update it and therefore the marketing aspect dies. The article goes on to list several other methods of ensuring that the social media marketing will be effective. For reference and further information the article suggests a paperback by the name of "Social Media Strategy for Hotels". Overall this article is very effective at showing the capabilities and positives of social media marketing.

This article discusses how to select the right Property Management System (PMS) for hotels and specifies procedures that the hotels need to follow. The first step in selecting a PMS is that hotels need to foam an evaluation team that includes managers, staff from different departments, such as front desk, accounting, housekeeping, and IT, in order to make sure the PMS works for everyone. Then, the hotel should determine its budget, making sure they don't waste time for a PMS out of their price range. Once the budget is set, the evaluation team should conduct a needs assessment to ensure that they only buy features they need. Next, researching the PMSs that meet the hotels' requirements and fit the budget is necessary. This article emphasizes some key features, such as user-friendly design, guest-oriented functionality, integration with other system, etc., to consider when evaluating the PMSs. After the hotel has completed its research, they need to narrow the options down to top two or three, and to have the selected vendors demonstrate their products in front of the evaluation team. After all, the hotels can choose the right one which works the best for them. Competition in the hospitality business has been intense, so it is essential to invest in technology, such as Property Management System (PMS), to streamline operations, enhance guest service, and ultimately win competition over others. However, there are so many PMS options to choose on the market, so it is also critical to know what procedures to follow, and to choose the most suitable PMS for each business.

Green Initiative by Hilton Hotel Hotels as well as other service industries are looking for new ways to run more efficiently and looking to nature to give them some ideas. The latest in green technology is allowing hotels to push the eco-envelope and create energy efficient roof systems that also help the environment, and provide a visually beautiful space for their guests to enjoy. Hilton Hotel chain recently constructed Hilton Baltimore to break records with their proactive "green" policy, by creating garden to cover the entire roof, which Hilton looks upon as a commitment to the community and environment- a top level priority which stems from the top at the corporate level and is implemented down to the property level. This kind of innovation benefits all the major stakeholders…….it helps the environment by reducing rain water run-off, creates habitants for birds to thrive, helps to keep the hotel cool thereby reducing utility expense, it also provides a conducive atmosphere for the guest to enjoy and above all it generates good will for Hilton Hotels. This is not just happening in the U.S. Hotels around the globe are choosing to guide their business towards efficiency utilizing green roof technology. Besides recycling, and purchasing 'Green Sustainable Energy Credits' for 50% of the energy it utilizes annually, InterContinental Chicago hotel initiated "waste minimization" with a program that donates table scraps and leftover foods to local farms or composting sites. They have also introduced 'Green Weddings' and 'Green Meetings' options for event planners, bicycle rentals, organic wines and foods, and distribute seeds to employees to encourage giving back to the environment.

I was clearly remembering till today that when I was working in a Japanese restaurant, the manager there always made mistakes on staffs' schedules and employee shifts because she was writing schedules herself every week. As is mentioned in this material, doing like this can be very waste of time and the worse situation I met before is that when I dressed up and made up and arrived there but to find that some servers already working in the restaurant on schedule.  Therefore, I think a web-based scheduling program will be most helpful. Managers of restaurant can use this product not only for today's schedule but also for future schedule. What's more, it helps make the work environment more suitable because it trades shifts with other employees.  From the financial perspective, web-based scheduling also trace labor costs, which is one benefit part manager have to pay attention to.

Use of property management system PMS cost money in terms of upfront investment or maintenance or fees for using a vendor's system but the money generated by the use of the system outweighed the costs. Hotel rooms are perishable and any empty room means waste of resource and therefore using PMS to fill up as many rooms as possible is wise. Likewise empty restaurant costs the owner money to cover the fixed cost including the minimum labor to keep it open.

Article speaks about hotel automation systems by vendors, that allow hotels to reduce energy and utility costs that impact the bottom line. The EPA estimated that in 2004 the hotel industry spent more than $5 billion on energy and that the number was likely to increase. Items such as occupancy based thermostats communicate over wireless networks and allow hotel staff to perform maintenance tasks such as detect issues with in-room HVAC systems before guests call in to report the items. Other systems use energy monitoring systems that allow for the hotel to detect room temperatures. This is significant as those rooms temperature and lighting systems can know whether the occupant is in the room and adjust lighting and temperature settings accordingly. Energy waste in hotels is an issue that affects the bottom line so the potential for ROI is great. Implementation of many of these systems is flexible as many are built on wireless networks that do not require heavy physical installation of wiring. Interested in the groups thoughts on this?