Applying Artificial Intelligence in the Hotel Industry: Exploring

University of Arkansas, Fayetteville University of Arkansas, Fayetteville

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Human Nutrition and Hospitality Management

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Human Nutrition and Hospitality Innovation

12-2021

Applying Arti8cial Intelligence in the Hotel Industry: Exploring Applying Arti8cial Intelligence in the Hotel Industry: Exploring

Perspectives of Employees Perspectives of Employees

Logan O'Hara

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O'Hara, L. (2021). Applying Arti8cial Intelligence in the Hotel Industry: Exploring Perspectives of

Employees.

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Applying Artificial Intelligence in the Hotel Industry: Exploring Perspectives of Employees

Logan O’Hara

Table of Contents

Applying Artificial Intelligence in the Hotel Industry: Exploring Perspectives of Employees

Abstract…………………………………………………………………………………………...1

Introduction……………………………………………………………………………………....3

Literature Review ………………………………………………………………………………..7

Methodology …………………………………………………………………………………….10

Results and Analysis …………………………………………………………………………....17

Conclusion ……………………………………………………………………………………....26

Literature Cited ………………………………………………………………………………...28

Appendices………………………………………………………………………………………33

Abstract

Robots, Artificial Intelligence, and Service Automation, or RAISA, has become

increasingly accessible and affordable for a wider demographic of businesses, including

hospitality operations, to implement over the last couple of decades. Especially over the past

five years, we’ve seen a significant surge of interest in automating within the service industry

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and a coupled sense of uneasiness that this technological development would in turn displace the

human workers, due to factors such as cost of labor and perceived removal of human error;

however, this thesis will posit that automation is most effectively used by augmenting the

capabilities of the present workforce. Integrating smarter technology and an Internet of Things

can vastly improve efficiency for the workers, and allow them to defer menial tasks while having

more time and resources for more significant duties or issues. Therefore, instead of feeling

apprehension about automation, it is more prudent to use it as a tool to better equip the service

workforce. To justify this, five front desk workers from the Graduate Fayetteville hotel have

been interviewed regarding their opinions and knowledge of RAISA. The analysis is qualitative

in nature to gain a more thorough understanding of how a local selection of employees would

benefit from these improvements.

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Introduction

Background and Need

During the new millennia, there has been a significant shift towards automation in

practically all industries. This increase in robotic labor has proven effective in raising efficiency,

but it has led to concerns about how workers can remain necessary in this time of labor

automation. According to Ivanov and Webster (2018), some examples of the hospitality

industry’s growth in this field include “chatbots, delivery robots, robot-concierge, conveyor

restaurants, self-service information/check-in/check-out kiosks, and many others.”

Hospitality is one of the oldest job fields in the world, as inns and host-guest relations

have been a notable part of our collective cultural history. For thousands of years, we have tried

to make others feel comfortable and at home, away from home. Trying to personalize their

experience and give them memorable and enjoyable service has been the status quo, quality that

all operations have tried to provide. Especially with the added concerns of the COVID-19 virus,

there are more challenges particularly aligned against the hospitality sector, and “anything that

happens around the world may affect the business environment directly or indirectly. Proactive

and reactive strategies improve decision making and value cocreation and therefore influence the

competitiveness and profitability of organisations” (Buhalis and Leung, 2017). We have made

strides in how we operate our hospitality businesses, but we are only just now entering a

technological stage where there can be exponentially smarter tech in these operations.

The human touch has been an essential aspect of this industry for millennia, but only now

is the focus starting to shift away from the human side of service. This field of advancement is

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known as RAISA, which stands for robots, artificial intelligence, and service automation. When

smart technology is mentioned, that concept is defined as the “integration of a network of

organisations and smart features that engage in interoperable and interconnect systems to

simplify and automate daily activities” (Buhalis and Amaranggana, 2015). In addition to smart

technology, the term artificial intelligence refers to its “algorithms, which mimic human

cognitive functions and exhibit aspects of human intelligence” (Huang and Rust, 2018). There

are still many instances, however, where operation owners are concerned about whether the

guests will still prefer the human aspect of the hotel experience. In Russia, young adults have

been shown to regard robots as acceptable for handling information, food, and payment, but the

guests still don’t trust them for providing guarding or massaging services. (Ivanov, 2018).

The adoption of new techniques has been a driving factor in competition in the industry.

This trend towards automation is becoming more affordable and more widespread every year,

and it shows no sign of

slowing. Lu (2019) very

effectively organizes the

different advantages and

drawbacks of integrating

artificial intelligence in this

graph. The traditional way

of checking in a guest can

be time-consuming or problematic, potentially souring their first impression of the hotel. This

can possibly be mitigated by implementing a new system which employs artificial intelligence,

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to further streamline the process and ease the employee’s job of keeping the guest engaged.

Having an integrated smart ecosystem in a hotel allows all of these different aspects of the

operation to run more smoothly, because interconnectivity provides more accurate data, and data

is “one of the most valuable assets in the hospitality industry” (Buhalis and Leung, 2017).

Employers know that guests visit a hotel with some level of expectations, and having

intelligent systems can make it much more accessible for workers to exceed those expectations.

Dr. Nakanishi (2018) investigated this subjective perception of the guests and found that they

wanted to have a personal experience, but that there were still aspects that could be effectively

replaced with AI. Hypothetically, in an integrated operation, a guest enters a lobby, and

conveniently checks in at a digital kiosk. An employee asks if they have any requests or

preferences for the room, and the worker uses a tablet integrated with the business’s artificial

intelligence to turn on the lights in the guest’s room, turn on the television to a particular

channel, or have a robot bring amenities to their room, before the guest has even arrived in their

room. The concept of the Internet of Things is having a high level of integration, where most or

all of the devices and electronics in a space are interconnected, which is very valuable for

employees to personalize the experience of each guest. According to Porter and Heppelmann

(2014), the Internet of Things can be revolutionary for the hospitality industry and help to

“control and monitor business”. With the balance of the human employees and the AI presence,

the best aspects of both can be combined to heighten the guest experience. There is great

potential for automation to improve the employee’s experience and job performance, without

displacing anyone.

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Problem Statement

There is fear among many workers in the hospitality sector that a rise in automation will

displace jobs, but the human touch is uniquely necessary and advantageous in this sector, and

that automation can be more effective as a tool to empower employees. Smart technology can be

used as a tool to augment the performance of workers, rather than making humans obsolete in the

industry. It is also essential to examine the effects on “competitiveness, service quality, and

human resource management” (Ivanov, 2017).

