Preparing for the "tele-everything" world of the future
The changes that were set in motion in 2020 by the COVID-19 outbreak will persist for some time. Furthermore, staff shortages will also relentlessly continue to haunt the hospitality industry.
Nearly 30% of the world’s population was not vaccinated as we entered 2023, and steps that were taken during the height of the pandemic, to mitigate the risk while continuing to live, work and travel will prevail for some time.
Most of the technology in use now – especially in the hospitality industry is not new – they were already there. COVID-19 rearranged consumer attitude to the extent that many are now willing to seek out smart gadgets, apps and systems.
The pandemic drastically changed our behaviours. In today’s new world travel order, the face of business travel is quite different than before. Many of us will think twice before boarding a six-hour flight for a two-hour meeting and clients will most likely react positively to video conferencing. Zoom, for instance is not going to vanish.
In terms of ‘must-have’ technologies, travelers would like to see the permanence of contactless check-in and checkout during the next few years. Contactless payments are an expected offering, as well as mobile guest services and the less-frequent room cleaning option.
In the wake of all this, when asked what the hotel industry will be like, in say, five to eight years, a veteran consultant provide a swift and short reply, “Who knows?”. No debate on that – no one can predict what lies ahead given the multitude of uncertainties along the way. However, what is predictable is that for the next few years the velocity of demand and focus on automation will rise.
A number of Innovators, developers, business leaders and researchers describe life - in as early as 2025, as a “tele - everything” world, where people’s relationship with technology will spread and deepen as a great segment of the population come to depend more on digital connections for work, for commercial transactions and important social interactions.
Where technology is concerned, months rather than years can count as long term and trying to do long-term strategy in a fast-changing world is like walking the tight rope with no safety net.
Technology plays a crucial part in our professional and personal world. Automation has been adopted by all types of businesses and for hotels it is integral to ensuring smooth operations and seamless customer service – from reserving a room from the beginning to settling the bill at the end. From contactless check-ins to smarter rooms and harnessing of data to inform guest acquisition to optimizing every revenue opportunity.
In today’s market, hotels are not just competing with other hotels in their ‘comp set’, but also with the likes of Expedia and booking.com that are constantly ‘upping the game’ by adopting the latest that technology can offer. In an industry where standard operating procedures (SOPs) are vital, many brands and operators are converting training to virtual platforms.
Additionally, Experts forecast the creation of 3-D social media systems that allow for richer human interaction (sometimes via hologram avatars); mediated digital agents (interdigital agents) gradually taking over significantly more repetitive or time-consuming tasks; a “flying Internet of Things” as drones become more prolific in surveillance, thus replacing patrolling security guards, to name but a few in the pipeline.
Shafeek Wahab – Editor, Hospitality Sri Lanka, Consultant, Trainer, Ex- Hotelier
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