What to expect in the year ahead 2010 Sir David Michels on the shape of the coming recovery The outlook for 20 key markets, from China and the USA to Germany, Brazil and Libya Is it time to change in-room technology standards? How the crisis will affect luxury in 2010 Editorial input from 25 hotel industry CEOs
This excerpt from the Hotel Yearbook 2010 is brought to you by : Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne The Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne (EHL) is the co-publisher of The Hotel Yearbook. As the oldest Hotel School in the world, EHL provides university education to students with talent and ambition, who are aiming for careers at the forefront of the international hospitality industry. Dedicated to preparing tomorrow s executives to the highest possible level, EHL regularly adapts the contents of its three academic programs to reflect the latest technologies and trends in the marketplace. Since its founding in 1893, the Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne has developed more than 25 000 executives for the hospitality industry, providing it today with an invaluable network of contacts for all the members of the EHL community. Some 1 800 students from over 90 different countries are currently enjoying the unique and enriching environment of the Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne. Boutique DESIGN New York Boutique DESIGN New York, a new hospitality interiors trade fair, will coincide with the 94-year-old International Hotel/Motel & Restaurant Show (IH/M&RS). Designers, architects, purchasers and developers will join the hotel owners/operators already attending IH/M&RS to view the best hospitality design offerings as well as explore a model room, exciting trend pavilion and an uplifting illy networking café. Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP) HFTP provides first-class educational opportunities, research and publications to more than 4 800 members around the world. Over the years, HFTP has grown into the global professional association for financial and technology personnel working in hotels, clubs and other hospitality-related businesses. Bench Events Bench Events host premier hotel investment conferences including the International Hotel Investment Forum ; the Arabian Hotel Investment Conference and the Russia & CIS Hotel Investment Conference. Bench Event s sister company, JW Bench, is a benchmarking company that has launched the Conference Bench and the Productivity Bench. An industry first, the Conference Bench, measures performance data for conference space in hotels throughout Europe. Cornell University School of Hotel Administration Founded in 1922, Cornell University s School of Hotel Administration was the first collegiate program in hospitality management. Today it is regarded as one of the world s leaders in its field. The school s highly talented and motivated students learn from 60 full-time faculty members all experts in their chosen disciplines, and all dedicated to teaching, research and service. Learning takes place in state-of-the-art classrooms, in the on-campus Statler hotel, and in varied industry settings around the world. The result: a supremely accomplished alumni group-corporate executives and entrepreneurs who advance the industry and share their wisdom and experience with our students and faculty. Hsyndicate With an exclusive focus on global hospitality and tourism, Hsyndicate.org (the Hospitality Syndicate) provides electronic news publication, syndication and distribution on behalf of some 750 organizations in the hospitality vertical. Hsyndicate helps its members to reach highly targeted audience-segments in the exploding newmedia landscape within hospitality. With the central idea ONE Industry, ONE Network, Hsyndicate merges historically fragmented industry intelligence into a single online information and knowledge resource serving the information-needs of targeted audience-groups throughout the hospitality, travel & tourism industries serving professionals relying on Hsyndicate s specific and context-relevant intelligence delivered to them when they need it and how they need it. WATG Over the course of the last six decades, WATG has become the world s leading design consultant for the hospitality industry. Having worked in 160 countries and territories across six continents, WATG has designed more great hotels and resorts than any other firm on the planet. Many of WATG s projects have become international landmarks, renowned not only for their design and sense of place but also for their bottom-line success.
