“USE OF AI IN

HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY”
A project submitted in partial fulfillment of
requirements for a degree of
BACHELOR OF HOTEL MANAGEMENT AND
CATERING TECHNOLOGY(BHMCT)
BY
ADITYA PRAKASH ROUNAK
[Roll No:
[Session: 2021-2024]
Under the Supervision of
SUPERVISOR NAME
[Assistant Professor]
School of Computer Science & Applications

IIMT UNIVERSITY
‘O’ Pocket, Ganga Nagar Colony,
Mawana Road, Meerut (U.P.), India

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 II INDEX II
Table of contents:
Declaration

Acknowledgment

Introduction

Aim

Thesis objective

Research Methodology

Data Analysis

Conclusion

References

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3
Introduction

The Hotel Industry uses a lot of information, because of The characteristics of its
services and items ( Basis,2003). The quick advancement of communication
innovations has contributed a part to the improvement of the industry. Sightseers can
make individual choices concerning travel auxiliaries, convenience, nourishment,
and exercises given at their goal fair sitting at domestic with to utilize of Al.
Distinctive web-based (web 2.0) .information facilitators such as book. ING motors,
travel blogs; wikis, microblogs (social media), benefit provider's websites, client
appraisals, and comments with respect to the items and administrations are the
instruments for travel choices separated from individual criticism. Web 2.0 has made
the world smaller for all intents and purposes. One can interface with companions
through social media and ask approximately the unwavering quality of the
administrations given athrlestination up to a few degrees. Each day unused
investigations and developments are being made to give one-of-a-kind encounters to
voyagers by the benefit suppliers in the industry. As a result, the utilize of AI has
made the travel and Inn industry trade simpler, fetched viable, beneficial; profit-able,
and client service-centric. This proposal is a minor exertion in the field of travel and
Hotel .industry that centers on the significance and execution of Al s for the strategic
and competitive development of offerings.

Aim:-

The purpose of this thesis is to investigate how artificial intelligence (AI) is used in
the Finnish hotel sector as a component of Al. The thesis focuses on the necessity of
Al, the state of the AI market at the moment, user happiness, issues, advancements,
and new requirements and desires for Al. Through questionnaires, interviews, and
literature analysis, the thesis combines combined data gathering methods
(quantitative, qualitative, and document analysis) to paint a picture of user
satisfaction and future trends for Al. Three significant hotel brands in Finland—
Rested Group, Sokos, and Scandal—were the sites of the survey and interview.

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Thesis Objective

This thesis examines artificial intelligence (AI) in the hotel sector, primarily as it relates to
lodging services in Finland. My thesis was inspired by an idea I had while interning at
Vetokonsultit Of in Kerala. Krishna Kumar Redmi is my name. An IT firm called
Vetokonsultit Of specializes in ERP development but also works broadly in other AI
development domains. The main objective of my internship was a project I completed for
the company called "Hotel Industry." I became aware of the need for study in the hotel
business during the project when I saw that there was potential for new AI niches to develop
in Finland's tourism and hotel sectors. I used Google, Theseus (Electronic Library of the
Universities of Applied Sciences), university thesis works, and the internet to find other
similar theses. Regretfully, I could not locate any studies conducted for the advancement of
AI in Finland's travel and hospitality sectors. This void served as yet another motivator for
my thesis topic. Upon hearing the concept of this thesis, Bikes That, the second author,
consented to collaborate with me on this search because of his extensive background in the
hotel sector. The discussion of AI and its application to the hotel sector piqued our curiosity.
The industry requires a lot of information because of the heterogeneity, perishability, and
intangibility of its services and goods. AI plays a significant role in hotel business service
operations. Rapid changes in consumer behavior and technological advancements have
created new markets and opportunities for the development of new artificial intelligence.
The fact that Vetokonsultit Of was prepared to offer guidance and technical support for
further research on the topic of artificial intelligence (AI) if needed made the topic's
investigation effective. We also utilized Bikes's connections in the hotel sector of the
Helsinki metropolitan area to complete the research questionnaires. Aside from this, Laura
University of Applied Sciences helped us establish contacts. I personally got in touch with a
few hotels in Helsinki as part of my study, which covered a larger area. Excellent
international research on "Artificial Intelligence in the Hotel Industry" was found by us.
Information and Communication Technology in Hotel Industry 2010 is the title of the most
recent collection of study that was released in 2010. Reading this research was motivating,
and it gave us pointers for writing our theses. In addition to this excellent work of academic
writing, we read a number of novels that were pertinent to our area of study. Our focus as

5
 Laura students has been on operational studies of the hotel sector. Terms like CRS, GDS,
DMS, POS, PMS, and others that are used in information communication technology to
describe various services and service providers related to the travel and hotel business are
uncommon. Because of this, we made the decision to put up a little effort through this
research to create a new area of study for the hotel business at Laura and shine light on the
necessity of AI studies connected to the hotel sector for the Laureate Hotel business Degree
Program.

Excellent international research on "Artificial Intelligence in the Hotel Industry" was found
by us. Information and Communication Technology in Hotel Industry 2010 is the title of the
most recent collection of study that was released in 2010. Reading this research was
motivating, and it gave us pointers for writing our theses. In addition to this excellent work of
academic writing, we read a number of novels that were pertinent to our area of study. We,
the students, have been concentrating on operational studies in the hotel industry while at
Laura. Terms like CRS, GDS, DMS, POS, PMS, and others that are used in information
communication technology to describe various services and service providers related to the
travel and hotel business are uncommon.
In order to address the need for hotel industry-related AI courses in the Laureate Hotel
Industry Degree Program, we therefore made the decision to make a tiny effort through this
research to open up a new field for study in Laura.

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Research Time Frame

The proposition preparation was partitioned into three crucial stages specifically
writing ponder, observational look, and investigation. In September 2010, we went
through writing about and collected major pieces of writing to create inquire about
the subject from accessible assets such as the library and the web. October was
committed to experimental investigations; we collected information through surveys
and interviews; and arranged them for preparation utilizing the SPSS program. The
comes about of to investigate were dissected in November, and we made the last
introduction of us inquire about in December 2010.

Research Background

The neighborliness segment is one of the major components of the Lodging industry.
Each overnight remain amid any trip or visit needs administrations from the
neighborliness industry. This division of the Lodging industry falls beneath the
moment major touchpoint for clients after the travel segment in the lodging industry.
The to begin with utilize of IT in the neighborliness industry was made in Hilton,
Modern York in 1963, an IBM minicomputer was utilized to oversee visitor rooms (
Sales, 1963; Alvarez et al., 1983). History started with the IBM minicomputer has
come to at small scale estimate in the frame of smartphones which is made conceivable
with the help of Counterfeit Insights. The industry is attempting to control smartphones
for future communication purposes at a few degrees. The administrations are changing
into commodities hence; each benefit supplier is in journey of modern values that can
be included to the administrations being given. To create an extraordinary benefit the
suppliers are utilizing increased items and administrations. Most of the expanded
administrations are inferred in a few way through to utilization of technology. It is very
challenging to start inquiring about on this theme in Finland since no such investigative
work on a specific subject was done prior. This proposal is an endeavor to start
inquiring about on the point of AI and the Lodging industry. The exertion being made
is from scratch and based on other universal investigative papers, articles, and books

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 along with an overview conducted among three major lodging chains in Finland.
Centering on the realities and utilization of data communication innovation, this
proposition investigates the requirement for enlargement in Property Administration
AI to make extraordinary administrations for clients in the inn benefit section.

