Tag Archives: Technology Solutions

by | September 16, 2013 · 8:03 am

Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: Hotel “Housekeeper” App For Smartphones And Tablets Improves Staff Efficiency; “Room Status And Problems” Reported Directly To Property Management System

“…the new ‘Housekeeper’ application is proven to deliver an average 50% reduction in the time required to carry out housekeeping and hotel Hotel Technology Solutionssupport tasks, enhanced staff communication, as well as powerful reporting capabilities…with quicker response and improved communication with the housekeeping staff we are able to better serve our guests and get a real-time picture of the room status…”

Building on its growing range of mobile applications and cloud-based services, Housekeeper provides an alternative to Quadriga’s established, fixed TV-based housekeeping solution, integrated into its Sensiq guest communications and entertainment platform. The Hibox Housekeeper application is a web-based service which can be hosted in the cloud and provides hotel staff with easy and immediate reporting capabilities via most web-enabled mobile devices. Services include the reporting of room status to the hotel PMS, minibar usage and rooms fault reporting and management, as well as a staff messaging tool.

Housekeeper is already deployed in hotels across the Nordic region and is now available worldwide. Juha Peltonen, Hotel Manager at Hotel Haikko Manor, Porvoo, Finland, says, “The Housekeeper application gives us an easy-to-use tool to manage the housekeeping tasks. Also we are able to reduce the housekeeping costs with improved monitoring and reporting.”

For more:  http://www.hospitalitynet.org/news/4062156.html

Comments Off on Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: Hotel “Housekeeper” App For Smartphones And Tablets Improves Staff Efficiency; “Room Status And Problems” Reported Directly To Property Management System

Filed under Guest Issues, Labor Issues, Maintenance, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Technology, Training

Tagged as , , , , , , ,

Image

Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: Hotels Increasingly Rely On “Mobile Platforms” For Guest Check-In; “Mobile App Downloads” To Increase More Than 7-Fold In Next Five Years

Infographics On Hospitality Mobile Apps

Comments Off on Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: Hotels Increasingly Rely On “Mobile Platforms” For Guest Check-In; “Mobile App Downloads” To Increase More Than 7-Fold In Next Five Years

by | September 5, 2013 · 9:13 am
by | September 1, 2013 · 8:12 am

Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: “Emergency Management Software” For Hotels Provides Fire, Police Departments With Instant Access To “Site And Floor Plans, HAZMAT Details And Utility Shut-Off Locations”

“…By installing (the Emergency Management Software), Doubletree provides Detroit’s first responders instant on-site access to site plans, floor Hotel Emergency Management Softwareplans, hazardous material details, utility shut-off locations, geographical maps, fire hydrants locations, persons with special needs, guests and residents, and other critical information.  The pre-plan data will be on a touch screen computer in the lobby as well as on the mobile data computers in Detroit’s fire department and law enforcement vehicles…”

“Our adoption of this technology is an excellent example of the private sector bracing the public works,” said Shannon Dunavent, general manager of Detroit DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel.  “This new technology will be fully implemented by September 1st, making all critical building information quickly available to first responders.  We are not only making a smart, cost-effective investment in our property and in the safety of our guests and staff, but in the city’s ability to respond to emergencies.”

CommandScope allows building and facility owners, managers and first responders alike to easily add and upload building and site data.  The information is shareable across organizations and city departments, and is updateable in real-time allowing first responders to act with knowledge rather than trial and error.  First responders can save time and lives by immediately execute emergency procedures instead of wasting time locating managers or engineers on site.

