Speed vs. Service

Schmidt, Bradley (2007). Speed vs. Service. Hospitality Technology Magazine. 9/28/2007.

http://www.htmagazine.com/HT/archive/0707/toc_jul07.shtml#

The article I read came from the Hospitality Technology magazine. The article discussed the importance of speed as well as service in a fast casual restaurant. The article showed how both things can be achieved with a good Point Of Sales system. In a fast casual restaurant it can be like a quick service restaurant with the speed element of the food but it has more menu choices as well as a “white table cloth” environment having a wait staff. Many quick service restaurants also want to incorporate a take out window, online ordering and curbside to go ordering. The IT director for Forklift Brands, Jennifer Martinez, predicts that curbside to go is going to be a big part of fast casual restaurants in the next few years. With all these things offered at a restaurant for the convenience of their customers to pick and choose where they want to eat the food from a certain restaurant, it can become difficult with the old fashioned paper ticketing system. In the article they discussed how the kitchen display system implemented into the kitchen saved the restaurant 10-20 seconds per ticket. They also discussed how expediting could be much easy and could manipulate the screens so that only a few orders could be seen at the time so the staff does not become overwhelmed. These POS systems are starting to become very critical in fast casual restaurants as well as all restaurants for great workflow from the front of the house to the back of the house.

I liked this article because I have worked in the same seasonal restaurant for the past three summers. I love it there, it’s called Curtin’s Wharf and it is part of a boating marina. The atmosphere is fantastic, the customers are fun, and the food is delicious. The only thing that really started to get to me this past summer was how behind in technology the restaurant has become. There is no computer POS system, everything is written on a ticket and given directly to the bar or kitchen in person. This does cause service to be a lot slower than if it was all linked together through a computer system. One of the points in the article discussed how the POS system is also designed to time an order that was called in to go so that it stays out of the kitchen for a certain amount of time until just the right time for the order to come out hot fresh and ready when the person comes to pick up the meal. This was a major thing at my restaurant that caused a problem. When people would call in to go orders either the ticket would not go into the kitchen in a correctly timed fashion or the food would come out cold and soggy most of the time. My manager/owner of the wharf thinks that because it is seasonal it would be silly to implement a computer system. She claimed it would be too costly and not as easy to take care of as shed like. Do not get me wrong I enjoyed every chance I got to walk into the kitchen and say hello to my boys on the line or have a chat with the bartenders while they make my pina colada. However, I tried to convince her that she needed to update her technology to stay alive in the business. I may have gotten through to her but maybe someday I could be the manager there and make some changes of my own!

See-and-Touch The Future

Poe, Toni. (2007). See-and-Touch The Future. Hospitality Upgrade Magazine, 182.
9/16/2007.

http://www.hospitalityupgrade.com/_files/File_Articles/HUSum07_SeeandTouchtheFuture_Poe.pdf

This article described the new technologies in a hotel guest room. It discussed the different kind of things general managers should be looking for. The author describes it as, "The clearer the crystal ball, the better the organization's ability to anticipate guest needs and have the right resources to meet those needs." However, we all know there is no crystal ball but there is several technologies that help us "predict the future." The main issue in the article is the personalized nature the guest are beginning to expect as they travel. In the article it describes the homes where people walk in and the temperature adjusts to their liking and the shade from the sun is blocked out just to their liking. The goal is to make regular hotel stays for business travelers that specific. For example, personalization could even extend to display pictures of the families as an art in the room. It also describes how technology needs to continue to advance for the business traveler. One example the article gave was the RoundTable (tm) which as a 360 degree camera to help with video conferences. It also talks about the "smart" camera that will change direction and focus on whomever is talking at the moment. The article wanted to stress the fact that it is so important to enhance the guests experience to keep them coming back for more. By upgrading technologies needed by the business traveler and creating all the comforts usually needed of home for the leisure guests is extremely important. One important term used was the adhere to the daily lives of guests.

Reflection:

I definitely agree with this article about how important it is to keep ahead of the changing technologies and preferences of your guests. It also however depends on the hotel. For example the hotel I am currently working in is called the Inn at Montchanin Village. This Inn is marketed to the older traveler who are just looking for a nice intimate place to stay and get away. They are not in need of the new wireless internet and automatic changing temperature of the thermostat. That kind of guest would almost prefer not to be confused by all that extra stuff. In contrast to other hotels where they would benefit very much so by these new and intricate technologies. I think by discussing the fact that it should model the daily lives of the guests is a very excellent way to put it. When a guest is staying at a hotel especially for business travel they need use of lap tops, internet, cell phones, and conference room technology. If you could not do those things why would you stay with that hotel. By enhancing the guests experience by the time they use the kiosk at check-in to the fingerprint unlock at their room and the quick and easy paperless check out it makes all the difference. Technologies will continue to advance and staying updated will definitely keep your hotel on the map for business and leisure travelers everywhere.