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The importance of sustainable ("green") construction and practices within the hospitality industry, and particularly the hotel segment, is growing. The U.S. Green Building Council is at the heart of LEED certification which establishes standards for and designates properties that are actively pursuing a more sustainable model. Consumers are becoming more ecologically aware and have made the "green" status of a destination part of their criteria when making decisions about where to stay. Hotels like the Hyat Hotels Complex in Chicago, the ITC Windsor in India, and the Tambo del Inka Hotel in Peru are chasing "triple-bottom-line wins" by implementing smarter designs like rooftop gardens, in-house water treatment/recycling, and sustainable local lumber sources for structures and interiors.

A hotel's PMS is at the core of all functions, but outside threats are becoming more common. "In a report researched by Sky High Networks, the percentage of organizations that experience at least one threat per month from data exfiltration (hackers) is 49.8%." Keeping guest information private is critical and when information is leaked it is hard for the company to gain back guest trust. It is clear that society is becoming more and more comfortable with e-commerce. This article points out that reliance on cloud based PMS systems may be the next best thing. These systems use hi-tech encryption which make it near impossible for hackers to breach. However the article says properties must choose a PMS that makes the most sense. Technology is constantly changing and jumping on the bandwagon of cloud computing may not be the best decision. Who knows what new technology will be implemented next.

This article basically talks about a successful adoption of HRIS system for Wente Family Estates. This company is comprised of numerous business units including a vineyard and winery, a restaurant, and a world class golf course. Their HR team and managers are responsible for a wide range of people, jobs, and related to the company's workforce. So they needed a solution for better talent management, sustainability, and improved time management and selected the Ultimate Software's HRIS system. The HRIS system enables HR team to easily assess employee performance against measurable goals and job competencies, create employee development plans, identity high performing employees for key positions, and build an environment that maximizes talent and rewards their best performers. Besides, it enables their employees to go online to view relevant details about their hours worked and schedules. It also enables managers to log on to the system at any time to stay on top of hours and labor costs so that they can quickly make decisions such as modifying schedules or job responsibilities, if needed, to control costs.  This type of cloud based HRIS system will bring many benefits to companies comprised of diverse business units to manage their human capital.

For large corporations is indispensable to count with the right HRIS that will assist the companies to organize in a logical order all the such as employment activities and job analysis.

I know of very few aphorisms that tend to be repeated as smugly as this one, particularly by scared people. The implication is that action is generally to be avoided, that the status quo is probably just fine, and that one should wait for a true crisis before intervening. And, of course, that it's your fault if you've ignored this sage advice and intervened anyway. It's ironic, then, how IT departments themselves end up complaining endlessly about how they're always in fire-fighting mode. This prevailing attitude evolves among (and is a telling symptom of) burned-out sysadmins and developers, especially those who are stuck maintaining systems they didn't themselves write or engineer. It can be equally summed up as a "don't touch it, don't breathe on it" kind of superstition. Or, perhaps, it's akin to the proud but defensive statement that "we've always done it that way."

This article explain the importance of have the evaluation team to value the property management system before purchase.  A good property management system could help the hoteliers operate their property efficiently and make better business decisions. However, some hoteliers don't ever see the demonstration of the product, or purchase just based on price. 

Choosing the most appropriate Accounting Software for a restaurant can be a tough decision. As this article states, the Accounting Software is extremely important in the restaurant business because you can intelligently control expenses by tracking costs and sales for each menu item and managing food inventory. It also helps to determine each day what your profits are and you can analyze this information comparing it weekly or monthly for marketing purposes.

This article basically emphasizes the importance of having an accounting system. All the questions that needs to be asked for the success of one's business can be answered with the implementation of an accounting system. For instance, "Are vendor prices up, down or sideways? Where do you make your most profit?" Im not saying that an accounting system will resolve all issues but it will make managing one's business easier and seamless.

In this article the results of a study conducted by Motorola Solutions Inc to understand emerging trends in enterprise and government mobility markets are discussed. One of the main findings was that as way to enhance guest experience, information technology (IT) investments in the hospitality industry are expected to increase. From the survey it was found that 68 percent of the hospitality venues that are already using mobile technology have seen an improvement in costumer satisfaction. It was also found that 91 percent of hoteliers are aware of the importance of mobile and wireless technology and how mobility creates a competitive advantage. More than 50 percent of the hoteliers that are already using mobile and wireless technology according to survey have witness an improvement in their employees efficiency and productivity as well as an increase in sales. All of this is forcing hospitality venues to invest in powerful wireless networks not only for customer use but for mobile workforce. From the survey it was found that already 75 percent of the hospitality venues surveyed have wireless installed and one third of this venues are using 802.11n. The main drivers found for adopting 802.11n were improving throughput and reliability, and extending range of current wireless data networks.

