Visitor numbers soar at Eurotec 2001 as event attracts more than 1,850 attendees from 54 countries.
Visitor numbers soar at Eurotec 2001 as event attracts more than 1,850 attendees from 54 countries.
By Staff -- Hotels, 4/30/2001 11:00:00 PM
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If attendance at the sixth edition of Eurhotec, the European Hospitality Technology Exhibition & Conference held here in February, is any gauge, hoteliers are quickly warming up to the importance of IT in their business performance.
Having made Paris its home for the first time in its six-year history, the IH&RA event attracted a record 1,850 visitors from 54 countries. The high turnout pleased the 81 exhibiting companies presenting products and services in categories ranging from security, catering, telecommunication, in-room devices, energy management, Internet applications and others. And it pleased corporate sponsors Cisco Systems, VingCard/Elsafe and Trust International. The Palais de Congrès venue has already been confirmed as the host site for Eurhotec 2002.
Chain Reaction
Of the 23 educational sessions on the program, top marks went to 'The View from the Top'-a panel debate between Nick Price, Director of Technology for the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, John Paul Nichols, VP Marketing for Cendant Corporation Hotel Division, and Willi Tinner, VP IT of the Swissôtel Management Group. Asked to assess the impact of the Internet in the industry, panelists agreed that it was a powerful force in the distribution market and a great cost containment opportunity but stressed that the Internet's main benefit was its capacity to present the product accurately to customers-an ability which the GDS doesn't have. "It also allows customers to give information back to us about their wants and needs, so that we can serve them better," Price commented. "The additional information the Internet brings to the customer translates into competitive advantage for those with good brands and/or products," said Nichols. Admitting that it is cost-intensive, Nichols indicated that it is a channel with significant revenue potential, estimating that 15%-18% of what his company delivers comes over the Internet. "The GDS growth is being driven by online growth. We think up to 20% of revenue is driven by the Internet, and this could be 50% in five years," he forecast.
Inaugural Tech Summit
Eurhotec 2001 saw the launch of a first-ever IH&RA Technology Leaders Summit, an invitation-only forum for top IT, finance and marketing executives, which focused on how to overcome the reluctance of hotel owners and management to pump investment into technology. Companies represented at the Summit included Bass Hotels & Resorts, Cendant Hotel Division, Hilton International, Kempinski Hotels & Resorts, Mandarin Oriental Hotels, Manhattan East Suite Hotels, Swissôtel Management Group, Wizcom International, VingCard and American Express. The full-day roundtable discussion, led by IH&RA's director of research, Michael D. Olsen, started with a presentation of a study on 'Valuing Intangibles' by the UK-based Centre for Exploitation of Science and Technology.
A strong consensus has emerged that hotels and hotel companies' first priority must be to establish a sound business rationale for making technology investments and link it to overall company strategy. In the absence of 'tools', the industry is failing to make a compelling case to owners and institutional investors for the substantial capital outlays required and overcome the skepticism of corporate chief executives who have seen too many technology projects that over-promise and under-deliver.
What the industry needs, participants agreed, is to isolate the critical success factors that enable hotels to perform in today's technology environment and identify 'value-drivers'-the elements of value that underpin the cost structure or revenue potential of tech-related investments. They challenged the IH&RA to take the lead in filling this gap and develop a research agenda with the goal of heightening industry understanding and preparedness for the future.
The Next Big Thing
Eurhotec 2001 featured a hot debate about "The Next Big Thing" among major developers of high-tech products and services which produced some diverging predictions. For Carolyn Viens, Global Segment Executive of IBM Travel Related Services, technology that supports customer relationships will be where the next wave of innovation will be seen. Reflecting this trend, IBM is currently testing a 'travel card' that will allow a personal digital device to receive a boarding card electronically within 10 seconds of check-in. Michael Hartmann, director of industry marketing hotels for Siemens ICN, says with the rapid proliferation of non-PC Internet devices, the mobile Internet is set to have the greatest impact on the future business world.
Mobile Internet technologies are important, concurred Peter Agel, CEO of Trust International, but mobile services and content are the key. "It's the services that will count in the future, not the IT," he insisted, citing multimedia content management that allows the customer to buy-what-you-see as being a major priority. Inter-connectivity of in-room devices was identified as the major technology breakthrough of the future by VingCard/ Elsafe's VP of Marketing, Erik Olsen. With air-conditioning, locking, minibar, TV, phone, safe and energy systems connected via a central server to key hotel departments, this type of connectivity could, for example, make it possible to alert guests checking-out that they have forgotten valuables in the room safe.
Other highlights of the event included a French-language program, sponsored by Nortel Networks, and the launch of a multi-media Web theatre, sponsored by Philips ITV, which broadcast live interviews on the show floor and made them available online via a series of Web sites including www.ih-ra.com and www.eurhotec.com. Another first was a series of technical workshops targeting systems managers and IT experts, developed by Cisco Systems.
Technology - The Great Leveler
The visitor numbers at this year’s Eurhotec were impressive, but it’s the mix of people that makes this event a great networking experience. When you see the exhibition hall full of young, tech-savvy professionals—average age under 35—and the number of women represented both at our Tech Leaders Summit and on the speaker program, you realize that technology is a great leveler, both in terms of age and gender. And that can only be good for the industry.
Most importantly, the calibre of the participants—speakers and audience—ensures that this is a great learning experience and an opportunity for valuable debate. There’s always a tendency for hype when talking about technology, so it is refreshing to hear the kind of feet-on-the-ground observations (see below) that come from the podium and the audience. Hoteliers, take note:
“Technology will only stick if it is customer-centric, if it helps the hotel to improve guest retention.”
“The speed of the evolution of M-business will depend on the user-friendliness of the devices involved.”
“Hotel that take the outsourcing option (e.g. using ASPs) will need to build strong relationships with their service providers.”
“It’s not enough to have great systems; you have to have the staff ‘genius’ to run them.”
“There is a pressing need not only to educate staff but also guests on what technology can (and can’t) do.”
“The new Internet generation is the future guests of your hotels.”
“IT competence will be a standard part of the skill-set of the next generation.”
“When choosing a supplier, if vendors’ sound too good to be true - they probably are!”
“Technology must been seen to create a sustainable advantage for hotel companies.”
“The challenge of IT is to make it part of the company’s strategic vision.”
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