Research Problem

The investigate of the proposal is based on AI and its utilize in lodgings in Finland. The
center of the investigate is to investigate Property Administration AI utilized in major
lodgings in Finland. The consider is conducted to investigate the openings for unused
AI specialties inside the fringe of Property Administration AI. The inquire about issue
for the proposition can be expressed in one sentence as follows:

Which are the unused rising specialties in the inn industry to create modern AI?

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Research Outline

The diagram of the inquire about is concentrated on two major sources i.e. writing and blended
information collection strategies (Overview, Meet, Report Examination). Exhaustive talk and writing
survey are the result of explorative investigate of speculations and articles created in the Inn industry and
AI. Separated from this, the proposition gives a quantitative clarification of the inquire about results.
The outline of the thesis is stated in the Figure:1

introductory Data
Gathering Evaluation

Reviewing the
Problem literature Result
Description

Figure 1: Outline of the thesis

Delimitation of Research

This proposition covers a more extensive range since it talking almost AIs in the
Lodging industry in for the most part and computer program in the Inn industry
particularly. To investigate gives a by and large outline expressing how visit-ism
industry is affected by AI. Encourage, it talks about the particular AI utilized in
inns i.e. PMS. The encounter of representatives in the setting of AI ‟'s ease of
use, adequacy, appropriateness, and innovativeness was collected from major inn
chains in Finland inside Helsinki metropolitan zone. The collected information
is inspected to portray the inn AI advertise circumstance in Finland and

9
 conceivable unused rising specialties to create expanded highlights for AI.
Structure of Thesis

This proposition covers a more extensive range since it talks about AIs in the
Lodging industry in for the most part and computer programs in the Inn industry
particularly. To investigate gives a, by and large, outline expressing how the visit-
ism industry is affected by AI. Encourage, it talks about the particular AI utilized
in inns i.e. PMS. The encounter of representatives in the setting of AI ‟'s ease of
use, adequacy, appropriateness, and innovativeness was collected from major inn
chains in Finland inside the Helsinki metropolitan zone. The collected information
is inspected to portray the inn AI advertise circumstance in Finland and conceivable
unused rising specialties to create expanded highlights for AI.

Role of AI in the Hotel industry

Unused commerce openings are creating and amplifying with the dispersal of AI and the
Lodging industry ( Basis, 2003). Fake Bits of knowledge is a device for the Lodging industry
to make the environment for communication and information exchange among accomplices
and clients. Around the world improvement of the Lodging industry is made conceivable
due to rapidly creating development since information exchange disobedient are embedded
in the service-providing workplaces. Fabricated Experiences is seen as a major strategy to
be actualized to circulate the information exchange among advantage providers, creators,
and clients. Poor states that "The lodging section is an uncommonly information-intensive
commerce. In few other locales of development are the time, gathering, taking care of,
application, and communication of information as basic for day-to-day operations as they
are for travel and Lodging industry” ( Basis, 2003, 76).Intangible Lodging industry
organizations and things require a display of advancement that can make them visualize to
the client either in the shape of printed materials or sound and visual orchestrate (Sheldon,
1997). Lodging industry client has a more prominent hindrance since the client buys Lodging
industry organizations based on the portrayal given in the midst of bargains strategy and
experience of the promising thing and organizations is felt after utilizing them (Sheldon,
1997). Visits and visits are habitually exorbitant recreational works out. The affiliation of
10
family, companions, and relatives is expected significantly for full fulfillment of the get-
away in the midst of a trip or visit by the client. Along these lines, giving a clear pay your
of Motel industry advantage to the client is outstandingly essential , and information
communication development is as it were the way that can allow a visualization of the
organizations and things being bought by the clients (Sheldon, 1997) in unmistakable shapes
run- ING from troublesome copy to progressed fragile copies in a grouping of structures.
Hence, the intangible organizations brought into considerable shape communicate with the
client to allow a clear picture of them a few time as of late purchase. This alter makes a
contrast clients get it the advantage, its regard, quality, and immovable quality. Making AI
a crucial parcel of the Hotel industry is an unused run for explore ( Basis, 2003). The utilize
of AI in making effective exchange circumstances is a hot issue these days, a few analysts
have talked and composed nearly the importance of AI as a device for the common headway
of commerce environment with extended client fulfillment ( O'Connor, 1999; Ink pen, 1998;
Marcus sen, 1999) and lower operation costs. The result of the ask almost conducted among
the chiefs of 3600 Austrian motels says that the influence of AI on picking up productivity
in lodgings is positive and basic (C. Scholochow, M. Fuchs, W. Open, AI In Tourism,2010).
The utilize of AI is
fundamental for the headway of organizations and the service-providing scene in the hotel
industry. AI is one of the major components of information and communication development
( Basis, 2003) which plays an urgent portion in the dispersal of hotel advantage concepts and
AIs. The thought of AI for information exchange, gathering, planning, and dispersing in the
Motel industry is gathered from a few particular properties that the Motel industry has. The
taking after headings are brief conversations about the concept of information and its
maneuvering in the Motel industry.

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Role of AI in the Hotel industry

Unused commerce openings are creating and amplifying with the dispersal of AI and the
Lodging industry ( Basis, 2003). Fake Bits of knowledge is a device for the Lodging industry
to make the environment for communication and information exchange among accomplices
and clients. Around the world improvement of the Lodging industry is made conceivable
due to rapidly creating development since information exchange disobedient are embedded
in the service-providing workplaces. Fabricated Experiences is seen as a major strategy to
be actualized to circulate the information exchange among advantage providers, creators,
and clients. Poor states that "The lodging section is an uncommonly information-intensive
commerce. In few other locales of development are the time, gathering, taking care of,
application, and communication of information as basic for day-to-day operations as they
are for travel and Lodging industry” ( Basis, 2003, 76).Intangible Lodging industry
organizations and things require a display of advancement that can make them visualize to
the client either in the shape of printed materials or sound and visual orchestrate (Sheldon,
1997). Lodging industry client has a more prominent hindrance since the client buys Lodging
industry organizations based on the portrayal given in the midst of bargains strategy and
experience of the promising thing and organizations is felt after utilizing them (Sheldon,
1997). Visits and visits are habitually exorbitant recreational works out. The affiliation of
family, companions, and relatives is expected significantly for full fulfillment of the get-
away in the midst of a trip or visit by the client. Along these lines, giving a clear pay your
of Motel industry advantage to the client is outstandingly essential , and information
communication development is as it were the way that can allow a visualization of the
organizations and things being bought by the clients (Sheldon, 1997) in unmistakable shapes
run- ING from troublesome copy to progressed fragile copies in a grouping of structures.
Hence, the intangible organizations brought into considerable shape communicate with the
client to allow a clear picture of them a few time as of late purchase. This alter makes a
contrast clients get it the advantage, its regard, quality, and immovable quality. Making AI
a crucial parcel of the Hotel industry is an unused run for explore ( Basis, 2003). The utilize
of AI in making effective exchange circumstances is a hot issue these days, a few analysts
have talked and composed nearly the importance of AI as a device for the common headway
of commerce environment with extended client fulfillment ( O'Connor, 1999; Ink pen, 1998;
Marcus sen, 1999) and lower operation costs. The result of the ask almost conducted among
the chiefs of 3600 Austrian motels says that the influence of AI on picking up productivity

