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Definitely Doug 6/9/23: Hotels Fighting Trafficking: The Role of Technology
Posted: 06/09/2023

This week I want to address an important issue for the hospitality industry, albeit one that technologists have not historically had on their radar. They can potentially play a significant role in addressing the issue, which is human trafficking, and more specifically sex trafficking.

In my last column, I reviewed some key trends in autonomous mobile robotics for hotels, and dove into three categories of delivery robots in more detail – room delivery, food delivery, and heavy-lift robots. This week I will round out the topic with several other robot types and applications, as well as general guidance for evaluating, acquiring, and adopting mobile autonomous robotics. If you have not yet read part one, I recommend going back and doing so before continuing below, as some of the introductory material is important background to what follows.

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Best Practices for Hotel & Resort Operators in Pool Season 2023
Posted: 05/25/2023

With the arrival of warmer weather and summer fast approaching, hospitality operators are gearing up for another pool season. This year, technology is at the forefront of driving booking revenue and taking operational efficiency to the next level. Modern technology platforms (such as hospitality’s newest technology category – the Property Experience Management System or PXMS) are providing brand new capabilities that unlock new strategies and approaches to filling the pool with satisfied guests.

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The Growing Role Technology Plays in Hotels and Restaurants
Posted: 05/25/2023

In the past few years, hotels and restaurants have grown into hubs for entertainment, leisure, and human connection. In an effort to best serve their guests, operators have begun rethinking their technological investments and working to adapt to recent shifts in consumer preference and operations. To ensure that guests have the best on-site experience possible, brands are increasingly looking to new technologies to make their experiences more convenient and comfortable. Advanced property management systems (PMS) and point-of-sale (POS) systems can increase operational and staff efficiency, while also meeting changing customer expectations for a high-value but relatively low-touch experience.

This week I will return to a topic I have covered before, because it has, within the last 12 to 18 months, become one of the hottest-growth categories in hospitality technology. That topic is autonomous mobile robots – specifically, ones that can move around the facility as well as perform specific tasks. Many of these products were launched pre-Covid but were often seen at the time as more of a marketing gimmick than a legitimate operational solution.

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2017 HITEC Report: The Wi-Fi Edition

08/02/2017

by Dan Phillips

I went to this year’s HITEC in Toronto in search of three main things: Wi-Fi providers offering personal area networks (PAN), TV providers showcasing casting capabilities, and vendors working in the guest experience and personalization space. On all three accounts, this HITEC delivered.

There were more than 68 vendors touting Wi-Fi on the floor and pretty much all of them have some form of PAN solution. Of all of the companies I visited I would say that the folks at Ruckus continue to lead the industry. The company has a very wide array of product sets that can meet most any brand requirements and owner’s budgets and always work hard on new developments.

Interactive TV boasted over 45 exhibitors, and, pretty much all of them tout a method for casting. I found InnSpire to have one of the more seamless solutions, and a neat new way to replace the set top box. Another interesting development in casting was provided by TeleAdapt.

For the last few years, my passion has been guest experience and personalization. From my perspective, HITEC this year might have been a coming-out party for experience as every vendor was screaming “experience” in every marketing slick at their disposal. Leveraging off of another of my passions, Lord of the Rings, I’d like to steal the outline: Nine rings for men, seven rings for dwarves, three rings for elves and one ring to rule them all.

My nine rings go to newcomers in this space, many of which were in E20X. Though these might be thought of lesser entities at this point in time – just like men – one or more of these vendors might eventually rule the industry. This list includes Angie Hospitality, Arrivedo, GEMtouch, GuestFolder, iPalapa Corporation, Kognitiv, OnceThere Inc., Stay Wanderful and Zootle Inc.

The seven rings title goes to companies that have been around for a while, and have begun to make their reputations in this niche. This group is made up of ALICE, Cendyn, Crave Interactive, Guestware, HeBS Digital, Listrak and NAVIS.

To be in the three-ring category a company must have established itself as an industry leader, and therefore, Agilysys, Infor and Springer-Miller Systems are recognized.

But for me, the one ring that rules them all, is Protel hotelsoftware GmbH. What the industry is sorely lacking is an agnostic service bus. Not only does Protel have this, but the solution also has a very feature rich PMS that it may work with. Protel can be a one-stop shop, but they also sell components, meaning you can buy some of the tools and add them to what you already have. If you haven’t looked at Protel yet, I strongly urge you to set up a demo. I think that they have a strong chance to replace many of the “top” vendors in the PMS space.

About The Author

Dan Phillips
Owner
Dare to Imagine

Dan Phillips is the owner of the consulting firm, Dare to Imagine (www.dare2i.com). He started behind the front desk of a Holiday Inn in 1987 and has been consulting to hotel companies since 1991. Dare to Imagine enlists hotel experts with decades of C-level experience at many of the major hotel companies in the world. He can be reached at dphillips@dare2i.com or by phone at 678-852-5913.