Monthly Archives: January 2011

by | January 5, 2011 · 6:38 pm

Hospitality Industry Health Insurance: Hotel Owners Should See Benefits In Providing Health Insurance For Employees As Studies Start To Analyze Data

Researchers at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y., said they have found that providing health insurance for workers increases job performance.

Researchers conducted a study reviewing six months of job data to see if providing insurance would affect “job anxiety, tardiness, absenteeism and overall task performance,” the university said in a release. They found only task performance was affected, but a parallel study that concerned workers with health insurance that also included mental health insurance showed a slight increase in job tardiness.

“We wanted to take a scientific look at whether having health insurance made a noticeable difference,” said Sean Way, assistant professor at the Cornell School of Hotel Administration and one of the authors of the study, titled “The Impact of Health Insurance on Employee Job Anxiety, Withdrawal Behaviors and Task Performance.”

Way called the study results that showed increased tardiness among workers provided with mental health insurance “puzzling.”

For more:   http://www.upi.com/Business_News/2011/01/05/Insurance-shown-to-help-work-performance/UPI-11801294259532/

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by | January 3, 2011 · 4:54 pm

Hotel Industry Trends: Technological Advances Will Be "Among The Most Important Forces Driving Hotel Industry"

The Fraunhofer Institute believes that technological advances with be among the most important forces driving the hotel industry, leading to some major changes over the next ten years.

  • The hotel room is decorated to meet guests’ particular tastes
  • The bath water is just how they like it
  • The minibar is stocked with their preferred range of drinks
  • Their favourite music is playing in the background.
  • Guests will be checked in by robots, which will also provide a first class range of services for the duration of their stay.
  • Automated ‘smart’ rooms will be fully equipped to meet the needs of guests.
  • Guests will have their own profiles, which they can either enter via a PIN on a smart phone or which are transmitted by means of biometric authentification.

This data can then be used to individually adapt the lighting, air conditioning and even the colour of the room. In the hotel rooms of the future the entire infrastructure will be designed to aid relaxation:

  • Gentle curves instead of sharp edges
  • Smart ‘energy beds’
  • Wall displays with giant screens, serving as an interactive interface to all the different communication channels and providing a workspace for business travellers.

However, technological innovation is not the only topic under consideration in planning the hotels of the future, and ecological aspects will play an increasingly important role in meeting the needs of guests.

For more:  http://www1.messe-berlin.de/vip8_1/website/Internet/Internet/www.itb-berlin/englisch/Media_Centre/Press_Releases_and_News/index.jsp?lang=1&newslang=en&newssys_id=31619&source_oid=550&year=2011

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by | January 2, 2011 · 10:34 am

Hospitality Industry Technology Issues: Hotel Management Will Feel Increased Pressure In 2011 To Offer "Free Wireless Internet Access" With Resultant Needs To Secure Network

A comfy mattress and a hot breakfast are still important to hotel guests, but free wireless Internet access is the most desired amenity, according to a new survey of 53,000 travelers.

Hotels are likely to feel more pressure to offer the service at no charge, said Stuart Greif, vice president and general manager of the global travel and hospitality practice at J.D. Power.

The survey by J.D. Power & Associates found that free Wi-Fi was the most important feature for guests in nearly every segment of the hotel industry.

  • The most expensive hotels were the least likely to offer free Wi-Fi.
  • Of guests staying at midscale hotels, 96 percent said they got free Wi-Fi, as did 64 percent of guests at budget hotels, according to the survey of guests who stayed in hotels from May 2009 to June 2010.
  • None said they got free Wi-Fi at luxury hotels.
  •  Free Wi-Fi is available at many businesses.

At the Ritz-Carlton luxury hotel chain, the fee for Wi-Fi access is a top complaint among guests, said spokeswoman Vivian A. Deuschl. (The new Ritz-Carlton in downtown Los Angeles charges $12.95 a day.) Some Ritz-Carlton hotels offer free Internet access in the lobbies and other public spaces. “We have no immediate plans to change the policy, but it’s an ongoing subject of discussion,” Deuschl said.

For more:  http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/fea/travel/thisweek/stories/DN-guestswant_0102tra.ART.State.Edition1.1481b10.html

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