The winds of change are blowing through the hospitality sector. In the wake of the pandemic, pub, restaurant and hotel groups are navigating numerous challenges in their quest for sustainable success. Automated operations could have a key role in guiding the way forward.
Operations are the engine room of growth in hospitality. But the way deskless operations have been managed is often mired in the past.Too many hospitality workers contend with checklists that exist on paper, in spreadsheets or clunky technology tools. These are ill-suited to the dynamic demands of their frontline work – preparing and serving food, managing the kitchen, conducting room checks, maintaining safety and keeping premises clean.
In a survey of more than 1,500 deskless workers, 60% report being unsatisfied with, or believe there is room for improvement in, the technology they use for work. It can slow them down and make them less engaged and less adaptable.
This is a problem because staff shortages are impacting the hospitality sector more than most. In the UK, one in four hospitality businesses are reported to have reduced their hours or close venues completely due to staff shortages. According to the Office for National Statistics, there are 400,000 unfilled vacancies in UK hospitality. In the US, there are more than two million vacancies in leisure and hospitality.
The increasing uptake of automated operations will help address staffing gaps by utilising sensor monitoring and digital workflows for mundane reporting tasks, saving many hours of staff time.
But deskless staff shortages are not the only challenge the hospitality sector faces. Rising costs, including energy, property, labour and food, make efficiency another priority. The sustainability of hospitality is another increasing area of concern. And winning loyal customers requires operators to maintain high standards despite all of these obstacles.
Automated operations give managers greater visibility over frontline activity across all locations. Unlike outdated reporting methods that hide insights and trend analysis within folders full of paperwork, automated operations provide a complete real-time view.
Checkit’s intelligent operations platform draws data from digital assistants that prompt, guide and capture daily staff procedures, plus sensor networks that continuously monitor food storage conditions, water pipes and equipment health.
How can leaders know whether brand standards are being upheld without this real-time insight? Are profitable opportunities being seized? Are safety procedures being followed at every business location? How is the risk of legionella being managed?
The pressure is on hospitality providers to adapt quickly to changing economic conditions, customer preferences and safety risks.
But large, complex organisations with deskless employees are encumbered by operational silos, outdated reporting mechanisms and intensely manual methods.
Let’s look at contrasting scenarios based on checklists or digital assistants.
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