Adam and Larry Mogelonsky | May 08, 2024

By Adam Mogelonsky, Larry Mogelonsky

Looking ahead to the latter half of 2024, it’s obvious to everyone except for those without the internet that the pace of the world keeps moving faster and faster, driven in part by advancements in technology like GenAI. These innovations, such as MyRealTrip’s AI Trip Planner developed in just two days using ChatGPT, are reshaping industries, especially travel and hospitality. As a result, travelers’ expectations are evolving rapidly, and hotels must adapt to stay competitive.

To navigate these changes effectively, hotels need to embrace business process innovation (BPI) to streamline operations and enhance productivity. This is the engine that drives all other operational engines – how you decide to spend your time which is always the limiting variable.

Here are several key BPI steps that hoteliers can enact, along with specific ways technology can support these initiatives:

  1. Identify Pain Points: Conduct a thorough assessment of existing workflows to identify inefficiencies and bottlenecks. This may involve gathering feedback from staff and analyzing operational data to pinpoint areas for improvement. Technology can assist in this process by providing data analytics tools that offer insights into workflow performance and areas for optimization.
  2. Streamline Communication: Implement tools and protocols to streamline communication channels and reduce reliance on email. This could include adopting project management software, establishing clear communication guidelines, and minimizing unnecessary meetings. Additionally, investing in collaboration platforms like Slack or Microsoft Teams can facilitate real-time communication and information sharing among team members.
  3. Empower Teams: Foster a culture of collaboration and empowerment by giving teams the autonomy to make agile decisions and take ownership of their work. This may involve reevaluating hierarchical structures and promoting cross-functional collaboration. Technology can support this by providing platforms for team collaboration and knowledge sharing, such as intranet portals or team collaboration software.
  4. Optimize Meetings: Review meeting processes and protocols to ensure they are productive and efficient. This could involve setting clear agendas, limiting meeting duration, and encouraging active participation from all attendees. Additionally, implementing meeting management software can help streamline the scheduling, follow-up processes, reducing administrative overhead and ensuring that meetings are focused and productive.
  5. Automate Repetitive Tasks: Leverage technology to automate repetitive tasks and streamline workflows. This may include implementing robotic process automation (RPA) tools to automate manual data entry processes or deploying chatbots to handle routine guest inquiries and requests. By automating repetitive tasks, hotels can free up staff time for more value-added activities and improve overall efficiency.
  6. Integrate Systems: Invest in integrated software solutions that seamlessly integrate different systems and processes across the hotel, such as property management systems (PMS), customer relationship management (CRM) software and revenue management systems (RMS). Integrating these systems allows for seamless data sharing and real-time information access, enabling more informed decision-making and improving operational efficiency.
  7. Continuous Improvement: Establish a culture of continuous improvement by regularly reviewing and refining processes to adapt to changing business needs and market conditions. This may involve soliciting feedback from staff and guests, conducting regular performance evaluations and implementing process optimization initiatives. Technology can support this by providing tools for performance monitoring and process analysis, enabling hotels to identify areas for improvement and track progress over time.

In addition to these generic BPI steps, what we’ve noticed from hotel management is that a lot of efficiencies and productivity gains can be obtained simply by looking at meeting and email policy. While these must be tailored to each corporate culture, some basics are:

  • Improving Meetings: Review meeting protocols to ensure they are productive and efficient. This could involve setting clear agendas, limiting meeting duration and encouraging active participation from all attendees. Implementing meeting management software can help streamline the scheduling, organization, and follow-up processes, reducing administrative overhead and ensuring that meetings are focused and productive.
  • Email Process Innovation: Implement strategies to reduce reliance on email and streamline communication channels. This may include adopting project management software, establishing clear communication guidelines, and encouraging real-time collaboration through platforms like, again, Slack or Microsoft Teams. Additionally, promoting individual responsibility for email management and encouraging concise, actionable communication can help reduce email volume and improve overall efficiency.

By implementing these BPI steps and addressing inefficiencies in meetings and email communication, hotels can optimize their internal processes, improve employee satisfaction, and deliver better guest experiences. Additionally, embracing BPI and technology-driven innovation is essential for hotels looking to thrive for the next five years ahead when so much more will continue to change and you need to be able to observe, orient, decide and act all the faster.

 

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