Investments in the operational management of hotels are therefore focused on two main objectives: first, to achieve a significant improvement in processes, and second, to establish various strategies to differentiate themselves from competing hotels. According to various studies examining hotels in Spain over the coming years, it is estimated that investment in technology will increase by €18,000 per hotel.
Of this money, 48% of the budget will be invested in new application systems that must be implemented in less than 24 months. Below, we will analyze this data in detail.
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Reasons for Hotels to Invest in Operational Management
There are several reasons why hotels decide to invest in new technologies: on the one hand, process optimization (31%), and on the other hand, applications that allow them to differentiate themselves from competitors (29%). The remaining reasons relate to the development of cross-selling, upselling, or loyalty strategies (21%), as well as strategies related to business development and growth (15%).
It is estimated that 3 out of 10 hotel chains believe they should implement technological improvements to help them increase efficiency by optimizing their processes, provide better customer service, boost employee satisfaction, and generally become more efficient. Unfortunately, only 1 in 10 hotels has an operations or logistics management solution that fully leverages the company’s potential.
What Obstacles Do Hotels See When Investing in Technology for Operations Management?
About 63% of the hotel chains surveyed state that the most significant obstacle they face is implementation and maintenance costs, followed by the challenges they encounter in training and educating their employees. Another obstacle is teaching staff how to use these tools correctly to add value.
Furthermore, we see that 71% of hotel chains would like to invest more than €10,000 annually. 44% expect to invest between €10,000 and €20,000, 15% will make investments ranging from €20,000 to €50,000, and finally, only 12% have plans to invest more than €50,000. The average time expected to implement these changes is generally less than 5 years. The vast majority (48%) would like to limit this investment to 2 years.