For more:  http://www.fireengineering.com/articles/2013/08/commandscope-pre-plan-technology-changing-the-nature-of-first-response.html

4 Comments

Filed under Maintenance, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Technology, Training

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , ,

by | August 27, 2013 · 5:56 am

Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: New Study Shows That Restaurant Employee Theft Can Be “Significantly Reduced” By Surveillance And Sales Transaction Monitoring

“…Knowing they were being monitored, the servers not only pulled back on any unethical practices, but also channeled their efforts into, say, prompting customers to have that dessert or a second beer, raising revenue for the restaurant and tips for themselves… in the restaurant Restaurant Employee Theftindustry, analysts estimate the losses from employee theft at 1 percent of revenue. That does not seem like a lot, but restaurant profit margins are slender, typically 2 to 5 percent. So cutting down on theft can be an important contributor to a restaurant’s financial health…”

And a new research paper, published on Saturday, shows in detail how significant the surveillance effect can be. The paper, “Cleaning House: The Impact of Information Technology Monitoring on Employee Theft and Productivity,” is the work of three academics: Lamar Pierce, an associate professor at the Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis; Daniel Snow, an associate professor at the Marriott School at Brigham Young University; and Andrew McAfee, a research scientist at the Sloan School of Management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

The researchers measured the impact of software that monitors employee-level theft and sales transactions, before and after the technology was installed, at 392 restaurants in 39 states. The restaurants were in five “casual dining” chains. The paper does not name the five,  but it cites examples of the casual dining category including Applebee’s, Chili’s and Olive Garden.

Employee theft and fraud is a big problem, estimated at up to $200 billion a year across the economy.

For more:  http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/08/26/how-surveillance-changes-behavior-a-restaurant-workers-case-study/?_r=0

Comments Off on Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: New Study Shows That Restaurant Employee Theft Can Be “Significantly Reduced” By Surveillance And Sales Transaction Monitoring

Filed under Crime, Labor Issues, Liability, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Technology, Theft

Tagged as , , , , , , , ,

by | August 16, 2013 · 5:58 am

Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: Hotel And Restaurant “Mobile Websites” Rank Highest In Performance, Customer Engagement According To Recent Study; Mobile Payments To Reach $90 Billion By 2017

Hospitality Technology Reveals Results of 2013 Customer Engagement Tech Study

For more:  http://hospitalitytechnology.edgl.com/home

Comments Off on Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: Hotel And Restaurant “Mobile Websites” Rank Highest In Performance, Customer Engagement According To Recent Study; Mobile Payments To Reach $90 Billion By 2017

Filed under Guest Issues, Magazines, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Technology

Tagged as , , , , , , , , ,

by | August 8, 2013 · 5:50 am

Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: Hotel, Restaurant Guests Will Soon “Check-In And Make Payments” Using Mobile Phones Offering “Secure Software Applications With Facial Recognition Technology”

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OFaWQDg3_A]

Using the PayPal app for iOS, Windows Phone and Android, wallet-less shoppers can track down stores that accept PayPal’s “check in to pay” service. The customer then checks in to the shop where they need to make a payment, paying by sliding a pin down in the app. The shopper’s credentials then appear on the shopkeeper’s PayPal app, with the photo and name appearing to identify the person who has asked to make the payment, allowing the shopkeeper to then confirm the sale.

PayPal are trialling a new scheme in the Richmond shopping precint of London that will allow shoppers to have their PayPal payments confirmed by their profile pictures. The Richmond shops first to test out the new check-in service include Cook & Garcia, The Farmery, The Tea Box, The Bingham Hotel, Revolution, Caffé Paolo, The Cedar Coffee Shop, Urban Diner, Pier 1 Fish and Chips,  Noble Jones, Hill Café and Knot Coffee and Pretzel.

“PayPal first brought ‘pay by mobile’ to the UK high street two years ago,” said Rob Harper, Head of Retail Services at PayPal

“Through our Richmond initiative, we’re pleased to help local businesses of all sizes offer a new more personal experience, while never having to turn away customers who don’t have enough cash on them to pay. Now locals in Richmond can leave their wallet or purse at home and be the first in the country to use their profile picture to pay.

“This is another step on the journey towards a wallet-less high street, where customers will be able to leave their wallet or purse at home and pay using their phone or tablet. We predict that by 2016 this will become a reality.”

