Analysis of Information Technology at Hyatt International Hotels

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INTRODUCTION TO INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................................. 3
LITERATURE REVIEW......................................................................................................................3
ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION...........................................................................................................5
FINDINGS....................................................................................................................................... 7
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................. 8
REFERENCES...................................................................................................................................9
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INTRODUCTION
Information technology is the key driver in the hospitality sector which has revolutionised the
industry with innovative technologies. These technologies appeal the customers in unique ways
and help in boosting the internal efficiencies of organisations. The current report will discuss
the role of information technology at Hyatt international hotels which is a luxury hotel and
resort chain headquartered in Chicago, United States. Hyatt international has properties in 56
countries of the world and these different hotel branches stay connected with the central
headquarters in the US with the help of different networking technologies. The report will
highlight how technologies related with internet are facilitating different functions of Hyatt
international hotel and making it convenient for the customers to find the location of the hotel,
book hotel rooms and do online payment. The role of communication technology in
establishing better communication between different branches of Hyatt hotels located
worldwide is also discussed.
LITERATURE REVIEW
According to BilgihanI, et al. (2011), the last 20 years, Information technology has undergone
tremendous changes and hospitality industry has been able to make its services more user-
oriented. Today the hospitality industry is growing at a fast pace and contributing positively to
the economic growth of the nation and Information technology plays an important role in this
growth storey. Technology has changed the way different activities are being carried in
hospitality organisations such as booking a taxi or hotel room and doing payments. Verma et al.
(2012) states that today, a large portion of hotel room bookings are done with the help of
different online tools. While finalising a hotel room, customers look through different options,
compare prices and then take decisions. Nowadays, customers share their good and bad
experiences while staying at the hotel, these experiences of the customers are shared on social
media channels such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Law (2013), has a view that the
decision making of the customers is greatly influenced by these posts. Hospitality sector
organisation have also realised the strength of these social media platforms and are
maintaining a fully functional social media profile of the organisation which provide all the
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useful information to the customers and also resolves their queries through these digital
mediums. The complaints posted through these digital mediums gets greater attention by the
company as the grievances of the customers are in a public view and any negligence in the
resolution of customer query can cost negative publicity for the company.
According to Narayanan (2015), the evolution of the internet has provided great convenience to
the consumers. Travel websites available on the internet provide a number of useful
information to the travellers such as arrival-departure of flights, availability of cheapest hotel
rooms and place to discover in the city. These websites provide real-time updates to the
customers which help them catch their flights on time. Schrier et al. (2010), state that digital
signage technology is widely used in the hospitality industry worldwide which provides useful
information to the guests regarding way-finding information, events, information reading flights
and exploring different amenities provided by the hotel. This digital signage is displayed at
different areas of the hotel such as lobbies, elevators, outside meeting rooms and hallways and
help in enhancing the customer experience.
Neuhofer (2015), states that the internal functions of service industry organisations have also
improved with the use of information technology. Whether it is marketing, HR, Sales, Finance or
Customer relations, each of these departments are using modern technologies to make their
working streamlined and deliver the services at a faster pace. Marketing department uses
different digital platforms to understand the needs of targeted customers and establish
communication with them so that brand awareness of the organisation can be strengthened.
Modern digital mediums have enabled staying in touch with these customers by using social
media or messaging apps. According to Nyheim and Connolly (2011), marketing department
uses email and other messaging applications to provide information regarding the latest offers
and schemes. The human resource department also uses the technology to keep a record of
employee performance so that better performances can be rewarded and the employees who
are not able to perform up to the mark are provided training and education. Financial
calculations have also become convenient with the use of different database management
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software and applications. A large amount of data can be stored online through cloud-based
technology.
ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION
ROLE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AT HYATT INTERNATIONAL HOTEL
Hyatt hotels use technology in different spheres of services. Hotel rooms can be reserved by
visiting the website of the company or through telephones. Hyatt maintains a central
reservation system which provides real-time information about room availability. In addition,
the wide area network technology used Hyatt international hotels helps in regular
communication of regional branches with the main branch (Hyatt Hotels Annual report, 2017).
The top officials can communicate with the managers of different hotel braches seamlessly
through the video conferencing system. Regular communication helps in standardising the
services and maintains the service standards of the Hyatt group. Cloud technology is also used
by the hotel to store a large amount of data in a hassle-free manner. The company does not
need to maintain an IT staff for data maintenance. All these services are provided by cloud
services providing companies. Company managers can use these services by using login ID and
password system.
‘World of Hyatt’ is a mobile application developed by Hyatt hotel which provides facilities of
room reservation, requesting towels or toothpaste in rooms or facility to check-in before
arriving. The app contains several other features such as selecting the food from the menu and
checking in nearby restaurants and entertainment places (Hyatt, 2019). Customers can also
avail the facility of free Wi-Fi and connect their personal device with the internet. Near Field
Communication technology (NFC) is also being used by the hotels which enable the
transmission of data at short distances in a seamless manner. NFC enables faster check-ins and
check-outs which improves the quality of services; this technology is also used to provide
digitised room keys to the customers where they can check-in in the hotel room by using their
mobile phone device, this eliminates the need to carry keys with you all the time.
DIFFERENT TYPES OF NETWORKS
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A network is formed by interconnected computer systems which are used to transfer
information from one system to another. Hyatt international portfolio contains over 700 hotels
worldwide and these hotels stay connected with the central office at Chicago with the help of
wide area networks. Following types of networking technology is used at Hyatt International
hotels to ensure regular connectivity:
Local area networks (LAN)
This networking technology is used to connect different devices within a room or building.