Purpose of the Study

This study explored the uses of AI and automation in the hospitality industry, and to

establish that there is an equilibrium to be found between automation and human workers.

Research Questions

Over the course of the study, it was necessary to thoroughly analyze how automation

affected all aspects of an operation, specifically on the employee of the desk.

● What are the areas of improvement where automation can help the hospitality operation,

from the perspective of management?

● According to workers, where can automation improve service quality and employee

performance, without compromising their job security?

● Would employees trust delegating trivial guest questions and problems to robots, and

would it alleviate stress or create new stressors?

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● Would a manager or sales department be more likely to charge a higher room rate if it has

been equipped with automated services, and how much if so?

Literature Review

Hospitality has revolved around people providing compassionate and helpful lodging to

others since its conception, and the foundational human element has been present for thousands

of years. As Tuomi (2020) says, “the global hospitality industry would not exist as it is today

without people”. When a traveler stays at a hotel, they interact with a front desk agent, receive

room service or cleaning from housekeeping, and generally have exchanges with multiple

employees throughout their stay. Over the past few decades, though, this constant has been

shifting in certain operations, as some are adopting smarter systems and better computational

intelligence. Management researchers are investigating guests’ needs, “cognitive and affective”,

to develop more personalized and integrated hotel experiences (Gursoy, 2017). According to

Wirtz et al. (2018), service robots are “system-based autonomous and adaptable interfaces that

interact, communicate and deliver service to an organization’s customer”. These devices can be

used to help an employee perform check-ins more efficiently, assist in fielding guest questions so

that the employee can help other guests, and also provide employees with better options for

customizing guest experiences.

Automation has the ability to revolutionize all aspects of a hospitality operation, from the

guest experience, to administration, to maintenance, to security, and more. There has been

considerable research done into how these advancements can be implemented, but there is a gap

in the research with how operations can integrate artificial intelligence with the human

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counterparts. Not only this, but managers also have to consider encouraging loyalty and

satisfaction and following trends as very relevant priorities (Gursoy, 2017). The general

consensus is that the role of automation is an all or nothing situation, but there must be research

into how the two factors can work together to improve the overall performance. It’s also

important to consider how much adaptation will happen, since the service robotics should fit well

with the desired brand image of a business (Kuo et al., 2017).

In reference to Castro’s table

(2019), A.I. is becoming

more and more invested in,

especially in the United

States. This suggests a very

strong future for RAISA to

become more widespread on

a global scale, so integrating

superior technology may

become the only method of

keeping up with

competition. On a smaller

scale, automation can benefit every department of a hospitality establishment, and each sector

has particular advantages.

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Administration

Kanuganti (2005), Mamula (2019), & Verma (2016) all focused their studies on how AI

can improve the administrative side of the business, using artificial neural networks and

computational intelligence to increase efficiency. This would improve the ability of current

hospitality operations to collect real-time data to predict guest behavior, which is a notable

benefit to forecasting and comparisons with historical trends. (Aluri, 2018). Some of the most

significant improvements that come with artificial intelligence are “increased cost-effectiveness,

better resource utilization, more accurate demand prediction, better quality control, improved

process management, and the removal of human error.” (Ivanov and Webster, 2019). These

qualities are very important to maintain the most reliable forecasts and keep the hotel as

up-to-date as possible, but also to ensure that the experience is consistent for all the guests, and

that guarantee of consistency is very desirable for a hotel operation. Of course, it’s very

important to understand how AI functions, because not knowing the process of the algorithms

can lead to managers making tactical or strategic mistakes (Mustak, 2021).

Guest Services

RAISA is particularly well-suited to helping workers to customize their guests’

experiences at the hotel. A fleet of robots can virtually take over the room service aspect of the

hotel’s employees, not displacing them, but allowing them to manage other, more pressing

issues. Robots can provide information to the guests, supply amenities like food or drink from

the kitchens, and potentially accept payment for stays or upgrades. Having a touch screen in

their room equipped with a user-friendly interface could allow them to change the brightness of

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their lights, change the temperature, access a help/services menu, and more, giving them more

power to have exactly the stay that they are looking for (Kabadayi, 2019).

Resource Management

These technologies can have a direct impact on electricity or water usage, helping to

maximize efficiency in lighting, HVAC, and maintenance of all kinds. The versatile nature of

modern automation is further supported, including a “multi-modality system” which is capable

of handling “communication, entertainment, safety, security, lighting, HVAC, electric

consumption, and water usage” information (Verma, 2016). Artificial neural networks can be

used to better the connectivity of the space, so that alerts and errors can be more easily reported

to the necessary parties.

Employee Tools

Increasing automation can allow workers to reallocate their labor and time to more

demanding tasks, rather than spending time on menial jobs that an AI can manage more

efficiently. The ability of A.I. to efficiently take on the trivial and time-consuming parts of the

workload makes it very desirable as an alternative to the slower, more strenuous experience a

human would face doing the same job, which is highly desirable to most employees. (Mamula,

2019).

Methodology

This study of automation was conducted in a generally qualitative style, because the daily

and overall experiences of a hotel employee are individual and personal, requiring a more

in-depth analysis. The use of case studies is also necessary, as that form of research provides a

detailed and more complete understanding of a specific instance of how a boost in artificial

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intelligence can improve a particular operation, or how a worker would perceive the addition of

robots. Data can also be discovered in a way that can vary from what’s expected, or lead to

surprising directions (Padgett, 2017).

Approaching the tricky nature of unique experiences requires a method such as

interviewing or case studies, as Padgett goes on to describe, including analysis that is based on

“depth rather than breadth”, as well as focused on “people, rather than variables” (Padgett,

2017). Observation of participants, also known as ethnography, is another effective means of

identifying what employees prefer and expect out of their hotel establishment. Qualitative

methods are especially effective when performing “exploratory” research, particularly because

the hospitality industry can be analysed through the lens of the social sciences, where data must

be viewed more subjectively than objectively (Gerring, 2012).

This thesis will focus on the potential social interactions posed by automation, and these

intangible experiences cannot be quantified; therefore, the best option is to adopt qualitative

methods for describing them (Queirós, A, Faria, D, Almeida, F).

