Sentiment Survey Report Released by Hospitality Net Reveals Surprising Insights from Industry Leaders

Hospitality Net™, the most-trusted source for hospitality industry news, and HFTP, a global nonprofit association that is dedicated to solving industry problems and facilitating education, today revealed the results of the first-of-its-kind Hospitality Technology Sentiment Survey compiled in a comprehensive new report. The report explores the technology priorities, pertinent topics and key areas of investment focus of hotel companies, technology providers, industry experts, and educational institutes.

The report includes feedback from over 540 survey respondents from around the globe, with over 60% of respondents having ten or more years of active experience in the hospitality industry. The majority of participants (58%) are hoteliers or represent hoteliers. The report, sponsored by Shiji, represents one of the largest samples on the topic and included categories defined as hoteliers, suppliers, consumers, industry consultants, academics, associations, and media. Additional partners include Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne (EHL) as an academic and analysis contributor, as well as Puzzle Partner as content and analysis contributor.

Key points of the report revealed the following

• IT budgets are seeing increases to keep up with tech demand in 2020 and beyond
• Over half of respondents indicated they were concerned about access to IT professionals
• 48% of the respondents indicated that they were using APIs for connectivity/interfaces
• Over half of respondents state that they are very confident in the industry's revenue growth potential over the next year
• At a minimum, respondents reported a positive guest experience requires Wi-Fi, climate control, and USB plugs as the most popular tech-enabled features.
• Some of the main challenges facing guests today include slow booking process, poor Wi-Fi connection, non-functioning door-lock key cards, and repeating details at check-in.

"The goal of this initiative was to start an open dialogue and share knowledge about the trends that will shape the guest experience in 2020 and beyond," explains Henri Roelings, Founder & CEO at Hospitality Net. "The report showed many different perspectives, but overwhelmingly, the sentiment is that technology innovation is critical to our industry's trajectory for growth."

"HFTP has taken steps to build and support research initiatives that provide industry resources backed by its global network," said HFTP CEO Frank Wolfe, CAE. "When Hsyndicate approached HFTP to partner with them on the HN Sentiment Survey Report, it presented an opportune project to capture the pulse of the industry. Conducting the survey at this past year's HITEC was a way to get direct access to professionals who think and consider the ins and outs of technology in the hospitality environment - where it is at and where it is going."

The full results of the survey are featured in an in-depth report available for free download on Hospitality Net. Plans are to conduct this survey annually to serve as an industry-barometer to assist industry leaders in making strategic and tactical decisions as we enter into the next decade.

Download the full report via https://www.hospitalitynet.org/sentimentsurvey

About HFTP

Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP®) established in 1952, is an international, nonprofit association, headquartered in Austin, Texas, USA, with offices in Hong Kong, United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Dubai. HFTP is recognized as the spokes group for the finance and technology segments of the hospitality industry with members and stakeholders spanning across the globe. HFTP uniquely understands the industry's pressing issues and assists its stakeholders in finding solutions to their challenges more efficiently than any organization. It does this via its expert networks, research, certification programs, information resources and conferences/events such as HITEC. HFTP also owns the world's only hospitality-specific search engine, PineappleSearch.com. For more information about HFTP, email [email protected] or download the HFTP/HITEC media kit via the HFTP website.

About Hospitality Net

Acting as a ‘neutral’ broker and publisher of hotel business information, Hospitality Net is the #1 ranked global website for the global hospitality community. Hospitality Net enables all industry stakeholders to amplify visibility on its platform and connect with the industry globally through a membership business model, unlike any other publishing initiative in the industry. Members include actors throughout the hospitality spectrum - hotel groups, vendors/suppliers, associations, universities/schools, consultants, and event organizers. To learn more, visit hospitalitynet.org. To learn more, visit hospitalitynet.org.

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