For more:  http://www.techdigest.tv/2013/08/paypal_to_let_y.html

Comments Off on Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: Hotel, Restaurant Guests Will Soon “Check-In And Make Payments” Using Mobile Phones Offering “Secure Software Applications With Facial Recognition Technology”

Filed under Guest Issues, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Technology, Training

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , ,

by | July 21, 2013 · 6:37 am

Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: “Smarphone Payment Apps” Allow Customers To Pay For Food And Services With Phones Or Mobile Wallets

The Carlisle & Gallagher Consulting Group forecasts that within five years half of smartphone owners will prefer to pay for their gas, food, Hospitality Industry Smartphone Paymentsgadgets and other consumer goods with phones and mobile wallets…By one count, perhaps 280 digital wallets or more have sprung up or are in development around those various technologies. Some retailers, notably Starbucks, have built their own apps for mobile payments.

Mark Logan ordered lunch at Mildred’s Coffeehouse & Bistro in the Crossroads Arts District and stepped to the register to pay. No cash. No check. No plastic. Logan paid with his smartphone. He had previously loaded it with his debit card information, using an app called Square Wallet, and snapped his own picture. To make the payment, Square Wallet sent Logan’s picture to the iPad that Mildred’s uses for a register. The iPad tied his tab to his photo.

The barista, seeing Logan, tapped his photo from among several customers on the screen and told Logan the payment was going through. A second tap — technology took care of the rest.

A recent survey of smartphone users found that half had never heard of the idea of a digital wallet, let alone downloaded and used one.

And few stores or restaurants take them.

All the same, you may be using one soon. Money is making a dash from pockets to smartphones thanks to digital wallets like Lemon, Isis, LevelUp and others.

Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2013/07/20/4357393/digital-wallet-apps-unfold-in.html#storylink=cpy

Comments Off on Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: “Smarphone Payment Apps” Allow Customers To Pay For Food And Services With Phones Or Mobile Wallets

Filed under Guest Issues, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Technology

Tagged as , , , , , ,

by | July 8, 2013 · 6:12 am

Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: Hotels Are Providing “Customized Apps For Guests’ Tablets And SmartPhones” That Facilitate Constant Interaction During Stay

“…hotels are starting to adopt (new apps) for guests’ SmartPhones and tablets. A number of companies—including Handheld Hospitality, iRiS Hotel Technology SolutionsSoftware Systems and Cardola– have developed apps (such as mobile phone acting as TV remote and pre-ordering dinner at hotel restaurant) that facilitate constant interaction between hotels and their guests before, during and after their stay…”

The apps can be customized for each hotel. But they typically work like this: When guests book their rooms, hotels send them emails letting them know about the app. They can then download the app and start planning their trips. The apps act as virtual concierges with information about local restaurants and attractions.

For those guests who want to spend time inside the hotel, they can use the apps to order room service, book spa appointments and golf tee times, and learn about in-house events or happy hour specials. In other words, the apps eliminate the need for an in-room directory or a concierge.

“Apps, like 16 different types of pillow, are seen as a must-have for hotels, particularly at the top end of the market,” says Katherine Doggrell, editor of Hotel Analyst Distribution & Technology.

But, she says, hotels run the risk of overloading the apps with too much information and too many functions. “What the customer often wants is the chance to cut down the time spent in queues trying to check in and out and pay, and that’s what apps can help do,” she says. “Apps should be functional, first and foremost.”