Population and Sampling

The populations that were analyzed were coworkers and other employees. This particular

type would be categorized as convenience sampling, whereby the population is selected based on

how accessible they are, which is effective when collecting opinions from hotel workers

(Marshall, 1996). The process of sampling was accomplished through proposing the short

interviews in the lobby, where many of the employees congregate, as well as eliciting responses

from the employees and managers when they’re elsewhere on property and available. This style

is commonly known as the “emic” perspective, or the insider analysis, because “the objective is

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to learn as much as possible about an experience directly from the person who had the

experience and who is able to describe it” (Olson, 2016).

The most effective qualitative methods to use were interviewing and focus groups. Since

each experience is subjective, and with hospitality being founded on intangible services, the best

way to consider these perspectives was with one on one and group interviewing. This way, we

could attain a more thorough understanding of how automation affects the worker experience.

There was a high level of diversity required to accurately portray the population’s preference, so

the ages of participants vary from college age to seniority, hopefully with at least one or two

members of each age range for employees.

Rigor

Rigor can be especially difficult to establish in a qualitative study, because in the

“naturalistic/interpretive paradigm, reality is assumed to be multiple and constructed rather than

singular and tangible” (Sandelowski, 1993). Due to the innately subjective and varying opinions

that the employees might have, there is more challenge in determining parameters than in a

quantitative piece. Rigor was maintained in this proposal by documenting the specifics of a

worker’s preferences, opinions, and experiences, and establishing criteria that are both broad

enough for multiple subjective perspectives, yet distinct enough to eliminate confusion.

When conducting qualitative research, it is vital to achieve truthful results that are

reliable and accurately measured, though much of the data collected is difficult to quantify. Even

from the employee’s perspective, describing the guest experience is subjective and unique, which

requires an individual analysis. Some of the most effective qualities to maintain in the research

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includes confirmability, where the guests that were interviewed shape the results instead of vice

versa, and dependability, eliciting results that are consistent between subjects.

A purely qualitative approach was most appropriate, because focusing on qualitative

techniques for my instrumentation would produce the most in-depth data on the workers’ attitude

towards automation. For analysis in hospitality, it is better to have data that is a mile deep, rather

than a mile wide (Denzin, 1978), because each person has a different experience that requires

detailed investigation. For instance, interviews can be conducted in multiple sessions, which

allows for a more thorough review of the subject’s experience and preferences.

Instrumentation

The method of analyst triangulation was employed to gain a more thorough and elaborate

compilation of data. This technique utilizes multiple observers to conduct the interviews,

ensuring that there is a greater breadth of interpretation, so the data can be considered from

different viewpoints. (Denzin, 1978.) Triangulation of sources was also adopted, because this

form of research involves interviewing different demographics to piece together a larger

collection of evidence. Guests were asked questions that were formulated through consideration

for how significantly they prefer human interaction, and if they could place trust in an AI to

fulfill their needs or requests. Employees were interviewed based on how automation would

affect their day-to-day tasks, how quickly they would be able to adapt to a new, smarter user

interface, and if they felt more comfortable without the same pressure of guests’ needs as before.

Credibility

According to Dr. Laura Krefting (1991), “A qualitative study is considered credible when

it presents an accurate description or interpretation of human experience that people who also

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share the same experience would immediately recognize.” Guests had no incentive to give

dishonest or misleading information, and the questions presented offered little opportunity to

mislead. Many of the responses gathered reflect a common enthusiasm for implementing AI,

providing this recognition of similar preferences. Persistent observation was also utilized to

improve the accuracy of their responses, to ensure that there was no shifting of opinion.

Transferability

Automation is becoming commonplace in almost all industries, including hospitality, and

how the guests perceive this new element can be very helpful, in other business contexts.

Dependability

Results may not be consistent throughout all of the participants, but due to the nature of

service and quality perception, such variation is expected.

Confirmability

To avoid researcher bias, the interviews presented as little personal context as possible,

with the participants having the burden of contextualizing this subject.

Data Collection

The data that was collected was categorized by the subjects’ role in the operation as

employees, and focuses on how their experiences would be impacted by implementation of

artificial intelligence. The results from the interviews and case studies were compiled and

organized based on different parts of the hotel experience, and contrast with how the operation

would be improved with automation. Collection was done in the lobby of Graduate Fayetteville,

presenting local opinions on the controversy and the possibilities of RAISA. An interview

composed of contextual and open-ended questions was most fitting.

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Data Analysis

In reviewing the content of the interviews and overall case studies, I intend to compile the

results based on similarity, and to pull direct quotes from the interviewees. I will create and

determine ratios and percentages for how often the participants said they were excited for

artificial intelligence or if they had had prior experience using smart technology. If there is a

specific phrase or concept that they describe that is particularly distinct, then it will be included

in the findings with an evaluation or explanation of what they said. I will design tables to

format all of the responses, in groups of similarity.

All of the questions listed below have received approval through the Streamlyne program

provided by the Institutional Review Board, or IRB. The questions have been posed to each

interview participant on an individual basis, with some commentary to better contextualize the

responses and situations. The subjects were informed prior that the interviews would be

recorded and stored for analysis, and all consented to being recorded. In this explanation and

integration of responses, the data collected will be compiled based on frequency of similar

answers and positive or negative views of the artificial intelligence concept. The questions

presented in bold denote particularly pertinent information, where the most thorough responses

have been given.

1. Would having the ability to customize the light color or brightness of a guest room to a

guest’s precise request be a good selling point for your hotel’s market?

2. Would your front desk crew benefit from having self-check-in kiosks in the lobby,

regularly sanitized, to offer alternative ways to socially distance guests?

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3. Would having simplistic user interface panels in guest rooms make it more

convenient to receive and perform maintenance/housekeeping and food & beverage

requests?

4. Does your central reservation system already work with AI services that increase guest

engagement, like Oaky or Upsell Guru which use the Opera PMS to send offers?

5. Service robots are becoming very popular across the world, and employing them

creates a point of interest for the guests. Do you think that your front desk workers

would have more time for other duties with these assistants?

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Results and Analysis

Overall, the participants that offered their insights were generally positive and

enthusiastic about the prevalence and growing accessibility of artificial intelligence in the

hospitality industry. In addition to the table containing the responses based on each question, the

participants’ answers have received additional dissection.

Table 1 - Demographics

Participants

Age

Education Level

Work Experience

AI Familiarity

Brennan

Bachelor’s Degree

Working since the age of 16

Has heard of AI in larger

cities.

Tony

High School

14 years of hospitality work

Has heard of AI in hotels.

Nick

Bachelor’s Degree

Working since the age of 15

Has heard of AI in hotels, but

dislikes the concept.

