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Think Tank on hospitality technology puts customers and business objectives at the heart of hi-tech

Participants at the International Hotel & Restaurant Association's (IH&RA<.>) fifth Think Tank on Hospitality Technology held in Paris on 17-18th February 2001 could have been expected to talk about the future of e- and m-business, wireless applications, Voice Over IP and ASPs. But they sidelined predictions about "the next big thing" in favour of sharing their views on the most crucial challenge facing hospitality companies in the e-hospitality environment: the human and the business dimensions.

The group identified a series of "gaps" exposed by the tech revolution which the industry must make a priority of closing:

  • the gulf between the promise of what technology can do and what is actually being delivered,
  • the polarisation of state-of-the-art hi-tech and the 'high-touch' personalised experience sought by guests
  • the 'digital divide' isolating senior management with no IT background from their IT-savvy juniors,
  • the widening 'lag' between the pace of IT adoption in the hospitality workplace and the aspirations of younger generation recruits,
  • the techno-void in the existing 'body of knowledge' available to hospitality students,
  • the technology skills vacuum in the industry and how to fill it

"The bottleneck today is human bandwidth," was how one participant summed up the group's findings which were presented at Eurhotec<.> 2001, the IH&RA's technology show and conference (19-21 February 2001), by facilitator Dan Connolly, Assistant Professor at the University of Denver School of Hotel, Restaurant & Tourism Management. There was unanimous agreement that the people dimension was crucial to the future of technology in the industry – the right skills, the right levels of IT awareness and the right organisational structures.

Other key challenges to be mastered include knowledge management and CRM, which the industry has embraced but not optimised. It also has a long way to go in inventing valid 'tools' to measure ROI on technology investments, and to marry the on-line and off-line worlds successfully.

Driven by a combination of customer demands, new technologies, competition, and labour force expectations, hospitality is progressing but is still held back by its fragmented ownership structure, the complexity of the infrastructure and the capital outlays required.

The group concurred that it was imperative to establish greater credibility and trust among investors. "We have to shape the mindset first," said Sander Allegro, of the Hague Hotelschools's Knowledge & Innovation Centre, who co-chaired the debate. Because it is harder to demonstrate to an investor the value of improving IT than that, for example, of building additional rooms, a more convincing case for IT must be made. Among approaches for the successful "selling" of technology to management and investors alike, the group recommended:

  • Make the business case – link costs and outcomes
  • Align it with strategic drivers
  • Ensure tech decisions are 'owned' by the units involved, not simply the IT department
  • Explain the benefits of technology in language that business executives understand (e.g. ROI, NPV, bottom-line impact, share price impact)
  • Demonstrate the ability to create sustainable competitive advantage

For IT to become an industry success story, it must be embedded throughout the hospitality enterprise and culture, spanning departmental boundaries. The IT dimension should be estimated in every business decisor plan. Itt evolve into ater-disciplinary responsibi: "Evetaff member e a CIO" – educatedunderstwhat IT can't do.

Summing up threats of digital economy, Connolly concludeat today;sfinitions coue invalidaby tomorrow, competitwas likelycome from where it least expecane ;wait see; approach could cost a any itmpive advantage.stant vigilance for ;the seedschang willingnessinnovate do things in a new way would pay dividends.

Participants at the International Hotel & Restaurant Association's (IH&RA<.>) fifth Think Tank on Hospitality Technology held in Paris on 17-18th February 2001 could have been expected to talk about the future of e- and m-business, wireless applications, Voice Over IP and ASPs. But they sidelined predictions about "the next big thing" in favour of sharing their views on the most crucial challenge facing hospitality companies in the e-hospitality environment: the human and the business dimensions.



The group identified a series of "gaps" exposed by the tech revolution which the industry must make a priority of closing:


  • the gulf between the promise of what technology can do and what is actually being delivered,

  • the polarisation of state-of-the-art hi-tech and the 'high-touch' personalised experience sought by guests

  • the 'digital divide' isolating senior management with no IT background from their IT-savvy juniors,

  • the widening 'lag' between the pace of IT adoption in the hospitality workplace and the aspirations of younger generation recruits,

  • the techno-void in the existing 'body of knowledge' available to hospitality students,

  • the technology skills vacuum in the industry and how to fill it


"The bottleneck today is human bandwidth," was how one participant summed up the group's findings which were presented at Eurhotec<.> 2001, the IH&RA's technology show and conference (19-21 February 2001), by facilitator Dan Connolly, Assistant Professor at the University of Denver School of Hotel, Restaurant & Tourism Management. There was unanimous agreement that the people dimension was crucial to the future of technology in the industry – the right skills, the right levels of IT awareness and the right organisational structures.



Other key challenges to be mastered include knowledge management and CRM, which the industry has embraced but not optimised. It also has a long way to go in inventing valid 'tools' to measure ROI on technology investments, and to marry the on-line and off-line worlds successfully.



Driven by a combination of customer demands, new technologies, competition, and labour force expectations, hospitality is progressing but is still held back by its fragmented ownership structure, the complexity of the infrastructure and the capital outlays required.



The group concurred that it was imperative to establish greater credibility and trust among investors. "We have to shape the mindset first," said Sander Allegro, of the Hague Hotelschools's Knowledge & Innovation Centre, who co-chaired the debate. Because it is harder to demonstrate to an investor the value of improving IT than that, for example, of building additional rooms, a more convincing case for IT must be made. Among approaches for the successful "selling" of technology to management and investors alike, the group recommended:


  • Make the business case – link costs and outcomes

  • Align it with strategic drivers

  • Ensure tech decisions are 'owned' by the units involved, not simply the IT department

  • Explain the benefits of technology in language that business executives understand (e.g. ROI, NPV, bottom-line impact, share price impact)

  • Demonstrate the ability to create sustainable competitive advantage


For IT to become an industry success story, it must be embedded throughout the hospitality enterprise and culture, spanning departmental boundaries. The IT dimension should be estimated in every business decisor plan. Itt evolve into ater-disciplinary responsibi: "Evetaff member e a CIO" – educatedunderstwhat IT can't do.



Summing up threats of digital economy, Connolly concludeat today;sfinitions coue invalidaby tomorrow, competitwas likelycome from where it least expecane ;wait see; approach could cost a any itmpive advantage.stant vigilance for ;the seedschang willingnessinnovate do things in a new way would pay dividends.

Companies represenat Think Tank ided Cendant CorporatHotels Division, Dublin InstituteTechgy, Ecole Hiere de Lausanne, Hcareers, Hermes SA, HNet BusSchool The Hague, HView Corp, IBM, IMHI, Lapa Plava, Leonardo Media BV, Mandarin OrienH Group, Ot Express Hs, Park Plaza Hs Europe, Percipia, Synxis, Leading HsWorld, Surrey University Washington State ty.

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