For more: http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20130708/BUSINESS10/307080046/Mobile-apps-let-guests-order-room-service-more

Comments Off on Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: Hotels Are Providing “Customized Apps For Guests’ Tablets And SmartPhones” That Facilitate Constant Interaction During Stay

Filed under Guest Issues, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Technology

Tagged as , , , , , , ,

by | June 3, 2013 · 6:26 am

Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: Hotels Increasingly Targeting “Millennials” With Free Wi-Fi, “Coffeehouse-Like Workspaces” And Unique, Local Food & Amenities

“…Hoteliers and researchers say Millennials, those generally born in the 1980s to the early 2000s, are unique travelers because they want to stay Hotel Technology Solutionsconstantly connected through social media, they want coffeehouse-like spaces where they can work and play, and they want unique and local amenities. They also want it all instantly and in a comfortable, modern setting…”

A survey last year by Boston Consulting Group of 4,000 Millennials ages 16 to 34 and 1,000 non-Millennials ages 35 to 74 found key differences between consumers in both age groups. Millennials value speed and convenience, are more likely to trust advice from peers than people with professional credentials and use technology to connect with more people in real time, the study found.

King says AC Hotels will appeal to those travelers who appreciate design, technology, good lighting and quick, efficient service.  An AC Lounge will have a menu of small plates, cocktails, wines and craft beers. Visitors will be able to book spaces for meetings from their smartphones using Marriott’s Workspace on Demand app. And Wi-Fi will be free throughout the property.

Commune’s Tommie, which will launch in New York in 2015, is unabashedly going after Millennials. Public lounges called Reading Rooms will promote socializing. Guests will be able to check themselves in and dine from a gourmet grab-and-go marketplace. Rates will stay in the mid-$200 range because of the limited services.

For more:  http://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/hotels/2013/06/03/marriott-hotel-brand-millennials/2382003/

Comments Off on Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: Hotels Increasingly Targeting “Millennials” With Free Wi-Fi, “Coffeehouse-Like Workspaces” And Unique, Local Food & Amenities

Filed under Guest Issues, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Technology

Tagged as , , , ,

by | May 15, 2013 · 5:44 am

Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: Hotel And Restaurant “Integrated Ordering Systems” Feature Online Tablets Located On Tables; Increase In Productivity, Inventory Control And Customer Satisfaction

“…By eliminating the traditional step of taking down orders with pen and paper, the hotel has been able to cut down manpower needs Hotel Restaurant Online Tablet Ordering Systemby one staff member per shift (reducing walking time)…”

  • The new system also removes the extra time taken to check the availability of certain items with the kitchen
  • Customer satisfaction has climbed by five percentage points since the system was implemented
  • The new format of ordering allowed us to provide personalized service to patrons who needed it more
  • Sales of food at the atrium lounge have gone up since the automated ordering system was implemented
  • The system also allows guests to give instant feedback about the service, with comments popping up on the employees’ phones.

An initiative that was implemented last November involved linking the hotel’s atrium lounge to a full integrated ordering system. Unlike other restaurants and cafes, where tablet computers are used as electronic menus or ordering devices, the hotel goes one step further. Information is keyed in by patrons and sent via the tablets to mobile phones which are carried by all service staff.

“Guests can self-order and customise their meals by looking through the menu and browsing through the pictures,” said Mr Wehinger. “With the tablet, they can press a ‘call for service’ button, type out dietary restrictions, give feedback and view the inventory level of items which are selling fast or out of stock.

“Instead of waving their hands in the air to get the attention of a waiter, a pop-up with the corresponding table number will appear on the mobile phones issued to our staff. They will then attend to the guests’ needs.”

The atrium lounge, which is manned by about seven employees during the evening peak period, takes up much of the hotel’s fourth floor and spans an area about as large as two basketball courts, so cutting down walking time is a key improvement.

For more:  http://www.asiaone.com/News/Latest%2BNews/Relax/Story/A1Story20130515-422603.html

Comments Off on Hospitality Industry Technology Solutions: Hotel And Restaurant “Integrated Ordering Systems” Feature Online Tablets Located On Tables; Increase In Productivity, Inventory Control And Customer Satisfaction

Filed under Guest Issues, Labor Issues, Management And Ownership, Risk Management, Technology, Training

Tagged as , , , , , , , ,