Here’s something you might not expect coming from someone who writes about the hotel industry for a living: I don’t travel all that much. I don’t spend days and nights at a time in hotels—like a robed Bill Murray glumly meandering about the Park Hyatt Tokyo in “Lost in Translation.”
I also don’t often vacation, the result of a single life that obviates the need to do stuff with other people. I do, however, enjoy golf and have a brother who likes it, too. For my most recent birthday, we planned a Midwest golf trip, which entailed a hotel stay.
At one point, I was in the lobby, minding my own business, sipping some complimentary water with lemon. The front-desk phone rang; a twenty-something picked it up, said hello and introduced himself. Then, he listened. It turned out that the guest was unhappy: the air conditioning in his room wasn’t working. It was unbearably hot due to an unwelcome heat wave. The young man’s stolid countenance, I could only imagine, belied a nervous inside. Or, maybe not. With tact and empathy, he, first, offered genuine concern for the situation; then, he assured the guest that he, specifically, would handle and resolve the predicament. I was shocked at his poise. The human touch.
No AI—not even Tilly Norwood—can match human sensitivity. And it shouldn’t.
The hospitality industry needs AI. For instance, it excels at repetitive tasks: handling reservations, report generation, invoice processing, scheduling, routine guest communications. In short, it can automate administrative burdens 24/7: AI doesn’t tire.
The things it can do illuminate what it can’t. Hospitality is emotional: A guest doesn’t simply want a problem solved; they want to feel welcomed, recognized, cared for. Humans do that (at least the good ones do). They can also read the room: Front-desk staff can comprehend all the emotions a guest exhibits, whether it’s fluster or excitement. AI has a harder time interpreting those subtleties.
Another thing: People remember people. Countless tales exist of guests remembering an employee by name and sharing praise of them with someone higher up at the hotel. That doesn’t happen with an AI and, if it did, who would you share your pleasure with? A motherboard?
Guests may remember the hotel technology, but they’re more likely to remember the concierge who recommended the perfect restaurant or the front-desk employee who went out of their way to help.
I lauded that young man’s efforts. And shared it with the GM of the hotel. A strong service recovery at a hotel is a thing to behold, especially when accomplished by a sentient human who cares. The robots have not taken over yet.