Hyatt Hotel Corp., one of the world's largest hospitality companies, announced plans to install iTV platform within the next two years in as many as 60,000 rooms. Guests also can order room service, interact with hotel associates, make restaurant reservations, edit and print documents as well as gain direct access to local dining, shopping, night life, cultural events or attractions all through a dynamic user interface on (the TV. I think this investment will bring a faster delivery of goods and services to clients, increased employee productivity and reduced production costs. To make a good decision on IT investment, firms should take into consideration its long-term performance value before investing on a new technology. Looking at the TCO (total cost of ownership) which is far more than just the sticker price would be the right way to determine whether to invest or not.

This article analyzed the performance of TripAdvisor PPC activity in detail, and showed the results of an investigation regarding to hotels' commission level, traffic ranking, and conversion rate, then talked about whether it worth to invest by hotels.  That is useful for hoteliers to work on the ROI, and make right decisions.

This article is about whether to invest in Trip advisor's PPC program. It offers some benefits and correlations between the commission fee and Trip advisor's score. It introduces this program through several aspects, like the cost, the prerequisite. And the program do has some limitations, like the limited expenses control and hotel position preference. But it can provide properties social network, customer satisfaction, word of mouth through this new distribution way.

New business intelligence technologies offer HR departments the ability to invest in Human Capital Management analytics solutions designed to yield the insights essential for making informed decisions on HR. Business intelligence allows HR departments to become a strategic asset within the organisation. It helps the HR department make key decisions around recruitment, planning, and budgeting to support the strategic goals.

The discussion of this article about the relationship between design and construction is intended to underscore three points: first, designers who create specifications that will be handed off to other people must be aware of the inherent incompleteness of any design. Consideration must be given to the audience for the design, as well as situational concerns such as schedule and risk. Second, it is critical that programmers have an intimate knowledge of the principles and techniques of software design; study is required. Programmers design when they code. The only difference for a programmer from one situation to the next is a matter of degree: at one time you might be working on a project that keeps as much design decision making upstream as possible, and at another time, you might find yourself on a team where most or all of the design decisions occur during construction. In either case, your knowledge of design has a direct effect on the quality of your work and the quality of the resulting product. Mastering your language, tools, and platform is not enough. Third, it is critical for managers and leaders in charge of development projects to recognize the inevitable role of design in the construction phase and to ensure that the overall process creates opportunities to leverage that fact as an advantage.

Information technology is of vital importance to how businesses operate effectively in this century. The article puts into focus the significance of the coordination of inputs and outputs. Management Information systems (MIS) help to coordinate activities within the hospitality industry. The conclusive thought is that MIS drives our economy and therefore it is imperative to strategically monitor and manage because decisions that are made on a day to day basic relies on information technology.

Because of increasing demand, China has been one of the fastest developing markets for Meru--an American wireless network provider. The company expects that its revenues in the Asia-Pacific region will double in the next two to three years. The company thinks that China's education industry could be a safe place to find profits and the rapid-growing hospitality industry in China is likely to become another gold mine. It is estimated that China's five-star hotels could exceed 1000 by 2015. However, China has a habit of adopting its own communication standards so that overseas communication network providers seem to have trouble adapting to the different industry standards. Therefore, Meru has reached a decision to cooperate with China's telecom carriers to better develop the market.

Heritage hotels and resorts, regarded for their culturally distinct hotels, made a strategic decision to leave its representation service, switch to RezView NG from Legacy CRS, and begin to use Pegasus connect for global distribution. The brand's use of the global distribution systems has yielded a 23% increase in year-to-date revenue. Heritage hotels and resorts initially left its representation service in order to renew its focus on offering its unique and independent hotels, which are tailored to the property's unique local culture. Heritage was forced to make a decision regarding how to maintain global visibility. Kathleen Cullen, who is the vice president of revenue strategies for Heritage hotels and resorts, talks about how flexibility was one of the biggest factors considered when researching the new platform. She also talks about customer service being an important factor, and how as a young company they needed to go with a business partner that would help Heritage grow their business. Pegasus' RezView NG was the first major redesign to the CRS in more than 20 years. It won several awards, and was implemented by more than 8000 properties. Cullen states that RezView NG allowed Heritage hotels to redesign their revenue management strategy, affording them the flexibility to allow their hotels to structure themselves in the best possible ways for their unique destinations. Also, Heritage chose Pegasus distribution through Pegasus connect, allowing Heritage properties to their rates, availability, and overall hotel experience to online travel agencies, corporate travel departments, and tour operators. Overall, since the implementation of these new technologies, Heritage has seen a 23% growth in revenue generated through the GDS, which further increases solid gains realized last year.

Now with Peagsus CRS system any budget constraint property has the opportunity to market globally. Attracting a foregin market would certainly give the hotel an edge over it's local competition especially in a state like New Mexico.

