According to President Joe Biden’s 2023 State of the Union Address, one of the greatest issues in the American Economy is of staffing shortages.
Nowhere is this more evident than in the hospitality industry. American Hotels have a shortage of over 400,000 positions as compared to pre-pandemic numbers[1]. Unfortunately, this problem is not confined to the US, but is a global one.
There are several ways to combat this challenge. One of which is to supplement the hardworking staff that show up to work daily with technology. Your current staff should not be expected to do the work of 3 with the quality you expect simply because there are unfilled positions and, certainly not, because there are those that do not show up for work every day. Over-time staffing issues only kill your good employees’ morale, your online reputation, and, ultimately, your bottom line.
Away Together is one such technology that can lift certain time-consuming tasks from the shoulders of your staff. It is a mobile application laser-focused on a multi-faceted approach to communication within a safe, secure, and defined environment. One of the facets the app allows for is accommodation to guest communication.
Accommodation-to-guest communication is designed with one goal: to allow your guest to receive the information they expect while making this easier and more efficient for the staff delivering it. It is designed to be a one-way message from the accommodation to the guest. The guest must use conventional methods to reach you. Your assigned staff would have access to be able to send out blast notifications of changes, activities, or events. Snapper is not available, no problem, blast out “Tonight’s seafood course has been replaced with sea bass”. A push notification is generated, and you avoid the angry mob expecting a snapper. Your staff never had to leave the desk, and they can make this announcement easily by sending a text message. Better yet, they do not have to deal with 20 messages from the crazy guest in Room 210 (we all have experienced these types of guests). You eliminate the need for papers under doors or running around changing corkboard notifications and/or whiteboard announcements. This allows this staff member to remain visibly available to address the accommodation.
In conclusion, staff shortages appear to be an unfortunate reality. To remedy this reality and to maintain morale, it is more important than ever for management to provide their staff the tools to be more efficient with the work that they do and show your commitment to excellence. One such tool is Away Together.
Call/email:
Mel 814.218.0563 mel@myawaytogether.com
John 814.490.4905 john@myawaytogether.com
[1] Chip Rogers AHLA President Statement following the 2023 SOTU Address