Spencer

Bachelor’s Degree

2 years of hospitality work

No.

Mikayla

High School and

some College

Working since the age of 14

“Yes and no, I think I read it,

but didn’t pay much

attention.”

Lauren

High School and

some College

4 months of hospitality work

Has heard of AI in hotels.

Table 2 - Responses for Question 1

“Would having the ability to customize the light color or brightness of a guest room to a guest’s

precise request be a good selling point for your hotel’s market?”

Response

Analysis

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Brennan Smith

“I don’t know if going and retrofitting

all the rooms would be worth it, but if

you were building a hotel, there’s no

reason not to. I think the prices on those

lights are just as affordable as the other

lights. So yeah, I think that would be a

huge selling point.”

This answer is notable because it

addresses a common apprehension

towards automating based on the price of

smart equipment. For hotels being

renovated or constructed from the ground

up, however, outfitting each room with

these bulbs would be more energy

efficient and contribute to placing the

operation at the forefront of smart

establishments.

Nick Lange

“I honestly think it absolutely would,

they would be able to say ‘they were

able to do this for me, so I will

definitely be coming back again because

of this small gesture.”

Mr. Lange points out that subtle details

such as light customization can make a

guest more likely to return, because they

know that they will have better

opportunities to tweak their experience to

what they particularly enjoy.

Tony Blackburn

“I believe it would, because guests are

always saying how dark the rooms are,

so with more light, I would feel like they

would be more happy with that.”

Mr. Blackburn mentions some of the

feedback we often get from guests, and

that having an option to increase

brightness or change the lights would

help with our guest reviews.

Spencer Bradshaw

“Yes, but I feel the cost would outweigh

the benefits for already-built hotels. For

newer ones, yes. And if you could

change the color, hotels in locations like

Vegas would be great.”

Mr. Bradshaw points out a valid

counterargument for implementing smart

lights in extant hotels, because there is a

high upfront cost. But there is strong

potential return on investment for existing

locations and even more so for new

properties.

Mikayla Cantu

“Our market is more of nostalgia, not

really about technology, like I really

don’t think people would care, some,

like the younger people would, but

mostly we have older alumni, so I don’t

think they would really care.”

This is an interesting and pertinent

observation; the demographic a hotel

appeals to generally has to be younger to

elicit the most eager response regarding

new technology.

Lauren Restino

“I believe that yes, it would. I think

every guest comes in with individual

needs and any way that you can

customize their experience is always a

positive way.”

Ms. Restino’s observation of

personalizing the guest’s stay is one of the

most promising and

hospitality-significant ways in which

artificial intelligence can be implemented.

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Conclusions from Question 1 - The first question that the interview opens with involves

a simple and frequently overlooked advancement in technology, being smart lights. These bulbs

can be adjusted in regards to hue and brightness, providing boundless possibilities for guest

customization and tailoring to precisely what the individual desires. They are somewhat more

costly than normal fluorescent bulbs, but they last for years and function very well as an aspect

of a room with integrated smart technology. Even among the interviewees with generally

negative perceptions of automation, this feature is popular, showing that smart/AI enhanced

lighting, photo-frames, or AC can collectively create a considerably more personalized

experience.

Table 3 - Responses from Question 2

“Would your front desk crew benefit from having self-check-in kiosks in the lobby, regularly

sanitized, to offer alternative ways to socially distance guests?”

Response

Analysis

Brennan Smith

“Yes, especially on the weekends, I find

myself not focusing so much on

check-ins, but more talking to guests,

explaining how to do things, where to go

eat, so being able to alleviate or get rid

of some of that traffic with check-ins

would allow me to have more time to

speak with guests, talk to them more,

more in depth, give them more of a

personal feel, what they want to do,

instead of just trying to get them to

Brennan touches on a notable benefit of

incorporating automation into daily

procedure, in which the check-in kiosk

resolving the more tedious parts of

getting a guest in the system, also

allowing the guest service representative

to dedicate more time to the guest and

inform them of local attractions, places to

eat, and general information about the

hotel. This creates a more personable

atmosphere for the guest, and keeps the

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where they’re going, to be able to help

the next guest in line.”

GSR available to answer questions or

help with other issues.

Nick Lange

“I honestly think that it would just not

be the same, you just, hotels are about

human [interaction]. Really getting that

one-on-one with your guests, so I

honestly feel like it would hurt the hotel

industry because you’re not interacting

with people. Because hospitality is

basically the art of making humans feel

welcome in their presence.”

Nick was understandably apprehensive

towards the idea of having this automated

form of check-ins on property, which

highlights the common fear that using AI

will displace the human workers. He is

entirely correct in saying that hospitality

is the art of humans making other humans

comfortable and socialized; however, the

conclusion of this thesis argues that AI

will actually increase human interaction.

Tony Blackburn

“I also believe that that would help out a

lot as well, with everything that we’re

going through with COVID and

everything like that, that it would help

out a lot.”

This is one of the more topical benefits of

the advent of no-contact check-ins,

keeping the kiosks sanitized would allow

immuno-compromised guests to avoid the

anxiety of interacting with the human

workers if they felt at risk.

Spencer Bradshaw

“Yes, some guests that come often

would love this. It would allow for

lower labor.”

Frequent Graduate guests often get tired

of the same check-in spiel with parking,

housekeeping, & amenity information, so

they would certainly benefit from a

streamlined check-in kiosk.

Mikayla Cantu

“No on this one, too, just because some

of our best reviews are about interacting

with the front desk. So, I think people

would actually be really upset if we

made them go to that, or, like, if that was

there for them. They would be like, ‘but

we like talking to y’all!’ I don’t think

that really benefits us and our market.”

In a perfect world, there would be a

balance between human front desk

workers and one or two self check-in

kiosks, but some guests would still be

disappointed in not having that same

personal interaction.

Lauren Restino

“I think that that’s a tricky question,

there’s definitely a lot of importance in

having guest interaction, and that starts

right from check-in, the second they

walk in. So, I feel like having self

check-in kiosks as the only option might

kind of distance the guests from the

hotel and the brand itself, but I do think

This response highlights the need for

balancing both human and artificial

elements. If an operation only has kiosks

and no humans, that personal touch will

be virtually non-existent, but performance

can be greatly improved with at least one

kiosk for every two employees. With this

situation, the employees are less likely to

be overburdened during busy weekends,

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that, again, having options to allow the

flexibility for each guest is important.”

and less social guests have a quicker,

more convenient check-in option.