12
in lodgings is positive and basic (C. Scholochow, M. Fuchs, W. Open, AI In Tourism,2010).
The utilize of AI is
fundamental for the headway of organizations and the service-providing scene in the hotel
industry. AI is one of the major components of information and communication development
( Basis, 2003) which plays an urgent portion in the dispersal of hotel advantage concepts and
AIs. The thought of AI for information exchange, gathering, planning, and dispersing in the
Motel industry is gathered from a few particular properties that the Motel industry has. The
taking after headings are brief conversations about the concept of information and its
maneuvering in the Motel industry.

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Hotel industry of Information

The lodging industry is straightforwardly or by implication related with all the major financial
improvement focuses of a country such as commerce, legislative issues, instruction,
wellbeing, science, occasions, culture, etc. This association makes the Lodging industry an
extraordinary industry that needs to prepare and communicate an outsized volume of data
(Sheldon, 1997) for its usefulness from shopper to benefit supplier, a designer, merchant,
intermediary, sponsor, etc., and vice versa. Conveyance of data and its trade along with
handling happens at distinctive echelons, with distinctive power among the partners, divisions,
and specialists of the Inn industry.The major stream of data exists among three major operators
of the Lodging industry viz. providers, travel mediators, and travelers (Sheldon, 1997). The
taking after graph appears the stream of data in the Inn industry.

Figure 2: Flow of information in the Hotel industry (Sheldon, 1997)

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 As shown in Figure 2, Providers give data to middle people with respect to rates, plans,
accessibility, extraordinary offers, commissions and advancement of administrations and
items to be given to the conclusion clients. Middle people give data with respect to the
buy of administrations such as booking demands, rate arrangement, client data, and
income. Tram- vendors get data around Lodging industry administrations and items both
specifically from providers or middle people and bad habit versa. Data communication
goes among providers with respect to diverse commerce exercises and collaboration with
the industry. The middle people too share data with respect to item buys and deals if the
exchange of administrations is made among them. The two other major intrigued bunches
government organizations and inn industry organizations, affiliations provide and get data
with respect to directions related to administrations, trade foundation, preparing, courses,
and other fundamental exercises that are conducted amid a trade prepare. Lodging
industry experts, showcase analysts, and other outside counsels keep up the commerce
database for the providers and conduct investigations among providers, traveler sellers,
and mediators to make the usefulness of benefit operations inventive, - pleasant, and
simple to utilize..

Figure 3: Information sharing using AI

AI is utilized for two major purposes' viz. front office and back office in organizations. The
pink gleam in Figure 3 speaks to front-office and back-office AI utilized by the partners of
the Inn industry ( Basis, 2003). Front office and back office AI can be either distinctive
modules of an AI or distinctive AI based on the nature of work and arrangement of
advancement of the AI house. Front office AI encourages operations of providers for clients
such as check-in, check-out, ask, requesting, point of deals, discuss ticketing, visit booking
and planning, etc. though back office AI underpins organizational needs and administrative
assignments such as arranging, usage, checking, money related exchange administration and
bookkeeping, finance, supplies, stock control, security, nourishment and vitality observing
and overseeing etc. The combination of such AI gives cost-effective information handling
precisely and opportune in an expansive volume ( Basis, 2003).The data required getting to
the clients and other partners is sent at that point to the web with the offer assistance of AI
and websites. The dark color in Figure 3 speaks to the working framework AI with the web
browser which is required to interface the in-house computer program with the web.
Windows, LINUX, Apple/Mac, and UNIX are the working frameworks AI commonly
15
utilized nowadays. Clients utilize individual computers and smartphones to interface to the
web and browse data concerning travel and occasion bundles to book an occasion or travel
with providers or middle people. Separated from the back, office, and front office program
industry employments a tremendous assortment of mixed media AI to display time-based
information such as video, voice, and liveliness, and space-based information i.e. design,
content, and pictures on the web of the benefit supplier. Hence, application AI is the major
apparatus for data era, preparation, and conveyance in the industry.

Pink glow represents software used for Information shari11g

represents different software interfaces used to connect internet

Figure 3: Information sharing using AI

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 Characteristics of Hotel Industry Services

Certain characteristics of Inn industry administrations take the data seriously. Since Lodging
industry administrations are heterogeneous, intangible, perishable, and universal. It is
exceptionally imperative that the data regarding the administrations can be conveyed
opportune and precisely to concerned society and conclusion clients. Figure 4 shows
characteristics of Lodging industry administrations that make

Figure 4: Characteristics of Hotel Industry Services (Concept from PhilipKotler, et.al., 2003, Sheldon, 1997)

Inn industry administrations are perishable since they cannot be put away for future utilize
(Philip Kohler, John Bowen, and James Makes, 2003; Sheldon, 1997). If a room in an inn
is not sold for one night, the income related to this unsold room cannot be picked up for the
night once more. For this reason, in the inn trade, giving speedy and exact data almost the
administrations is vital. Sudden changes in request and inadvertent dangers are to be
detailed in time to the concerned partners and clients to anticipate any awkward
circumstances. Lodging industry administrations are sold in chains; in other words, a travel
ticket is sold by travel organizations, visit administrators, discuss ticket terminals, and
online ticket dealers. The data of sold seats, empty seats, flight time, alter in flight plan,
nourishment and refreshment prerequisite, halt over, length of travel, carriage restrain, etc.
are to be conveyed to all the booking accomplices and clients opportune to offer

