By Steve Cokkinias: A veteran of the hospitality industry, Steve has many entertaining stories up his sleeve. Each Wednesday he will share a story on ehotelier.

Old-fashioned room keys are exactly that nowadays—old fashioned.  It seems like the check-in desk may be heading the same way. Increasingly hotels around the world are moving to electronic and kiosk check-in systems, as the New York Times recently reported. Luddites and the nostalgic will no doubt complain, but for the business traveller it is excellent news.

By Ron Ashkenas: While most managers complain about being overloaded with responsibilities, very few are willing to give up any of them. It's one of the great contradictions of organizational life: People are great at starting new things — projects, meetings, initiatives, task forces — but have a much harder time stopping the ones that already exist.

By Victoria Bryan and Kwasi Kpodo: New hotels are springing up across Africa, despite the trials of bureaucratic delay and poor infrastructure, to take advantage of an increasing number of tourists and business travellers serving a growing middle class. The International Monetary Fund is forecasting economic growth of around 5.8 percent in sub-Saharan Africa this year, second only to developing Asia, and the hospitality industry is keen to tap that growth.

By Barbara DeLollis:  If you're planning a trip to Brazil to stroll the white sandy beaches, conduct business meetings or attend next year's World Cup matches, chances are you'll be able to stay in a new hotel. And you won't have to spend a fortune.

TripAdvisor®, the world’s largest travel site*, today announced the winners of its inaugural Travellers’ Choice Islands awards. Based on millions of valuable traveller reviews and opinions on the site, the awards recognise 120 islands across the globe, including dedicated lists for Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Europe, South America, the South Pacific, and the U.S.

By Hugo Martin: It may not come as a surprise that California — a sun-splashed magnet for celebrities and big-spending tourists — leads the nation with the number of hotels winning five-star ratings from Forbes Travel Guide. But winning the coveted rating is no easy feat. Only 58 hotels in the U.S. – 12 in California – were awarded the recognition this year.

By Alan Campbell: We've been duped by the Powers of Positive Thinking! Don't get me wrong, I'm all for the power of positive thinking; it's great to have this power on one's side, especially when one's down and one needs a quick pick-me up. However, and there is always an however-or a but, for that matter-, many of us are carrying this power to dangerous extremes-with commensurate results.

By Vivian Giang: An organization's most valuable assets are its employees. When workers are happy and motivated, they're more likely to perform at the highest levels. The most strategic way to create this type of environment is by giving everyone a sense of ownership, says Robert C. Pozen, senior lecturer at Harvard Business School.

By Max Fisher: The WEF gathered the data from late 2011 through late 2012 by asking respondents, "How welcome are foreign visitors in your country?" The WEF explains that the survey results are meant to help "measure the extent to which a country and society are open to tourism and foreign visitors." Here are the results.