Conclusions from Question 2 - There is a considerable amount of apprehension

regarding the check-in kiosks, because the participants generally agreed that the human element

of check-in was one of the most important. This is entirely true, the first impression that a guest

has can have a significant impact on the quality of their stay, and some guests would feel

alienated by being required to use the kiosks. Fortunately, there is a stable equilibrium to be

found when there are both humans and self-operated kiosks, so that some guests have the option

to bypass the small-talk and socializing of the normal check-in procedure, such as if they have a

time-sensitive stay.

Table 4 - Responses from Question 3

“Would having simplistic user interface panels in guest rooms make it more convenient to

receive and perform maintenance/housekeeping and food & beverage requests?”

Response

Analysis

Brennan Smith

“I think yeah, this is like a no-brainer at

this point, I think something like this

should be implemented in every hotel.

Um, because it can alleviate charges,

you know, as soon as someone wants a

water bottle, boom, it’s charged to the

room, you don’t have to worry about the

guest service representative not doing it.

Um, it keeps ordered track of

information, allows the guest to see what

your property fully offers, in a nice,

clean way. Yeah, there’s just so much

you can do with that type of stuff, more

The presence of a user interface screen in

the guest rooms would lighten the burden

of the front desk and housekeeping with

taking room requests and questions.

Using these panels, it would not displace

any workers, but would make it easier for

requests to be completed, and the guests

would have the convenience of just

tapping a touch screen and having their

items dropped off: less contact, more

convenient fulfillment. Installing the

equipment would be an expensive

investment, but it would garner more

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towels, remote to the TV, remote to the

lights, all from one central hub.”

guest interest and justify increasing the

rates.

Nick Lange

“I honestly think that that would be a

really good part, because they will send

us the request, we’ll be able to do what

they need, and still have that human

[interaction] with some help from

technology.”

Even the more skeptical hotel workers

find the panels to be very helpful for

completing guest requests. It balances

interaction and automation very well,

because the human workers still take the

items up to the room for the guests.

Tony Blackburn

“I believe it would as well!”

The general consensus among the

workers is very positive regarding the

user interfaces in each room.

Spencer Bradshaw

“Yes, we currently see many hotels

developing [applications] for this. If we

could start to have iPads in the room

with easy UI, that would be amazing.”

There is already a growing market for

interconnectivity with guest rooms, and

ensuring user-friendliness would be very

valuable for old and new properties alike.

Mikayla Cantu

“Yes, since with people on the phone it’s

so hard to hear them sometimes, and it’s

hard to understand.”

With the advent of these user interface

screens in rooms, there would not be any

language or communication barrier

between the employees and guests.

Lauren Restino

“Yes, I definitely think that that is, like,

here at the Graduate, we use the texting

software which is really good, but this

would just be taking that to the next

level, which would be really helpful, and

everything would be handled in real

time.”

Ms. Restino makes an interesting point

about the technology that the Graduate

hotel already has, a texting platform that

decreases call volume while making

requests faster, but this in-room panel

would be even more convenient for the

guest than the texting feature.

Conclusions from Question 3 - The concept of installing a panel device in each room of

a hotel property can seem very intimidating, but the wide variety of uses they offer tip the scale

in their favor. Implementing these screens in each guest room or in suites would allow for a

higher rate to charge, as well as increased guest satisfaction because of higher convenience. At

the same time, offering these panels would not necessitate firing any workers, since this upgrade

would only change the method and speed in which workers respond, allowing for faster

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completion of requests and less time spent responding to calls or requiring the guest to walk

down to the desk for amenities.

Table 5 - Responses from Question 4

“Does your central reservation system already work with AI services that increase guest

engagement, like Oaky or Upsell Guru which use the Opera PMS to send offers?”

Response

Analysis

Brennan Smith

“Yes, uh, you actually may know a little

more about this than I do, and how this

works, but I know that we use Upsell

Guru, to offer… upgrades to the room

for a certain price, if that room’s

available.”

Upsell Guru is most often triggered by

third party reservations, and it allows the

guests to bid on room upgrades, both

increasing their satisfaction and providing

more revenue to the property. This is one

of the best forms of AI we currently use.

Nick Lange

“Yes, yes we do.”

This service is so self-sufficient that the

front desk workers barely have to interact

with it, other than confirming the room

for what Upsell Guru dictates for the

guest.

Tony Blackburn

“I mean, we do have that?”

Most of the front desk workers are aware

of Upsell Guru, but rarely have to interact

with or monitor the service.

Spencer Bradshaw

“Yes.”

N/A

Mikayla Cantu

“Oh, yes!”

N/A

Lauren Restino

“Yes, we do here, so we already…

Guests who book online can get

upgraded through Upsell Guru.”

Currently, Upsell Guru only targets third

party reservations for upgrades, but the

service would be very helpful for direct

bookings, as well.

Logan O’Hara

Conclusions from Question 4 - Upsell Guru is just one example of the automated services that

allow for guest upgrades, adding a sense of urgency and satisfaction in the bidding/auction styled

messages that it sends to third party guests. Without any interference or input from the hotel

workers, this program incentivizes people to reserve upgrades for their room, such as higher

floors, suites, and other amenities, so it’s very simple to implement and manage.

Table 6 - Responses from Question 5

“Service robots are becoming very popular across the world, and employing them creates a point

of interest for the guests. Do you think that your front desk workers would have more time for

other duties with these assistants?”

Response

Analysis

Brennan Smith

“Sam, one of our housekeepers, here, is

always having to clean rooms, do room

moves, and a lot of the time she has to

stop doing what she’s doing to be able to

go fill a guest service request, whereas if

we had a robot to just take them a towel

or a water bottle, it would allow her to

continue the job, instead of having to

stop every ten minutes.”

This is one of the more promising aspects

of incorporating robots into the hotel

staff, because it will allow the most minor

and tedious delivery requests to be

completed without distracting

housekeeping and the front desk from

more nuanced tasks. When delivering

small amenities and such, it is not

necessarily vital to have a human perform

such a simple task.

Nick Lange

I honestly feel like we would, but it still

wouldn’t be the same. Because one of

our things our hotel strives upon is just

that interaction between the worker and

the guest. So, I feel like with that

technology in the way, it would just

create more downtime and just, we still

wouldn’t be able to do that stuff for the

guest in person.

Some employees are strongly in favor of

keeping exclusively human workers on

the roster, but the hypothetical downtime

Mr. Lange mentions would be very

helpful for the workers to expend their

efforts on other, more complicated job

duties, rather than more menial tasks like

making small item deliveries.

