The Service Automation and Robotics in Hospitality Industry: A Study on Business Implications

Hospitality Industry is one of the fastest growing sectors and it plays a major role among the growth indicators of a Country. As the hotel inventory and keys increases, and registers a remarkable growth, customer expectations transcend for more positive and personalized experience. Hospitality industry tries to overcome this challenge by implementing advanced technologies and automation for providing an impeccable service that exceeds customer expectations of late, the hospitality industry players have also been bitten by the technology bug and introduced Artificial Intelligence, Virtual Reality, Service Automation and Robotics in various functions and deploy solutions to attract and retain guests. The rapid growth of technology paves way for the introduction of automation and robotics in the hotel industry, especially for those services such as concierge and housekeeping that demands repetitive task with equal efficiency. The hospitality industry perceives an improved service quality and profitability through the implementation of robotics and automation that can meaningfully redefine the industry in the years to come. The major players in hospitality industry tend to spend more on labour accounts than the other operational accounts and there arises a need to cut down labour cost. Implementation of robotics and service automation in various operations becomes the key to overcome this huge challenge of bringing an efficient labour control and at the same time to deliver a consistent quality service for the guests. This study examines the adoption of service automation and robotics in various operational functions of the hotel and its business implications in terms of capacity to create a better customer experience and greater brand loyalty. The paper also discusses on the challenges of implementation and acceptance of robotics.