17
comfortable travel to the clients with a certain benefit for the organization. Utilizing AI the
industry can give all the upgrades with respect to occasions and programs to clients and
accomplices already. On the other hand, the client can give input on the administrations
and items of the company through AI on the web. AIs have made two-way communication
conceivable with the help of numerous gadgets on the web and offline. Behind all the
administrations, AI is a major component in preparing and conveying data to related
sectors.The administrations in the Lodging industry are intangible and experienced after
buy. Besides, they need tangibility indeed after the involvement (Philip Kohler, John
Bowen, and James Makes, 2003). It is vital to give a clear outline of administrations to be
sold to the client to make buy choices simpler and less difficult. Providers of the
administrations and middle people utilize diverse sorts of AI to outline the administrations
to the mass of clients, such as printed flyers, brochures, electronic brochures, web
depictions (content), 3D pictures, pictures, recordings, sound, etc. Subsequently, the
significance of AI cannot be dismissed in the Inn industry. Product’s in the Lodging
industry and the whole industry comprise a few divided administrations. The parts are
delivered by distinctive makers and provided by a few providers to compose a single benefit
(Sheldon, 1997). A traveler is served by at slightest 35 mechanical components as
recognized by the US Standard Mechanical Classification Framework (Gee et al., 1994).
Subsequently, collaboration among these mechanical components gets to be an imperative
issue some time recently propelling an item or benefit to clients. For illustration, a trip
acquired by a client incorporates discuss benefit, lodging benefit, city visit, etc. from
distinctive firms and offices (benefit suppliers). The engagement of different parts of
administrations and industry segments makes lodging industry administrations
heterogeneous. A complex and universal benefit is more heterogeneous since it comprises
universal components along with an expansive volume of data (Sheldon, 1997).
Communication among these benefit suppliers is a must for making the benefit a combined
bundle to offer to clients. Subsequently, Manufactured Insights gives channels and joins
between clients and diverse industry divisions to make the arranging and encounter of the
customer's tripfaultless(Sheldon,1997).

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 E-Hotel industry

The pedal particle of Travel Industry Affiliation of America says that travel and Lodging
industry items will be one of the most executed items in the online showcase put (TIA, 1997).
A developing number of online clients modern and learned clients request innovation and its
execution for convenient and exact exchanges through e-commerce and commerce (portable
commerce) (Dempsey 2000). Most of the Inn industry administrations and items are obtained
online nowadays. Amid our information collection handle, the director of one of the lodgings
in Helsinki conjured the data that, We get all the bookings of rooms online and the front
work area is fair a facilitator for giving other administrations and data for the client. Clients
get checked cost whereas booking online , and it may be simple for them see for data and
other detail of the administrations through web in this manner, online booking is developed
in later years.‟ Clients are pulled in to the motivating forces given by the providers for
electronic buys (Jones, 1999).Lack of accessibility of items in the neighborhood showcase,
a more prominent choice of merchandise and administrations, superior cost, and friends
suggestions are other evaluated reasons for developing online buys these days (Jones, 1999).
To oversee an appropriate online commercial center the industry and its partners require
distinguishing the unused rising sections of clients and improve the showcase environment
to draw in them to have a competitive advantage of the stream. Openings Such as choice of
products and administrations, adaptable cost, ease, and way better client benefit are major
prerequisites of the client which have gotten to be effectively available due to ecommerce in
which item information; cost, and unwavering quality can be effortlessly given. Agreeing to
Stark and Cost, (2008 [Oct 10, 2010]) more than 45% of all lodging bookings will be done
online by the conclusion of 2010. “According to a 2008 study, 83 percent of Finnish grown-
ups and 62 percent of grown-ups in the European Union have utilized the web amid the final
three months, In Finland, 70 percent of the web clients had browsed travel and Inn industry
data, and 33 percent of the client had conducted online shopping. 60 percent of the esteem
of e-commerce in Finland comes from the travel and Inn industry. (Measurements Finland
[Eminent 2, 2009])” ( Person and Paloma, 2010, 51-52). The comes about of the

19
measurements demonstrate the developing requirement and ubiquity of online buys in
Finland. There is no way better alternative for the travel and Lodging industry to develop
globally than to utilize of the lodging industry. The improvement of the inn industry is based
on data and communication innovation in this way AI s play a crucial part in extending the
Inn industry universally and utilize of AI in AI s is a must.

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3

Property Management System (PMS) in Hotels

Lodgings presented frameworks to oversee their stock and lodging chains presented group-wide
frameworks in the early 1970s ( Basis, 2003). The frameworks were centered on in-house
administration and worked to oversee day-to-day client benefit capacities along with electronic
conveyance channels such as CRS and GDS ( Basis, 2003). The frameworks were named
Property Administration Frameworks and devoted to the by and large operations of an inn from
reservation to finance administration. The concept of PMS was to utilize the stream of the
database with stock to accomplish the above-mentioned capacities ( OAO'Connor, 1995). PMS
has a few interfacing. The interfacing are outlined in Figure 6.Figure 6: Property Administration
Framework Interfacing (Concept from Sheldon, 1997)According to Sheldon (1997), PMS is the
central computer framework that oversees the data handling and fundamental operations of
properties in the neighborliness division, counting motels, lodgings, visitor houses,
campgrounds, condominiums, and so on. Reservation, front-and raise office operations, and
authoritative assignments are all taken care of by PMS, which serves as a common center for
all other frameworks utilized in inns for different administrations (Sheldon, 1997). PMSs were
commonly utilized with the taking after objectives in intellect: "upgrading capacity
administration in conjunction with operational effectiveness; empowering central room stock
control; outfitting data on final room accessibility; conveying surrender administration
capability; outfitting progressed database get to for administration recommendations;
supporting broad showcasing, deals, and operational reports; encouraging travel office
following and commission installment; observing visit travelers and return lodging visitors;
giving coordinate showcasing and personalized benefit for return inn visitors" ( Basis, 2003).

21
Figure 6: Property Management System Interfaces (Concept from Sheldon, 1997)
PMSs were frequently implemented with the following objectives in mind: "enhancing capacity
management in conjunction with operational efficiency; enabling central room inventory
control; furnishing information on last room availability; delivering yield management
capability; furnishing improved database access for management proposals; endorsing
extensive marketing, sales, and operational reports; facilitating travel agency tracking and
commission payment; monitoring frequent travelers and return hotel guests; providing direct
marketing and personalized service for return hotel guests" (Buhalis, 2003 ).

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 PMS and Its Function

PMS functionality is divided into two categories: basic and specialist. This section covers the
primary features of PMS, such as the reservation module, guest accounting, guest history,
check-in and check-out, room management, and so on. The Sheraton Hotel's PMSTM
capabilities is shown in Figure 7.

Figure 7: PMS Interfaces at Sheraton Hotel (Sheldon, 1997)

The PMS oversees the reservation at the property level. Reservations can be made via the
hotel's webpage, GDS reservations, correspondence, faxes, phone calls, and emails. Each
reservation that is received qualifies for inclusion in the PMS.

If the hotel is a part of a chain of hotels or another CRS, the reservation is directly entered into the
interfaced PMS from the CRS online.