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Tony Blackburn

“Yeah, definitely, like if we were here

by ourselves, you know, that’s always a

way that it can help.”

Mr. Blackburn referenced the benefit of

having service robots available at the

hotel, and mentioned how useful it would

be when the employees are working

alone. The front desk at Graduate

Fayetteville is generally staffed by one

person per shift on weekdays, along with

one public attendant to handle guest

requests.

Spencer Bradshaw

Yes and no, I think robots helping

deliver stuff would be amazing,

however, I know some guests still wish

for human interaction for certain things.

These responses feature many of the same

general worries about maintaining the

human touch in service, and suggest that

robots would be best performing only

basic tasks, so that humans will still be

majorly present in assisting guests.

Mikayla Cantu

“On a busy weekend, yes, but on

non-busy weekends, it would kind of be

just overkill. But even then, on a busy

weekend, you can just hire more

people.”

This taps into the main controversy of

automation, being that the employees

would be replaced by robots; however,

the ideal would be to have robots on hand

to decrease the workload for workers

currently employed, without additional

individuals on payroll.

Lauren Restino

Yes, I definitely believe that, while I

understand the importance of guest

interaction, like I talked about earlier,

simple things like bringing towels can

be done in several other ways, and can

really just… Task completion is really

important to me, so I feel like when I

start something I really want to be able

to finish it. But, at the same time, I want

to deliver good service, so I find myself

cutting myself off multiple times to

bring things up to the room, when that

can be served otherwise.

This response advocates for automation

because it would allow for a more

complex task-oriented work environment,

so that humans can focus on

guest-recovery and personal matters,

while the robots would be geared towards

delivering amenities and more tedious

tasks. In theory, even having these robots

absorb some housekeeping duties would

not necessitate the housekeepers being

terminated, instead giving them more

time to complete more rigorous duties.

Conclusions from Question 5 - In line with Tony’s opinion, having a service robot at

the desk for check-ins or performing tasks for the guests would allow the human employees to

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focus more on front desk reports or paperwork and addressing guest concerns, or for the public

attendants to manage cleaning and assisting the desk with more nuanced work.

Conclusion

Overall, this thesis has allowed for the collection of in-depth perspectives on how

workers on a local level feel about automation, and explored the role that RAISA can play in the

years to come. Instead of this tool forcing out the humans that make this industry, automation

can be used to improve the job that our employees perform, and allow them to concentrate on

more refined and subjective tasks. After completing the interviews, it became clear that people

are familiar with automation in this industry, but they tend to have cautious and wary opinions

about it.

Through my findings, I believe that this apprehension can be alleviated if people are

given more information about the level of customization that automation allows for. Especially

after conducting primary data collection with the interviews as well as through perusing

secondary source research, it seems clear that the situation is not black and white; RAISA can be

implemented as lightly or thoroughly as desired, but it absolutely does not necessitate replacing

the workers who already make the hotel what it is.

It was surprising but also very insightful to learn about the neutral and negative opinions

my coworkers had regarding the prevalence of robots and AI in hotels. Going into the research

phase, I was expecting to discover mostly positive thoughts about it, but my data reflected much

more mixed opinions of automation than was previously anticipated; however, this new data is

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just as valuable regardless, because it highlights a gap in understanding about the different ways

that automation can be integrated into practically any hospitality operation.

In future research, it would be pertinent to analyze how workers perceive automation

before and after they learn more about how it would actually be implemented, and the potential it

has to ease the burden of their work duties. These findings suggest that from the small scale and

local businesses all the way up to global and national economic trends, automation is on

everyone’s minds, and it won’t change any time soon. Economies across the globe are beginning

to show more interest and investment in the rise of robots, and this may be the perfect

opportunity for the hospitality industry to take advantage of all the added enthusiasm.

Logan O’Hara

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Appendices

Tony Blackburn Interview Transcript

Logan - My name is Logan O’Hara, and I’m going to be interviewing Mr. Tony Blackburn, who

works the front desk of Graduate Fayetteville. So, first question: Would having the ability to

customize the light color or brightness of a guest room to a guest’s precise request be a good

selling point for your hotel’s market?

Tony - I believe it would, because guests are always saying how dark the rooms are, so with

more light, I would feel like they would be more happy with that.

Logan - Yeah, definitely! Perfect. And second, would your front desk crew benefit from having

self-check-in kiosks in the lobby, regularly sanitized, to offer alternative ways to socially

distance guests?

Tony - I also believe that that would help out a lot as well, with everything that we’re going

through with COVID and everything like that, that it would help out a lot.

Logan - Nice, okay. Then, third question, would having simplistic user interface panels in guest

rooms make it more convenient to receive and perform maintenance/housekeeping and food &

beverage requests?

Tony - I believe it would as well!

Logan - Yeah, perfect. Let’s see, does your central reservation system already work with AI

services that increase guest engagement, like Oaky or Upsell Guru which use the Opera PMS to

send offers? (That is something that we have here!)

Tony - I mean, we do have that?

Logan O’Hara

Logan - Yeah, so, Opera has joined with Upsell Guru, which basically sends out promotional

offers to the guests without having an actual, physical person to do it.

Tony - I’m sorry!

Logan - No, you’re fine! It’s okay. Alright, the last question, number 5: Service robots are

becoming very popular across the world, and employing them creates a point of interest for the

guests. Do you think that your front desk workers would have more time for other duties with

these assistants?

Tony - Yeah, definitely, like if we were here by ourselves, you know, that’s always a way that it

can help.

Logan - Yeah, that’s fantastic.

Background Questions

● What is your age? - 41 years old

● What is your gender? - Male

● What level of education have you completed? - Completed high school

● How long have you been working in the hospitality field? - 14 years

● Have you heard of AI being used in hotels? - Yes

Brennan Smith Interview Transcript

Logan - Hello, my name is Logan O’Hara, and today I am going to be interviewing Brennan

Smith, who works at the front desk of Graduate Fayetteville. So, question 1: Would having the

ability to customize the light color or brightness of a guest room to a guest’s precise request be a

good selling point for your hotel’s market?

Logan O’Hara

Brennan - I believe it would be a great selling point, I don’t know if going and retrofitting all the

rooms would be worth it, but if you were building a hotel, there’s no reason not to. I think the

prices on those lights are just as affordable as the other lights. So yeah, I think that would be a

huge selling point.

