Will Covid prove to be a breakthrough for cloud?

TOPHOSPITALITY

5 years ago

Will Covid prove to be a breakthrough for cloud?Some thoughts on hotel industry after COVID-19

Hardly a day goes by without some negative information about the impact of the coronavirus on the travel and hospitality worlds.

Despite all this negativity we hope that it’s only a matter of time for the hospitality world to overcome the difficulties that COVID-19 brings. After all, the hotel industry has experienced its share of crises, including terrorism, SARS virus and economic downturns, only to evolve even more and move forward.

The question is: how will we move forward? What are the lessons learnt from the lockdown and how will they shape our future businesses?

While there are many professionals providing useful tips on how to deal with the current situation, what’s trending and what’s fading, I’d like to talk about one hot topic – cloud technologies.

Adopting cloud- based technologies like Property Management Systems are nothing new for the hospitality industry, hoteliers have been using such technologies for years now.

However, currently there has been talk about expanding the cloud solutions in the hospitality industry even more. Shifting the processes online seems logical if we consider the scale of economic problems caused by coronavirus pandemic experienced by some of the hotel chains.

First of all, going into cloud technology business doesn’t carry such a scale of a burden of employment, renting and other costs. What’s more, cloud solutions systems are easier to implement and cheaper to maintain.

Faster, better and cheaper- these are the words of the future, but it’s hard to imagine hospitality industry a human factor. For me, it has got a pretty bleak outlook on a people- centric industry such as hospitality.

Call me old-fashioned but I like old fashioned ways of the industry. A friendly, welcoming smile, hotel staff making you feel welcome and wanted. This goes beyond, automated check-in and ordering room service via iPads or mobile concierge. The digitalized experience is for sure very convenient and seamless. But, also it seems like another business transaction- seamless yet soulless.

Whether we like it or not, the new technology is transforming our lives, and the coronavirus outbreak is accelerating the evolution of work as we know it.

For example, given the contagious nature of the virus, there has been huge increase in the number of people working from home. As per research, working remotely from home, can boost employee productivity and in overall improve work/life balance.

It’s a shame, but not long time ago we were all hyped about community co-working spaces. Networking with like-mined creatives in a trendy design open spaces was so hot. Currently, according to wired.co.uk the open-plan office format has suddenly become more risky than revolutionary; especially in light of previous studies which suggest the format results in a 62 per cent increase in sick leave.

So, shall we all start preparing ourselves to abandon offices buildings for good?

It’s a bit early to talk about abandoning offices for good, but working from home is becoming another trend.

According to the Gartner’s top strategic predictions for 2020, there is a big future for digital marketing, sales related, and E-commerce positions in hospitality industry. In other words, brick and mortar approach in hotel business seems to be something of the past now.

Although times may seem difficult, the world after Covid-19 will soon revive and offer more opportunities than before. Now is the right time to embrace and adapt to the new present.I’d like to end with the quote from Heraclitus: “The only constant in life is change”.

To survive and evolve in times of crisis, business leaders should act fast and adopt the changes. What’s more we shall continue to plan for the future keeping in mind the conventional wisdom -It’s Not the Big that Eat the Small… It’s the FAST that Eat the Slow!