Printers, hard disks and modems and other devices can be connected with each other by using
local area network technology. Hotels used this technology to provide connect different
computer systems in the premises which helps in increasing the speed of services (Turban, et al.
2011).
Wireless local area network (WLAN)
This is a further extension of local area networks where wireless connectivity is provided
between different devices. Free Wi-Fi facilities provided by the hotels are made possible
through this technology where customers can avail the facility of free internet connectivity on
their mobile devices, laptops or tablets (Verma, et al. 2012).
Metropolitan area Network (MAN)
Different local area networks are connected with each other with the help of the metropolitan
area network. These are the networks which are present within the geographical area of a city
or a town (Schrier, et al. 2010). To connect different networks fibre optic cables are used which
enable reliable data transfer in real time.
Wide area network (WAN)
Wide area networks enable communication between different states, countries or continents.
Different hotels of Hyatt international maintain communication with the central office in the
USA by using this networking technology. A customer from China can book a hotel room in the
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USA with the help of these worldwide networks which are enabled by different networking
technologies (Wang, et al. 2016).
ETHICAL AND SOCIAL ISSUES ASSOCIATED WITH TECHNOLOGY
Technology has transformed the basic function of hospitality industry, however, there are some
social and ethical issues related to the use of technology which also needs to be considered.
The greatest threat looming over digital technologies is the intrusion of companies in the
personal life and privacy of people (Olsen and Connolly, 2000). Organisations use personal data
of the customer for identity verification and another such process, but this data needs to be
handled carefully from outside parties. In recent times, many cases have been surfaced where
private data of users were used by companies to influence the buying decision of consumers. In
addition, hackers also try to break the security barrier of the company to get access to all this
private data. Hackers impersonate the digital identity of users by accessing their personal
information such as social security number, bank account number or credit card information.
The social issues associated with the use of technology are the 24-hour connectivity facilitated
by the internet and smartphones (Turban, et al. 2011). Due to these technologies, the
employees are not able to give time to their families and rest, their smartphone continuously
keeps beeping which disturbs their sleep and ultimately affects their efficiency.
FINDINGS
Hospitality industry uses technology to improve the quality of services and enhance customer
satisfaction. The technology is influencing the customer decision-making process and it is
necessary for the hospitality sector organisation to upgrade their IT technologies so that the
demands of these tech-friendly customers can be fulfilled. Customers prefer to gather as much
information as they can before visiting a destination. The source of information for the
customers is online blogs, social media platforms and websites. Travel blogs are the personal
memoir of travellers where they share their travel-related experiences which also include the
details of their stay in hotels (Olsen and Connolly, 2000). The views of these online bloggers
influence the decision making of customers. Social media platforms are also used by people to
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share their experiences and reviews given about the quality of services in the hotels is an
important source of information for customers some websites also provide facilities to compare
the prices of rooms and provide user ratings and reviews. All these factors influence the buying
behaviour of the customers. Therefore it is necessary that hospitality sector organisations
provide authentic information to the customers with the means of its official website.
Networking technologies are also important for the hospitality industry which helps in
establishing communication between different branches located in varied geographical
locations. LAN, MAN, WAN and wireless LAN are some networking technologies which are used
by Hyatt hotels to enhance the customer interactions and provide better communication
channels for managers. Managers can access real-time information regarding room availability
at different hotel branches (Verma, et al. 2012). Cloud technology is also being used at the
hotels to store important information in a safe an effective manner. This information can be
accessed from remote location and the facility of data storage and retrieval are provided in an
online environment. Some ethical issues are also associated with the wide use of technology
and it is necessary to protect the private data of consumers form any unauthorised access.
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CONCLUSION
This report discussed different uses of technology in hospitality sector. Technology has altered
the customer behaviour and hospitality sector organisations such as Hyatt hotel need to
develop their IT capabilities so that they can compete with other hospitality sector
organisation. Technology has made the process of check-in and check-out hassle-free for their
customer and they can use their internet enabled device to avail different facilities provided by
the hotel. Some technologies such as near field communication (NFC) have enabled seamless
check-ins and online payments and the time to deliver these services is effectively reduced. In
addition, these services are have enhanced security features. For example, the digital room
keys which can be accessed through the mobile devices of customer provide enhanced security
to the customers. New technologies keep emerging and there is a need to understand the use
of these technologies and apply it in different internal functions to enhance the customer
experience.
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REFERENCES
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technology amenities on hotel guest overall satisfaction. Journal of Quality Assurance in
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3. Hyatt Hotels Annual report, 2017. Online available at:
https://s2.q4cdn.com/278413729/files/doc_financials/annual_2017/Q4-2017-Form-10-
K.pdf [last accessed on 12 January 2019]
4. Hyatt, 2019. Online available at: https://www.hyatt.com/ [last accessed on 12 January
2019]
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technology in the hospitality industry: Evidence from Cornell Hospitality Quarterly.
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experiences: a case study in the hospitality domain. Electronic Markets, 25(3), pp.243-
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8. Nyheim, P. and Connolly, D., 2011. Technology strategies for the hospitality industry.
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Hospitality and Tourism Technology, 1(3), pp.201-217.
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11. Turban, E., King, D.R. and Lang, J., 2011. Introduction to electronic commerce. Pearson
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