23
The reservation module of a PMS creates confirmation emails and records the guest's selections,
including the kind of accommodation, any special requests, the dates of the stay, the deposit amount,
and the booking agency. The reservation module has the capability to facilitate both individual and
group reservations, contingent upon the visitor's requirements and desires (Sheldon, 1977).

Arrival and Departure

It promotes PMS. The institution uses various levels of technology in diverse ways. Through the
C-I procedure, a guest folio is opened and the reservation file is brought into an active in-house
file. At the hotel's reception, guests can choose to be checked in by a hotel employee or utilize the
self-check-in machines, which will welcome them, provide them with a key, and guide them to
their room. Credit card swipes or motion detection are the two ways that these devices are
activated. Rapid advances in AI have opened up a multitude of possibilities for check-in services.
Modern self-check-in gadgets may feature a keypad or a touch screen. Hand-held, wireless check-
in systems allow for remote check-in (Sheldon, 1997).

Once setup, all charges made during the stay are either manually or electronically entered into the
guest folio in the check-in module.

The payment with cash step of the checkout procedure is involved. Check-in and check-out are
often completed at the front desk of hotels. However, in hotels equipped with automatic self-
checkout machines, visitors can check out without having to visit the front desk. The machine
allows customers to check the total amount, make a payment, and receive a receipt. Many hotels
employ TVs to speed up the check-out procedure. The visitor can use a remote to check their bill
and make an online payment. These TVs often have a printer that can create a payment receipt
(Sheldon, 1997).

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Visitor-Past

Guest history is an essential part of PMS and a powerful marketing tool. The PMS facilitates
the creation of these historical databases once the visitor has been checked out. These
databases meet needs related to research and marketing (Sheldon, 1997). The guest history
helps determine the kind and style of guests that use the properties' services and provides
context for future enhancements. Additionally, this database facilitates future transactions
for guests by keeping address, credit card number, and other data entered once.

Room-Administration

Room management is an additional crucial PMS feature. By monitoring the status of rooms and
offering details on the application of AI, this PMS module helps the Hospitality Industry
department's operations. This PMS module contains information on the type of room, the
number of them, the amenities in each, the costs, the location, and the state of each room. The
state could be clean, dirty, inspected, vacant, or all of the above. After each C-IC-O, the room's
status is changed. Another vital responsibility of this module is to provide all the updates
regarding the condition of the room to increase the occupancy rate of the room. The state of the
rooms is periodically updated through the use of AI in the hospitality industry.

Management application of PMS

The PMS database gives managers access to up-to-date data so they can comprehend how the
property is operating. Online statistics are available for many operations, including total
operating profit, average room rate, occupancy percentage, and room sales, among others.
According to Sheldon (1997), PMS facilitates the generation of a variety of data, including
marketing, arrivals and departures, guest behavior, feedback, complaints, night audits, and
more.

It provides all the information required to make decisions about room rates and when to adjust
them to optimize yield, supporting revenue management or yield management programs.

25
 Back office function

All back office tasks, including purchasing, inventory management, accounts payable and
receivable, payroll processing, and personnel data management, are handled by PMS.
delivering data on earnings, sales, client interactions, commissions received, etc.

Technologies in guest rooms

The attributes may specify the features the PMS should have. To provide tech-savvy
services to the modern guest, new amenities and features might be added. A list of these
facilities can be seen below.
• A lock that operates electronically

• Information and entertainment services for guests

• Telephone accounting system; • Online resources (Sheldon, 1997).

PMS in the industry of food services

A hotel's food service department has a Point of Sale linked to PMS; all purchases can be
paid for at the POS or added to the guest's folio for ultimate billing. These self-ordering,
single or multiple terminals allow customers to place an order, pay their bill, or place an
order and have the bill transferred to their folio. (Sheldon, 1997)

In addition to this feature, PMS offers a restaurant management facility. The hotel can
handle ordering, inventory control, purchasing, and recipe control of food items, as well as
supplier details and par-level tracking through the use of an automated ordering system and
a restaurant management system.

26
 Travel Agent Accounting

PMS is responsible for maintaining track of the commissions paid to the travel agents that make
the hotel reservations. Travel agents' individual accounts are used to track and calculate
commissions at the time of reservation. Every week or month, PMS automatically generates the
check for these commissions (Sheldon, 1997).

Function Room Scheduling

Hotels have function rooms that the PMS can handle. Banquet rooms for conventions, meetings,
seminars, and other social events and gatherings can be arranged in the many function rooms. In
order to run a successful event hall, PMS organizes the forthcoming events and keeps track of
information on the setup of the space, décor, equipment needed for the event, labor requirements,
food and drink, and other requested entities (Sheldon, 1997).

Golf Tennis and other Amenity Management

The PMS is used to arrange the management of sports entities, including keeping track of their
records, renting them out, and booking court time for visitors (Sheldon, 1997).

Condominium and Time Share management

The PMS has a separate module for managing apartments owned by various entities. This module
handled payments, maintained comprehensive records about the property owners, and offered
tools for general property administration (Sheldon, 1997).

4. Research Development
In terms of the goal and objective of this thesis, the main focus is on identifying the developing
need for emerging new AI niches that are situated on the edge of modern property management
systems that are utilized in Finnish hotels. The study is predicated on the opinions of hotel staff
members who have firsthand experience utilizing computer systems for regular hotel operations.
27
 The study examines the usability performances of the systems in the context of perceptions
acquired together with other relevant information, with a focus on the type of PMS used in three
large chains of hotels in Finland. Other study topics include recommendations for enhancing the
systems' functionality and incorporating fresh concepts, demands, and features. In order to
construct a scenario of decision-making processes within the hotel business, it is necessary to
understand the elements that influence chain functioning when selecting artificial intelligence
(AI) for hotels, as well as the process of transitioning from one type of AI to another.

"Which are the new emerging niches in the hotel industry to develop new AI?" is the research
question related to the thesis's research problem. The main component of the survey questionnaire
designed to determine the necessity and significance of developing markets for artificial
intelligence in property management is the question. Rarely is the path to research linear. Because
of this, formulating a precise question for direction setting is crucial (Zina O'Leary, 2004). Zina's
analytical method was employed to focus on the main concept of the study. After reading and
discussing, we talked about the techniques to be utilized for gathering data, and at last, we
developed research questions for the questionnaire. We were able to create a suitable and
instructive questionnaire for the survey, even though creating a question structure for the main
idea proved difficult because it was simple and concentrated on the investigation of new AI niches
in the hotel business.

Participants

The participants in the study were the hotel staff members. An effort was made to gather a
variety of viewpoints from various personnel levels. As a result, both front-line staff members
and management representatives from the hotels participated in our survey. Having a range of
jobs among staff members was helpful since we needed to get their opinions on the various
AI modules that hotels utilize, such as the front and back offices. Two of the survey's twenty-
three respondents had their multiple responses to scaling questions marked, rendering them
invalid.