Logan - That’s true! It definitely makes sense that it would be cheaper in the long run to do it

for a new property. So, question number 2: Would your front desk crew benefit from having

self-check-in kiosks in the lobby, regularly sanitized, to offer alternative ways to socially

distance guests?

Brennan - Yes, especially on the weekends, I find myself not focusing so much on check-ins,

but more talking to guests, explaining how to do things, where to go eat, so being able to

alleviate or get rid of some of that traffic with check-ins would allow me to have more time to

speak with guests, talk to them more, more in depth, give them more of a personal feel, what

they want to do, instead of just trying to get them to where they’re going, to be able to help the

next guest in line.

Logan - Yeah, that’s it, it really helps with the human element, with the trivial stuff set to the

side, and you’re able to have a real conversation, to really augment their experience. Yeah!

Okay, so, question number 3: Would having simplistic user interface panels in guest rooms make

it more convenient to receive and perform maintenance/housekeeping and food & beverage

requests?

Brennan - I think yeah, this is like a no-brainer at this point, I think something like this should

be implemented in every hotel. Um, because it can alleviate charges, you know, as soon as

someone wants a water bottle, boom, it’s charged to the room, you don’t have to worry about the

Logan O’Hara

guest service representative not doing it. Um, it keeps ordered track of information, allows the

guest to see what your property fully offers, in a nice, clean way. Yeah, there’s just so much you

can do with that type of stuff, more towels, remote to the TV, remote to the lights, all from one

central hub.

Logan - Yeah, definitely a lot more convenient. This one, for someone who works at Graduate,

it’s a little already answered, but does your central reservation system already work with AI

services that increase guest engagement, like Oaky or Upsell Guru which use the Opera PMS to

send offers?

Brennan - Yes, uh, you actually may know a little more about this than I do, and how this works,

but I know that we use Upsell Guru, to offer - uh, why I am blanking on the - upgrades to the

room for a certain price, if that room’s available. Um, that’s kind of the extent that I know how

we use it.

Logan - Yeah, that’s it! And, lastly, service robots are becoming very popular across the world,

and employing them creates a point of interest for the guests. Do you think that your front desk

workers would have more time for other duties with these assistants?

Brennan - I think so, I think it would. Sam, one of our housekeepers, here, is always having to

clean rooms, do room moves, and a lot of the time she has to stop doing what she’s doing to be

able to go fill a guest service request, whereas if we had a robot to just take them a towel or a

water bottle, it would allow her to continue the job, instead of having to stop every ten minutes.

So yeah, that would be a huge relief off of Sam, or whoever is working that position.

Logan - Yeah, that’s very insightful! Definitely. And other than that, we’ve just got some basic

demographic questions.

Logan O’Hara

Background Questions

● What is your age?

So, I’m twenty-three.

● What is your gender?

I’m male.

● What level of education have you completed?

I am currently a student at the University of Arkansas, going into my last semester.

● How long have you been working in the hospitality field?

I’ve been working in the hospitality field since I was sixteen. I started at a restaurant, then did a

couple hospitality internships, now here I am working at the hotel.

● Have you heard of AI being used in hotels?

And then, I have heard of AI being used in hotels, a lot of hotels I’ve heard that are using it are

those newer ones in Las Vegas, like bigger cities, but I think as that technology becomes more

and more, like, recognized and accessible, it’s going to be everywhere, no matter where you’re

at.

Logan - That’s perfect, thank you very much! I appreciate it.

Nick Lange Interview Transcript

Logan - My name is Logan O’Hara, and today I am going to be interviewing one of our recent

hires, Nick Lange, and here we go. So, question one, would having the ability to customize the

light color or brightness of a guest room to a guest’s precise request be a good selling point for

your hotel’s market?

Logan O’Hara

Nick - I honestly think it absolutely would, they would be able to say ‘they were able to do this

for me, so I will definitely be coming back again because of this small gesture’.

Logan - Yeah, definitely! That’s a good insight. Let’s see, number two, ould your front desk

crew benefit from having self-check-in kiosks in the lobby, regularly sanitized, to offer

alternative ways to socially distance guests?

Nick - I honestly think that it would just not be the same, you just, hotels are about human

[interaction]. Really getting that one-on-one with your guests, so I honestly feel like it would

hurt the hotel industry because you’re not interacting with people. Because hospitality is

basically the art of making humans feel welcome in their presence.

Logan - Yeah, that totally makes sense! I totally see where you’re coming from. So, number

three, would having simplistic user interface panels in guest rooms make it more convenient to

receive and perform maintenance/housekeeping and food & beverage requests?\

Nick - I honestly think that that would be a really good part, because they will send us the

request, we’ll be able to do what they need, and still have that human [interaction] with some

help from technology.

Logan - Yeah, definitely! I feel like that would be especially helpful, here. Question four, does

your central reservation system already work with AI services that increase guest engagement,

like Oaky or Upsell Guru which use the Opera PMS to send offers?

Nick - Yes, yes we do.

Logan - That’s fine! Basically, it will show up in our system as a fixed charge, and the guest

will approve it. They’ll get a personalized notification from Upsell Guru, and it’ll offer them,

like, the ability to upgrade. And lastly, question five, service robots are becoming very popular

Logan O’Hara

across the world, and employing them creates a point of interest for the guests. Do you think that

your front desk workers would have more time for other duties with these assistants?

Nick - I honestly feel like we would, but it still wouldn’t be the same. Because one of our things

our hotel strives upon is just that interaction between the worker and the guest. So, I feel like

with that technology in the way, it would just create more downtime and just, we still wouldn’t

be able to do that stuff for the guest in person.

Logan - That’s a good point! Yeah, I see where you’re coming from.

Background Questions

● What is your age? - I am 23 years of age.

● What is your gender? - I am male.

● What level of education have you completed? - I have a bachelor’s of human

environmental science.

● How long have you been working in the hospitality field? - I’ve been working in the

hospitality field, probably, since I was fifteen or sixteen.

● Have you heard of AI being used in hotels? - I have heard of artificial intelligence being

used in hotels, but I don’t really like it.

Spencer Bradshaw Interview Transcript

Logan - Would having the ability to customize the light color or brightness of a guest room to a

guest’s precise request be a good selling point for your hotel’s market?

Logan O’Hara

Spencer - Yes, but I feel the cost would outweigh the benefits for already-built hotels. For

newer ones, yes. And if you could change the color, hotels in locations like Vegas would be

great.