TECHNOLOGY That phone in the bathroom is so 1977 Technology is changing so fast, it s almost impossible to keep up, writes IAN MILLAR, Professor of Hospitality Technology at the ECOLE HOTELIERE DE LAUSANNE. This is especially true for hospitality and hoteliers, «who have better things to worry about in the current economic climate.» With a plethora of surveys demonstrating that guests want real-time weather and an alarm clock, thirty international TV channels and connection points for their own devices, he proposes that 2010 will be the year that we begin to re-assess the way hotels are rated, and start giving much more consideration to a hotel s technology offering. Modern, discerning hotel guests have very high technology expectations when it comes to their room nights, and hoteliers who ignore these techno-savvy guests and their needs will see them go through someone else s front door. But what do we need to consider? Maybe a good starting point would be to look at the guests of today and also take into account current technology trends. By combining the two, a technology action plan can be implemented. I am not going to sit here and tell hoteliers what they always hear : «Internet for free!» Rather, let me say that maybe now is the time to take two steps back and completely revise what technology really means in a hospitality context in the year 2010. If we go back a few years to, say, the 1970s, when many homes in Europe still had black and white TVs, hotels had color televisions and also advertised the fact. Since this decade, have we really brought technology along so far, in terms of reflecting consumer behavior? Do we offer technology that «exceeds guest expectations,» or have we, as an industry, fallen behind the times? Unfortunately, the answer is that we are behind the times well behind the times. And this has come from the star rating system for hotels, which has not been updated to reflect the needs of the modern, discerning hotel guest. From an hotelier s perspective, technology has always been seen as fixtures and fittings, a necessary evil. But personally, I believe technology today is a service. We talk about the service industry guest services well, today technology is part and parcel of this, and technology leads the soft product services. So the question has to be asked : What as an industry do we do? There should be no knee-jerk reaction, but rather a wellthought out plan of action to bring this great industry of ours into the 21st century. Telling hoteliers they have to update all technology aspects immediately makes no economic sense and carries great risks. Instead, there should be a phased action plan for hotels, allowing them to implement technology in a controlled and financially viable manner. And for this author, herein lies the problem. If we look at the standards put in place by the major hotel star rating organizations, their idea of technology falls well behind what the guest requires/perceives as «service.» Recently there have been numerous studies conducted on guest technology, and here are a few facts gleaned from a selection of these surveys : Television In October 2008, an IPSOS/ACCOR survey of 3870 guests in France, the UK, USA and China, covering all hotel categories, revealed that while almost everyone turns the TV on, more than 40 % of the guests are not actually watching it. Another study reinforced this, showing that 90 % of guests turn on the TV as a ritual, but only 50 % actually watch it. TV is generally watched for 3 hours a day. Items such as Pay TV and adult content are not what modern guests require. However, they do want more channels and more international channels (30 according to one survey). Internet When it comes to the Internet, guests are over-equipped. Most bring five portable devices with them to the hotel : laptop, USB key, digital camera, portable music player and a smart phone. No one in any of these studies actually asked for VOD ; linking this with the fact that travellers now have an array of devices, what we see is that guests are getting their own content on the gadgets they bring with them into the room. Approximately 60 % of hotel guests use the Internet, most preferring Wi-Fi access. MANAGING AND OPERATING HOTELS IN 2010 HOTELyearbook2010
TECHNOLOGY Telephone The telephone was another technology questioned, and here is where we the problems really start. Only 5 % of guests use the phone, but if they do, it is mainly for service reservations and alarm calls. Nevertheless, as stipulated by the majority of organizations, in their hotel quality standards, a five-star hotel must provide two telephones for the guests, along with and writing materials. Writing materials Maybe it s just me, but when was the last time you actually wrote a letter in a hotel room? Send an e-mail, yes. But write a letter? A widening gap So we are seeing a gap between guest requirements and habits and hotel standards. Similarly, standards require that Internet should be provided where there is a business market need (for 4-star hotels), but the following points get no mention at all : whether access should be via cable or Wi-Fi what connection speed should be provided what level of security should be provided how pricing should be advertised (a stipulation that does apply to the phone, by the way). And this ties in with another survey conducted by ibahn, who went direct to the consumers and asked them what they want to see in their ideal hotel room. More than 1000 people participated in the research, with over 600 signing up to the twitter stream to stay in touch with advancements. The results : http://www.ourhotelroom.co.uk/ The most important aspect with 17 % was a tiered Internet connection. The technical term for this is «bandwidth management,» whereby hotels can provide more or less bandwidth to their individual guests, basically putting more at the disposal of guests who due to their Internet habits want more. For this, they will also pay more. And this links back to the idea of technology as a service. Hotels can offer free Internet. To the guests who just wish to do a little basic surfing, catch up on the latest news and quickly check their e-mails, an option can be given for free which does not allow them to download files or stream content (e.g. watch YouTube videos). MANAGING AND OPERATING HOTELS IN 2010
