Useful Technologies in the Tourism Industry Essay Example

Introduction

The tourism industry has a lot of business opportunities that people venture into. The hotel business as supportive in the tourism industry in delivery of services such as the provision of hotel rooms, breakfast, lung and super. Some hotels also provide outdoor services that include takeaway services. I work at a tourist hotel that majors in making the stay of the tourists convenient (Nawaz, 162). Most of the applied technologies in the tourism industry are suggestions by the customers and the employees to help make the lives of the customers safer and enjoyable during their stay. The hotel I work with has branches in most of the countries which are tourist destinations. To succeed in the tourism industry, provision of safety requires surveillance and emergency response in case any form of response is needed. Various surveillance software used today is efficient and can be customized to give only the details that one wishes to share. The challenges in the tourism industry result in negative effects on both the employees in the industry and the customers. First, the issues such as poor pay, unconducive working conditions, and unequal treatment affect employees, while the major issues affecting the customer are safety and quality service delivery. To find lasting solutions to the challenges at my workplace, technological innovations such as Human Resource Information System (HRIS), Hover Watch, and Web.2 Technologies need to be adopted.

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Human Resource Information System (HRIS)

As opposed to the traditional use of human Labor in managing every aspect of the human resource department at my workplace, I suggest the use of an integrated Human Resource Management System (HRIS). This is a software which combines a number of processes and systems in ensuring that the process of managing human resources in the tourism industry is standard and effective. The software is also important in managing data and business processes in the tourism industry. As opposed to the use of humans, the HRIS can help in assessing the employees according to their commitment to their duties. This is possible as the software combines some of the most necessary human resources functions such as management of payroll, benefits administration, storage of employee data, and keeping of updated attendance records for the employees (Nawaz163). The software is most appropriate as it helps to manage the human resource processes in an easy, routine and dependable way. The software combines the human resource as a discipline by evolving the basic human resource processes and activities with the IT field into packages and standardized routines of ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) software.

The human resource information system used in the tourism industry leads to a faster process of managing employees besides reducing the time spent in managing the employee records. The ERP systems work by integrating information from other applications that work with Android phones, laptops, and computers among others into a universal database (Obeidat, 16). That way, the movements, operations and related activities of the employees in the tourism industry can be effectively monitored during the working hours. The alternative, which is, keeping volumes of books that contain records of employees and employing supervisors is expensive and time-consuming (Nawaz, 163). When the only way of monitoring employees is by employing supervisors, more money will be needed to pay the supervisors. Besides, it is time-consuming to physically look for records on employees in big rooms staffed with papers, files, and books. With the HRIS accessing employee records are at a click, meaning more time is saved, and many people are not needed in keeping and sorting volumes of files containing employee information.

There are huge differences in the cost of HRIS software based on the number of employees it should be designed to manage. Another determining factor for the cost of an HR software are the specific functions the software is to be designed for. The bigger the number of the employees and the more the number of functions of the HR software the more expensive it will be. Besides the cost of operation and other software, other costs, such as the cost of the hardware itself, and the cost of training the employees also contributes greatly to the varied costs of the software application (Nawaz, 161). In the case of a client-server (locally hosted HRIS systems), the license fee determines the cost of the system. Since each employee who will be using the system requires a license, the cost of between USD 40 to USD 100 applies per user (Obeidat, 28). This is charged in the case of a company with a maximum number of fifty employees. For large companies where employees are more than fifty, the cost of the software might be lower. However, the cost of the total cost will go up due to the need for a complex system to manage the huge number of employees. In that case, the cost could go up to between USD 200 and USD 300.

Web.2 Technologies

Another important technology that needs to be considered for proper use at my workplace is the web.2 technologies, which is a collaborative email and web technologies. The collaborative technologies suggested in this case include Facebook, WhatsApp, google hangouts, twitter, Instagram among others. When such applications are included in the company policy as a channel for communication, the employees will be allocated duties such as handling company Facebook groups and pages by collecting customer feedback. Web.2 is important in the world today as it is a way of reaching out to the growing number of members of the public using social media. The Web.2 tools help in the reduction of the cost of communication, product development and promotion. Since most of the services in the tourism industry, such as hotel services become upgraded and improved, it is important that the social media is used to create awareness about such changes (Kopera, 122). For instance, in the case of the hotel where I work, a lot of improvements are made towards the peak periods to address the concerns of the tourists as stated in the customer feedback page. Advertisements in the social media are the most effective and cheap way of sharing information. The use of social media interaction application, available for windows, mac, and Android operating systems give a platform for advertisement and sharing of information that the hotel may need the target customers to receive.