28
We collected more input on the systems utilized at the conclusion of the survey and held
quick talks on the issues raised and recommendations made via questionnaires. The
extra feedback sessions were helpful since they confirmed that the conclusions drawn
from the data analysis for empirical findings were more solid and legitimate. We learned
fresh information from the additional feedback discussion that we had not anticipated to
find throughout the questionnaire design and testing phase (pilot).

Methods of Research

The new area of study in the travel and hotel industries was the focus of the
investigation. Prior studies investigating and delving into PMS use in Finnish hotels
were nonexistent. Finding an appropriate approach to accomplish the research's
objective while combining extreme analysis was difficult. Therefore, to fulfill the goal
and purpose of the research, the study employed three distinct techniques of data
gathering, as indicated in Figure 8. A mixed method triangulates information from
multiple data sources by combining various data collection techniques (Campbell &
Fiske, 1959). The research's methodological methodology is further explained in
Figure8.

29
 2

Figure 8: Research Methodology Design (Adapted from Zina O‟ Lary, 2004)

30
The study used a mixed methods design, as illustrated in Figure 8, which developed
from the idea of "triangulating" the information from various data sources. This
technique originated in sociology (Denzin, 1978) and psychology (Campbell & Fiske,
1959), but it was most fully utilized in applied research domains like evaluation (Patton,
1990). Triangulating data from surveys, interviews, and document analysis allowed
researchers to better understand the state of the AI market today as well as user
satisfaction, issues, advancements, and emerging expectations.
Since the data were both qualitative and quantitative, both kinds of analysis were applied
to the data analysis, as Figure 8 illustrates.

The study's exclusive focus is on innovation and item usage. Techniques for analyzing
data, both quantitative and qualitative, were thus used. An essential tool for gathering
data was a survey questionnaire, which was used to assess and investigate the current
situation of the AI market as well as consumer satisfaction with the product and
frequently used modules. The questionnaire is useful for methodically gathering data
from a large number of respondents at a cheap cost in order to generate summaries and
quantitative descriptions, according to Altinay & Paraskevas (2008). Quantitative data
can be measured, typically with a magnitude given in numerical form, and can be
analyzed using simple mathematical processes (Walliman, 2004).

Since the majority of survey participants were long-term, managerial staff members of
hotel chains, it was thought that having a sufficient number of respondents was not as
important as having representation from three different hotel brands. Given that business
chains share common operating principles and structural elements, the study's findings
were not adversely affected by the small sample size. As a result, study issues and focus
data exhibited comparable validity as the number of respondents increased. The purpose
of the survey was to obtain a generalized AI regarding AI participation and its
implications for the service phenomena in three Finnish hotel chains.
31
Floyd J. Flower, Jr. (2001) asserts that a more valuable data set can be obtained from a
smaller sample of in-person interviews than from a larger sample obtained through other
means of data gathering. Floyd highlights the value of qualitative data gathered through
interviews, which are able to analyze concepts and provide descriptions of events
surrounding and pertaining to the subject that are connected to human behaviors,
perceptions, attitudes, and characteristics (Walliman, 2004). To examine the challenges
encountered when utilizing AI, the necessary changes, and the necessity for new AI
modules, the study needed more data. As a result, a comprehensive investigation was
carried out using a smaller sample of in-person interviews with management of three
different hotel chains located in Helsinki. The interview was centered on gathering
information on the goal and objectives of the research. A triangulating data analysis can
be made among data acquired using three different methodologies, reflecting the
theories within the research area, because document analysis was employed as a tool for
acquiring and comparing information linked to the study.

32
Data Gathering

The development of three primary data collection methods—a survey questionnaire,

interviews, and document analysis—was directed by internalization of the
significance and necessity of the research subject. This allowed for the collection of
empirical data and the provision of a triangulating analysis of the problem. An
investigation was conducted to develop a more comprehensive representation of
artificial intelligence (AI) and its significance as a key element of AI in Finnish
hotels.
Regarding the study theme, a survey questionnaire was created that concentrated on
a few of the main research goals because the questionnaire was unable to evaluate
other goals. There were multiple-choice, scale, open-ended, and closed-ended items
on the survey. To obtain a pilot evaluation, the created questionnaire was given to
Vetokosultit Oy's CEO. We received several corrections along with some
recommendations for module review. To shorten the time needed to design a survey,
enhance the quality of the data gathered, and minimize non-sampling mistakes, the
proposal questionnaires were restructured and sent for pre-testing to a Helsinki
international hotel. (Sharma, 2005).
The survey procedure began with an email request for permission to conduct the
survey inside the organization (hotel chains) in the Helsinki metropolitan region,
which was sent to the 20 responders. A few responses were obtained from the
participants, sent back with consent, inquiring about the day and time of the survey.
Because there were insufficient replies from the industry for the study, the writers
went unannounced to nonresponding hotels. Along with the letter addressed "To
Whom it May Concern" from the Laurea UAS, Kerava thesis coordinator, the authors
explained to the respondents at reception the reason for their visit and the motivation
behind their research. The letter asked the students for help in conducting interviews
and explicitly explained the purpose of the study. Throughout the sample collection
process, the writers helped the respondents as needed. In the Greater Helsinki area
of Finland, ten hotels from three significant hotel chains provided the sample. A total

33
of twenty-three samples were gathered; however, two of the questionnaires were
deemed invalid since several scale items had multiple-choice answers. To get more
data regarding the selection of responses, a survey among the hotel staff was
followed by feedback sessions.

Three hotel managers who worked in different departments of three

distinct hotel chains were additionally interviewed during the
questionnaire's sampling procedure to gather qualitative information
for analyzing the significance and necessity of artificial intelligence
(AI), which is a key component. It was an essential component of
the investigation process.

Information Analysis

Following the completion of the survey, a very clear AI ure was created concerning
research concerns, and the investigation's findings revealed an unexpected
phenomenon concerning the state of the Finnish hotel software market. Although it
just offered a piece of generic data and a shared perception of the users, the user
impression obtained by scaling questions served as the foundation for interpreting
user pleasure with the system, friendliness of the system, and prior knowledge about
using the system.

The survey questionnaire was analyzed by the authors using SPSS AI. Each item on
the questionnaire was coded to identify variables and assign data for AI processing
and analysis. To associate the data acquired, SPSS was used to create frequency
tables and bar charts. As a result, data correlation and illustration can be seen as
figures.

Some of the research's findings that the survey did not see and investigate were
clarified by an analysis of the interview data. Since the survey and the interview were

34
closely related and created a relationship with the research problem, the analyses of
the survey and the interview are described in relation to each other.

Practical Results

Which are the new, rising niches in the hotel sector to build new AI for? was the
subject that the study set out to investigate. The research's conclusions were based
on the survey, interview, and document analysis data. This section presents the
research findings directly and is organized to clarify the conclusions drawn from the
various methodologies. The primary phenomenon seen throughout the research is the
focus of both quantitative and qualitative patterns of analysis applied to the research
results.