Logan - Would your front desk crew benefit from having self-check-in kiosks in the lobby,

regularly sanitized, to offer alternative ways to socially distance guests?

Spencer - Yes, some guests that come often would love this. It would allow for lower labor.

Logan - Would having simplistic user interface panels in guest rooms make it more convenient

to receive and perform maintenance/housekeeping and food & beverage requests?

Spencer - Yes, we currently see many hotels developing [applications] for this. If we could start

to have iPads in the room with easy UI, that would be amazing.

Logan - Does your central reservation system already work with AI services that increase guest

engagement, like Oaky or Upsell Guru which use the Opera PMS to send offers?

Spencer - Yes.

Logan - Service robots are becoming very popular across the world, and employing them creates

a point of interest for the guests. Do you think that your front desk workers would have more

time for other duties with these assistants?

Spencer - Yes and no, I think robots helping deliver stuff would be amazing, however, I know

some guests still wish for human interaction for certain things.

Background Questions

● What is your age? - 27 years old.

● What is your gender? - Male.

Logan O’Hara

● What level of education have you completed? Bachelor’s degree.

● How long have you been working in the hospitality field? 2 years.

● Have you heard of AI being used in hotels? No.

Mikayla Cantu Interview Transcript

Logan - My name is Logan O’Hara, and today I’m going to be interviewing Mikayla Cantu, one

of our new hires for Graduate Fayetteville. Yes, so, thank you for participating! So, question

one: Would having the ability to customize the light color or brightness of a guest room to a

guest’s precise request be a good selling point for your hotel’s market?

Mikayla - Honestly, I would say no, because our market is more of nostalgia, not really about

technology, like I really don’t think people would care, some, like the younger people would, but

mostly we have older alumni, so I don’t think they would really care. They would think it’s cool,

but they wouldn’t care.

Logan - Yeah, that’s a good point! And especially for what this hotel goes for, it is for that

nostalgia and the past, so yeah, that’s a good point. So, question two, would your front desk

crew benefit from having self-check-in kiosks in the lobby, regularly sanitized, to offer

alternative ways to socially distance guests?

Mikayla - I’m going to say no on this one, too, just because some of our best reviews are about

interacting with the front desk. So, I think people would actually be really upset if we made

them go to that, or, like, if that was there for them. They would be like, ‘but we like talking to

y’all!’ I don’t think that really benefits us and our market.

Logan O’Hara

Logan - That’s a good point, definitely. And it does, it definitely changes based on which city

you’re in, what kind of demographic you appeal to, yeah! So, question number three, would

having simplistic user interface panels in guest rooms make it more convenient to receive and

perform maintenance/housekeeping and food & beverage requests?

Mikayla - I think yes, since people on the phone it’s so hard to hear them sometimes, and it’s

hard to understand, so yeah. That would be a really cool thing to have.

Logan - Yeah, I wish we had that! Right, true. Okay, and question number four, does your

central reservation system already work with AI services that increase guest engagement, like

Oaky or Upsell Guru which use the Opera PMS to send offers? We do actually have that.

Whenever we get those reservations from third parties that say Upsell Guru, like “add $10 fixed

charge”.

Mikayla - Oh, yes!

Logan - So, that’s basically what that is. Yeah! Let’s see, and then, last question, service robots

are becoming very popular across the world, and employing them creates a point of interest for

the guests. Do you think that your front desk workers would have more time for other duties

with these assistants?

Mikayla - On a busy weekend, yes, but on the non-busy weekends, it would kind of be just

overkill. But even then, on a busy weekend, you can just hire more people. So if we’re just

gonna, I think a lot of people would say, “why aren’t you just hiring people instead of hiring

robots?” So, it goes both ways.

Logan - Yeah, definitely. No, I totally see where you’re coming from.

Mikayla - It would be different without, different without.

Logan O’Hara

Logan - Cool, and, lastly, we just have some basic demographic questions.

Background Questions

● What is your age? - 21

● What is your gender? - Female

● What level of education have you completed? - High school and fourth year of college

● How long have you been working in the hospitality field? - Long time, first job at 14

● Have you heard of AI being used in hotels? - Yes and no, I think I read it, I didn’t pay

much attention.

Lauren Restino Interview Transcript

Logan - My name is Logan O’Hara, and today I’m going to be interviewing Lauren Restino, one

of our workers here at Graduate. Thank you for taking the time to do this for me! So, question

one, would having the ability to customize the light color or brightness of a guest room to a

guest’s precise request be a good selling point for your hotel’s market?

Lauren - I believe that yes, it would. I think every guest comes in with individual needs and any

way that you can customize their experience is always a positive way.

Logan - Yeah, I definitely agree. And, would your front desk crew benefit from having

self-check-in kiosks in the lobby, regularly sanitized, to offer alternative ways to socially

distance guests?

Lauren - I think that that’s a tricky question, there’s definitely a lot of importance in having

guest interaction, and that starts right from check-in, the second they walk in. So, I feel like

Logan O’Hara

having self check-in kiosks as the only option might kind of distance the guests from the hotel

and the brand itself, but I do think that, again, having options to allow the flexibility for each

guest is important.

Logan - Nice, yeah. Would having simplistic user interface panels in guest rooms make it more

convenient to receive and perform maintenance/housekeeping and food & beverage requests?

Lauren - Yes, I definitely think that that is, like, here at the Graduate, we use the texting

software which is really good, but this would just be taking that to the next level, which would be

really helpful, and everything would be handled in real time.

Logan - That’s true. Does your central reservation system already work with AI services that

increase guest engagement, like Oaky or Upsell Guru which use the Opera PMS to send offers?

Lauren - Yes, we do here, so we already… Guests who book online can get upgraded through

Upsell Guru.

Logan - Alright! Service robots are becoming very popular across the world, and employing

them creates a point of interest for the guests. Do you think that your housekeeping and front

desk workers would have more time for other duties with these assistants?

Lauren - Yes, I definitely believe that, while I understand the importance of guest interaction,

like I talked about earlier, simple things like bringing towels can be done in several other ways,

and can really just… Task completion is really important to me, so I feel like when I start

something I really want to be able to finish it. But, at the same time, I want to deliver good

service, so I find myself cutting myself off multiple times to bring things up to the room, when

that can be served otherwise.

Logan O’Hara

Background Questions

● What is your age? - 21 years old

● What is your gender? - Female

● What level of education have you completed? - High school and some college

● How long have you been working in the hospitality field? - Four months

● Have you heard of AI being used in hotels? - Yes.