The cost of using web.2 technologies is far much less expensive as compared to the use of the offline channels for communication, interaction, and business. For instance, doing advertisements on Google is considered cheap when viewed in the CPM lens CPM means cost per 1000 impressions of the ad). For instance, the highly targeted campaigns for display cost between $0.50 and $5 CPM (Kopera, 124). This is considerably cheap as compared to the offline advertisements that cost between $2 for billboards and $36 for the super bowl. For advertisements with a more general awareness goal, the cost might go as low as $ 0.01. When one uses AdWord on YouTube to do advertisement, the cost is calculated per view. That way it becomes more accurate, dependable and cheap.

My choice of Web.2 technologies helps in addressing the communication issues at my workplace currently, the targeted customers need to be informed about the important changes that have been made in in terms of service delivery. This technologies is choses over the traditional means of advertisements and communication such as post office, television advertisements and billboards among others. The choice and suggestion is made based on two advantages, one of the advantages is the efficiency; the use of the social media platforms is more accepted by the current generation as it easily avails the relevant advertisements that suite their needs. In consideration to the traditional advertisement channels, the costs are standard whether it is effective or not, that makes it a risk and an unnecessary expense. Based on the differences in expense, it is important that the hotel business under the tourism industry adopt it as the major advertisement, communication and interaction platform (Kopera, 119). Communication through the internet is very cheap, in fact, in some countries, the internet6 costs are already paid by the government and citizens enjoy free services, which makes web.2 a very convenient technology for use in the tourism industry to enhance communication.

Hover Watch

Hover watch is tracking software that helps locate mobile phones and computers. The software is important for use in the tourism industry as it can help locate and monitor the communication between the employees in charge of tourists and the tourists. That way, it becomes easy to identify unethical behaviors by the employees that may lead to the customers being unsatisfied with the services offered. Hover watch is a software that one can freely download from Google and chose the operating system it needs to be installed in. once the software is installed, it does not show on the desktop making it effective in monitoring employees without their knowledge. I recommend the software not only for employee monitoring but also for the security of the tourists, especially the ones who may want to take away services such as food and housing. Since mobile hotels rooms exist, tourists can order for them so that the rooms, basically prepared inside moving tracks can be moved to them instead of them spending hours looking for accommodation. For such services to be efficient, the customer can be advised to use the hover watch application so that he or she can be located and the demanded services delivered.

The question of why not other surveillance software and means can be responded to from the perspective of the cost efficiency and acceptability. The software is user friendly and easy to install. One does not need a technician to install the software and set it up. As opposed to the use of GPS, the hovering watch is still effective even if the gadget is not connected to the internet. This makes it an important tool for tracking people in the jungles and along the beaches where tourists love most. The fact that the application is not visible in the gadgets makes it efficiently applicable in monitoring employees using company phones and computers. As such it is considered a better way of monitoring that the use of the other tracking devises that the employee can easily notice and turn off.

The cost of Hover Watch makes it a cheaper way of monitoring as compared to the use of supervisors who will have to be paid to monitor employees at all times. This For business, Hover watch costs $1.67 per month for every device. The software can monitor up to 24 devices. Hence the total cost will depend on the number of devices to be monitored. Per month, the cost is $149.95, for three months the cost is $299.95, and annually the cost is $499.95.

Conclusion

In summary, before buying a software to use in improving business opportunities and reducing the costs, it is important that one looks at the issue of its suitability to the specific business, this would include looking into the issue of cost versus benefit. In the tourism industry, the use of the software is most recommended as efficiency is needed in service delivery to the customers. Such service delivery can only be achieved through proper management of the human resource departments. The important software and technologies include HRIS, Hover Watch, and Web.2 Technologies that include the social media interaction software. The three technologies are vital in the hotel industry as it supports cheaper, more efficient and more acceptable channels of communication, interaction and monitoring in the world today.

Works Cited

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