PMS's AI market conditions

Three significant hotel chains participated in the survey, which was designed to
assess the state of the Finnish property management system industry. Table 9
provides specifics regarding the survey's distribution. Nine responders were affiliated
with the Restel Group, seven with SOKOS, and five with the Scandic hotel groups.

Cumulative Per-
Regularity Percentage Valid cent
Percentage
Restel Group 9 42,9 42,9 42,9
Valid
Sokos 7 33,3 33,3 76,2
Scandic 5 23,8 23,8 100,0
Total 21 100,0 100,0

Table 1: Total number of hotels and respondents participating in the survey

35
The participation rate of hotel chains in the survey is expounded upon in
Figure 9. With almost 42.9% of respondents, Restel Group was the most
highly polled chain.Finland is home to 47 hotels run by Restel Group. In
addition to hotels from worldwide chains Holiday Inns, Crown Plaza, and
Ramada, the group includes properties from domestic hotel chains Cumulus
and Rantasipi. There are

26 Cumulus, 11 Rantasipi, 7 Holiday Inns, 1 Crowne Plaza, 1 SeuravaHuone,

and 1 Ikaalisten Kylpyla. The only one Ramada operating at Helsinki-Vantaa
Airport is no more in function” [R1]. Realising the fact about domestic and
international chains run by Restel the surveys were conducted in international
and domestic chains in order to get views and variation of operation in two
different kinds of hotels therefore the participation of Restel Group was larger
in the research.

The Finnish hotel brand SOKOS is growing domestically, and it has also
opened properties abroad in Estonia and Russia. "The SOKOS chain
comprises 38 hotels in Finland that share the same name and operational
framework."(R2) Seven study data samples—representing each of the chain's
38 hotels—were gathered from the chain while taking into account its
structure and operational style.

36
 Sweden is the starting point In the Nordic region as well as other European
nations, Scandic hotels are growing. The business, which is owned by EQT
partners, is reportedly running 22 Scandic hotels in Finland with plans to
grow into the country's smaller cities as well (R3). We gathered five examples
for our study from two Scandic hotels in the Helsinki metropolitan area since
they share comparable operating principles. The sample encompasses all 22
hotels of the network located in Finland.

The PMS created by Micros/Fidelio is used by all three hotel companies

in the survey for daily operations. Table 2 provides a numerical
description of the PMS usage percentage in three hotel chains, which is
depicted in Figure 10.

Cumulative Per-
Regularity centage
Percentage Valid Percentage

Valid Hotellinx 1 4,8 4,8 4,8

Amadeus 3 14,3 14,3 19,0

Opera 11 52,4 52,4 71,4

Others 1 4,8 4,8 76,2

Fidelio 5 23,8 23,8 100,0

Total 21 100,0 100,0

Table 2: Illustration of PMS used in three major hotel chains inFinland

Regarding the Restel Group, Amadeus is used by all other local hotel chains, such as
Cumulus and Rantasipi, while Opera PMS is used by all of the chain's continental

37
properties, including Crown Plaza. During the interview, one of the Hotel Cumulus
respondents remarked

"Cumulus uses a combination of Amadeus and Hotellinx; roughly 7 or 8 Cumulus

hotels use Hotellinx." [R1]

Fidelio, created by Micros/Fidelio, is used by Scandic hotels. This Opera PMS

version was initially created for command mode. The manager who was interviewed
stated. The AI is currently being changed from Fidelio to Opera. It is impossible to
predict how long it will take, but it will alter. [R3]

According to this research, Opera is the PMS that is most frequently used among
three hotel chains. Based on the results of surveys and interviews, Ama-deus and
Hotellinx are well-liked among local chains in Finland. Op-era is used by all of
Finland's rapidly expanding international hotels due to its well-known brand and
Micros's extended history of offering AI solutions to the hospitality sector.

Figure 10: Illustration of PMS used in three major hotel chains in Finland

38
PMS client satisfaction

Employees in various departments of the hotel chains who held different roles
participated in the survey. Table 3 and Figure 11 explain the respondents' positions
and numbers.

Current Position

Regularity Cumulative
percentage
Percentage Valid
Percentage
Service Manager 2 9,5 9,5 9,5
Valid
General Manager 1 4,8 4,8 14,3
Duty Manager 2 9,5 9,5 23,8
House Keeping Manager 2 9,5 9,5 33,3
Restaurant Manager 1 4,8 4,8 38,1
Receptionist 9 42,9 42,9 81,0
Front Office Manager 1 4,8 4,8 85,7
Hotel Manager 1 4,8 4,8 90,5
Sales Executive 1 4,8 4,8 95,2
Waiter 1 4,8 4,8 100,0
Total 21 100,0 100,0

Table 3: Number of respondents with Positions in hotels

Receptionists, managers, waiters, and executives were the respondents to the study,
as shown in Figure 11. Nine receptionists, one sales representative, one waiter, and
ten managers from the hotel chain's various departments made up the sample.
Obtaining diverse viewpoints and opinions of PMS and its functioning from the
vantage point of frontline staff and management was the idea behind this group of
respondents. Two degrees of hierarchy are used to examine the necessity for
augmentation as research attempted to investigate the prospects of creating
augmented AI for the modern PMS.

39
 Figure 11: Representation of respondents on the basis of position

Receptionists from three different hotel companies made up the largest percentage
of responders (42.9). Service managers, managers of the Use of AI in the Hospitality
Industry, and duty managers accounted for the second-highest percentage of
responders (28.5). The remaining responders made up 28.6% of the sample as a
whole. The satisfaction of consumers with modern PMS is also investigated in the
survey. To analyze user happiness, a scale question that reflected agreement and
disagreement on satisfaction with the product utilized for operational purposes in
hotel chains was employed. The data collected was analyzed as a whole, without
differentiation, as all chains were found to be utilizing the same property
management system, except the domestic hotel chains of the Restel Group (Amadeus
and Hotellinx).

40
 Regularity Cumulative
Percentage Valid Percentage percentage

Valid Strongly Agree 5 23,8 23,8 23,8

Agree 7 33,3 33,3 57,1

Neither Agree nor Disagree 2 9,5 9,5 66,7

Disagree 6 28,6 28,6 95,2

Strongly Disagree 1 4,8 4,8

Total 21 100,0 100,0 100,0

Table 4: Level of satisfaction of user using PMS

User satisfaction levels for the used PMS are shown from the users' perspective in
Table 4 and Figure 12. Twelve of the twenty-one respondents said they were happy
with the AI's operational performance in the majority of the modules they had
utilized, while seven respondents warned against being overly optimistic about the
AI's performance. In an interview with the hotel's manager, unhappy guests revealed
that the users' lack of training and frequent network connection outages were to
blame. In response to open-ended questions about troubles they encountered when
using PMS, disgruntled consumers brought forth similar concerns.