Most future trends for Customer Relationship Management are predicted to be online marketing and competition. However, companies realized they are losing touch with customers, which brings up attention on customer service. So more and more companies are trying to mix technology with customer service. For example, mobility is still coming on strong and a long way to go with Microsoft announcing strong mobile options in the last month. The customization of IT and the "Bring my own device" movement add new pressure to mobilize CRM. Social CRM is a long way to go here with increased investment in linking Social analysis into CRM via customer sentiment as well as networking and key decision matrices through connectors to LinkedIn becoming popular. However, all the apps or software designed for CRM solely emphasizes from management perspective, such as marketing, pricing and reading reviews, which lost reaction with consumers. Instead of only reading customer reviews, we should arrange more agents to respond to build two-way communication.

Technology is part of today's culture. It is almost impossible therefore, to imagine a hotel without some level of technology. If nothing else, even the smallest hotel is likely to have a property management system. Technology increases the efficiency of the staff and enhances the experience of the guest. Technology can be overdone. Cost plays a role in technology, as it does with every management decision. The relative price of technology has been in a downward spiral for many years, however, new products come come onto the market at high initial cost.

Great example of too much of a good thing can be bad. Technology can be a wonderful things, making our lives more effecient and accommodating, however as human we yearn for interaction. Specially in the hotels and restaurants, one the the greatest things I remember as kid was being checked it at a hotel. I felt grand; important that someone knew my name and welcomed me. With today's technology, that is a rare exisitance. I check myself in, swipe my phone to acess my room, order room service from my TV and check out withour ever interacting with a human, lets just say I would prefer the brass keys and red tassels.

Excellent Article...the growth of technological advances in the industry has become very important for the industry. The Food & Wine maganize reports that besides iPod stations, flat TVs and other commonly known electronics; hotels are adding moonpads that allow guest to set-up room privacy settings, book spa treatments, set-up lighting mood and many more...http://travelkit.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/05/07/11411992-high-tech-hotels-add-ease-and-luxury?lite

Lots of news coming out on New Orleans Hotels this month. New year new new software. The New Orleans Hotel Collection has switched to Target Net a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS). This is a cloud based service can be accessed from smart phones, tablets and anywhere one can access the internet. The sales and catering platform keeps employees in the know on the go and making smart productive decisions for group business.

This article discusses the importance of having wifi available in hotels. Based on a survey completed by hotels.com, a prominent site for booking travel accomodations, travelers highly base their hotel decision on whether wifi is available and if its free to guests. The internet is an important part of traveling, whether it's used for business, researching local attractions or connecting with family and friends. I agree that wifi should be offered for free to hotel guests, perhaps provide a passcode for it to be used; however, from a manager's point of view, I understand why they charge. Guests will pay whatever it takes to get connected which in turn results in revenue for the hotel.

This article is talking about the Green Key Global which is a company providing eco-rating program for hotels to keep sustainable development announced that this program has established in all 50 United States. The Green Key Eco-rating Program is a rating system intends to recognize lodging industries that are committed to improving their environmental performance. Hoteliers would be awarded a 1-5 Green Key rating based on the results of a comprehensive environmental self assessment and they could learn guidance on how to reduce environmental impacts and operating costs by reducing utility consumption, employee training, and supply chain management. This program is a win-win situation for both hotels and Green Key Global. Hotels are helping Green Key penetrate the U.S market and the Green Key is helping hotels win the business of environmentally conscious consumers because more and more consumers are treating the green part as a decision-making factor in where they stay. In my opinion, I love this program and I hope more hotels would participate in this program to reduce the increasing environmental impacts created by human and our business activities. And I believe green hotel would a trend for the future and one day it may be a regulation issued by government.

I was not aware that travel services/sites were recognizing rankings on green initiatives. Many consumers today are basing their choice in hotels on their environmental programs, it is great to hear that Green Key is now present in all 50 states!

Yes I also love this eco-rating program, which will improve environmental performance. It's a win-win situation as you mentioned in your summarize that both Green Key Global and hotels would get benefits. I did some research of the hospitality trend, and go green is definitely a big trend.

Hotels.com recently conducted a hotel amenities survey where they asked potential travelers insight as to what amenities mean the most to them when booking a hotel room. An overwhelming response for free wi-fi in their hotel rooms indicated how important this perk is to travelers. "35 percent reported it is the simple amenity they want to see more in hotels, with 31 percent wishing it would become a standard in all hotels in 2012." Other interesting aspects of the article were that guests also stated their favorite modern in-room amenity was the use of iPads for guest services, local information and personal use. There is a bit of irony in the fact that widespread use of these devices in hotels amongst business travelers may contribute to poor free and paid wi-fi networks. What would be interesting to me is what quality of wi-fi do these respondents expect for free wi-fi services, as as we discussed in another article the quality of these wi-fi networks even at a paid level are not performing to the standard of the average business traveler. Often times in a scenario where something is free, you can expect to get what you pay for.