Managing guest requests more efficiently is the key to improving service according to Rotana Hotels’ Samir Frem, who explains the rationale behind the implementation of the group’s new FCS e-Connect system
Rotana Hotels & Resorts is working to expand its presence across the Middle East, Africa, South Asia and Eastern Europe to 100 hotels by 2020. To ensure the smooth roll-out and operations of such an ambitious portfolio, an upgrade to guest service tools was required.
Rotana Corporate vice president information technology Samir Frem explains how and why the group implemented FCS Computer Systems’ e-Connect — an automated guest service request and interdepartmental work order dispatch system.
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The rationale and objectives
A comprehensive needs analysis at Rotana had identified certain characteristics pertinent to the new system it was looking for.
Firstly, the firm needed to improve operational efficiency in each of its hotels across the region through appropriate job assignment, complemented by an escalation mechanism for guest requests to ensure customer satisfaction.
Rotana was also looking for an analytics tool that could provide its operational departments with comprehensive service request data and trend analysis information to improve specific operational processes. Ultimately, Rotana was looking for a system that ensures smooth communication and efficient workflow between various operational departments.
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Concept and Investment
In order to meet this objective, it was essential to centralise all guest service requests and interdepartmental work orders in one system, with real-time statistics and monitoring ability.
“The new system was designed to help our hotels be more consistent in their services whilst delivering comprehensive data to our senior management about service deficiencies and potential delays, so that quick service recovery could be applied. This increased staff efficiency and productivity,” says Frem.
“When we embarked on this project, we did a market survey to see what solutions were available. We evaluated these with our focus team at Rotana, which has representatives from front office, housekeeping, and the IT department. We selected FCS mainly because of its system reach functionality, stability and reliable support. In addition, its competitive pricing was also an important factor.”
Rotana partnered with FCS to implement e-Connect, an automated job dispatch system for guest requests and interdepartmental work orders.
The system functions via a centralised call centre, and improves internal operational flow by streamlining all guest and internal requests across different departments. Additionally, e-Connect provides the management team with clear and detailed real-time statistics to identify areas for improvement across all hotel operations.
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