MEET GUEST NEEDS, GENERATE PROFITABLE REVENUE AND DELIVER GUEST SATISFACTION Business travellers and leisure guests demand and require solutions that help them communicate, help them connect and help them keep in contact. All guests need quick and easy access to the latest entertainment and up to date information. ibahn understands that technology is fast changing, guests habits and expectations are continually shifting, and providing solutions is not always straightforward. ibahn would be delighted to guide you through solutions that address all these key areas with a visit to isuite, ibahn s new product demonstration and solution design guest room. www.ibahnemea.com/isuite
TECHNOLOGY Then, for a fee, the hotel can open access to these options ; those guests who are real «power users», i.e. the ones who need VPN, Slingbox, access to the itunes store, and so on will pay the premium, and they will be willing to pay for it. Other findings from the ibahn survey include personalized entertainment packages (12 %), docking stations for MP3 players (12 %), and biometric security entrance (10 %). standards broken down between new hotel builds, current operating hotels and refurbishments. Hotels should be given guidelines to help them implement the relevant infrastructure in case of a refurbishment so as to be able to offer technology in the future that the guests really want. So we can see that there is a gap between our guests and their requirements and our technology offerings. Looking, for example, at the UK organization which applies the hotel star rating system, we see that not one of the ibahn survey responses is mentioned in their standards brochure. Getting toward a solution So how can we fix this problem? Personally, I believe there should be a mixed group of people including technology specialists, hoteliers and guests to devise our new standards, and to keep them up-to-date. I also believe there should be I also believe that hotels wishing to «push the envelope» with technology should be rewarded accordingly, either as a 5-star hotel or a «hotel with 5-star technology». None of this is complicated to do. Here are two examples : Current standard : Sufficient and conveniently situated power sockets allowing for the safe use of all electrical equipment provided. MANAGING AND OPERATING HOTELS IN 2010
TECHNOLOGY Leading-edge technology vs. cavernous bathrooms Does 2010 spell the beginning of the end for the traditional rating systems? One hotel company that appears to think so is citizenm, based in Amsterdam and poised to expand throughout Europe. Or a new, modern approach : A professionally installed and maintained power strip placed ideally at desk level for guest comfort, including a minimum of 1 UK plug (ideally 2 or more), 1 Continental European plug, and 1 American 110v plug (bonus 2 points). Also the provision of a micro USB plug socket and standard USB allowing guests to charge their various USB devices direct at the wall1. (Bonus 1 point.) Provision of a wireless power mat is an additional option2. (Bonus 1 point) Here s another example. Current standard : By the 1st January 2008 an in room safe is required for all 5-star properties. Or a new, modern approach : By the 1st January 2008 an in room safe is required for all 5-star properties. Providing guests with 17-inch safes to accept laptops is seen as an additional option. (Bonus 1 point.) Providing a plug socket in the safe so guests can charge their devices in total security is also seen as an additional option linked with using biometrics to access the safe. (Bonus 2 points.) Rewarding hotels that wish to go the extra mile with technology could be another option, allowing them to become «technology recommended» hotels : the more bonus points, the higher the recognition. But will this be enough? Will the current standards be overtaken by online presence? Will we need these sorts of «governmental» bodies who control what we do in the future? Is this the time for a real shake-up of our industry? This author feels the answer to that question is Yes. 1 As of 2010, all mobile phone companies (except Apple) will be accepting Micro USB as the official charging method for their phones. 2 Wireless charging of phones and MP3 players is now a feasible technology. HOTELyearbook2010 As its CEO Michael Levie says, «Indeed our hotels don t fit the current ratings. Let s be honest, ratings do need to apply to the bulk of hotel properties Now with more lifestyle properties being built, I believe the star qualification will shift also. When is another question Historically, star ratings were of fundamental importance, as guests perception of a hotel s level and its services was based entirely on that. Brand already started to distract from this and the Internet diluted it further The criteria for star levels are normally points that you need to score on an overall survey, and certain minimum requirements that need to be met. It is specifically the minimum requirements where we have the issues ; i.e. the square footage of the room and the bathroom, 24-hour room service, or the choice of F&B outlets.» Lennert de Jong, the company s Director of Distribution and Business Development, adds, «Traditional star ratings will cease to exist soon. Nowadays the consumer does not need to be lectured by official organizations that live by the rules of days long gone. Today, consumers will look at their peers and do research themselves. People make their own choice in what they find important during their hotel stay. CitizenM has been designed for what most people like and expect from a hotel. That does not include a trouser press, dual dial phone, in-room fax or a marble fountain in the lobby, but free Wi-Fi, free movies, a great big bed and nice fluffy pillows. Don t trust the hotel inspectors, trust the masses!» Today, consumers will look at their peers and do research themselves MANAGING AND OPERATING HOTELS IN 2010