41
 Since Micros PMS was only available to them through the English language
interface, some consumers cited this as one of the causes for their discontent. Figure
12 illustrates that 57.1 percent of respondents agreed, 33.4 percent disagreed, and 9.5
percent of respondents thought the responses were neutral. This poll indicates that
there is room for advancement in the AI system. The Cumulus hotel chain's Amadeus
users expressed satisfaction and noted that the AI is available in Finnish. The
inability to verify room availability at other hotels in their chain was a limitation for
Amadeus PMS users. It was a significant flaw in the AI. When consumers requested
information about availability in other hotels, they had to get in touch with the chain's
support center.

Issues with Using PMS

Those users who felt operational issues or other external issues relating to PMS
functionality responded to the open-ended question about the difficulties they had
using the software. Table 5 and Figure 13 provide an analysis and illustration of the
different sorts of challenges encountered. There were just twelve replies to this query
from the participants. During processing, the system occasionally displays error
notifications, according to one respondent. Another issue that one of the respondents
encountered with PMS was the inability of the system to close interfaces to numerous
rooms at once. Three of the interviewees provided information about the system's
42
 hangover. One of the respondents brought up the issue of the AI interface's
overabundance of buttons, citing the issue of simplicity.
The answer reveals that the AI has multiple functions and that using different buttons
is necessary for each function by pointing to buttons. The user shown willingness to
collaborate with AI that can offer multiple functionalities in a single window, each
with a few buttons to control the function. The language barrier with AI was brought
up by one of the responders because it was available in English.
In order to run AI in multiple languages, particularly Finnish, the customer intended
to purchase AI with a bilingual interface. This answer demonstrates the value of
multilingual AI and the factor that has contributed to its success.
One of the respondents brought up AI's limitation, namely that not all bank cards could
be used with it. When I asked the hotel's service manager if they accepted bank cards,
I discovered that hotels also had trouble accepting royal cards. Because hotels cannot
collect payments from banks and royalties using the same card reader. The service
manager went on to say that separate card readers were utilized by the hotels to read
royalty cards.

Regularity Percentage Valid Cumulative

Percentage percentage
Valid Error message 1 4,8 8,3 8,3
Not complete transaction 1 4,8 8,3 16,7
Closing interfaces to multi-
1 4,8 8,3 25,0
ple room at the same time
Sometimes AI not
3 14,3 25,0 50,0
working totally
Several buttons should be
customized to less for 1 4,8 8,3 58,3
simplicity
AI needs to be in
1 4,8 8,3 66,7
Finnish
Do not approve all bank
1 4,8 8,3 75,0
Cards
Outdated 3 14,3 25,0 100,0
Total 12 57,1 100,0
Miss- System
9 42,9
ing
Total 21 100,0

43
 One of the hotel chains' users mentioned that their AI is command-based.
"Command-based AI is out of date in the age of GUI (Graphics User Interface) based
artificial intelligence. Using it for customer service reasons is inappropriate. [R3]
Respondents to the survey stated that the keyboard is a tool for inputting data into
the system, and they are unable to utilize a mouse with the AI. The same respondents
also stated that the chain planned to replace its command-based AI system with a
graphical user interface (GUI), and that the new AI was currently being processed
and implemented in the hotel system. The hotel network purchased GUI-based AI
from the same AI company that had previously supplied command-based AI to the
business.

Figure 13: Representation of users‟ satisfaction with the Property Management System.

44
 The open-ended inquiry on respondents' challenges with PMS use is shown as a bar chart
in Figure 13. 42.9 percent of respondents were viewed as passive about this topic, while
57.1 percent of respondents provided an answer.

Upgrades are necessary

An open-ended inquiry about the extra features and enhancements that the PMS in use
needs is shown by the images in Table 6 and Figure 14. A variety of functionalities were
added to the question; only enhancements were necessary. The primary issue was that the
system was sluggish. The development of a new module for PMS as an enhanced service
within the system may be possible with the addition of additional features required.

Regularity Percentage Valid Percentage Cumulative

percentage
Valid Reservation Check In-Out 1 4,8 12,5 12,5

Central Reservation System 1 4,8 12,5 25,0

Slow operation 5 23,8 62,5 87,5

Handling of customer bene-
1 4,8 12,5 100,0
fit cards
Total 8 38,1 100,0

Missing System 13 61,9

Total 21 100,0

Table 6: Illustration of Improvements required in PMS

Table 6 is an example of an open-ended inquiry on more functions required for PMS. Out
of the 21 responders, 8 responded in total. Thirteen people chose not to respond to the
query. The group check-in and check-out feature in PMS, a direct connection to the central
reservation system, and the ability to manage customer benefit cards and other royalty
cards were among the features that needed to be introduced and improved. One respondent
brought up the fact that group check-in and checkout facilities are not supported by the
45
program. It demonstrated that the AI could only process each customer's check-in and
check-out individually. For quick information on rates and room availability of other hotels
in the same chain, a direct connection to CRS is required at the front desk. When a customer
arrives at the hotel during peak hours and there are no available rooms, this capability gives
the front desk employee a tool to offer them an alternative. The management of client
benefit cards was another area that was deemed in need of enhancement. The majority of
AI systems are unable to handle customer cards using the same card reader that processes
cash cards. Since there is now no organizational or virtual link between the cash card and
customer benefit card, it is a topic that needs more discussion and research in the hospitality
sector.

Figure 14: Illustration of improvements required in PMS

Five respondents said that the system is slower and that there is typically a big line of
clients waiting to check in and out during rush hour. The system was deemed sluggish due
to its sluggish processor, additional hardware configuration, intermittent internet
connectivity, and requirement for multitasking.

46
 Future requirements and needs
One of the survey's three open-ended questions was specifically designed to elicit
specifications regarding the requirement for a new AI module in the future as well as
requests for new ideas and requests to be added to the PMS. For this open-ended question,
the responses are shown in Table 7 and Figure 14. Given that the issue concerned
technological innovation, there weren't many answers. Six replies were obtained from the
twenty-one surveys conducted across various hotel chains. Four of the comments focused
on the advancement of artificial intelligence in smartphones.

In light of the description provided, it was anticipated that respondents would be open to
an AI system that could be used on their smartphones to make reservations. This would

allow customers to make reservations more easily and conveniently. While it is possible to
send an email confirmation, several respondents stated that this feature is only available if
the reservation is made through the hotel's website. The respondents proposed that if PMS
could be enhanced with a new function that allows it to send a follow-up SMS to the
customer's mobile device as soon as the hotel or other intermediary's website receives a
reservation, it would expedite and simplify the process for both the customer and the hotel.

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent

Valid Smart phone soft-ware
4 19,0 66,7 66,7

SMS facility for

1 4,8 16,7 83,3
quick information
Complicated to use 1 4,8 16,7 100,0
Total 6 28,6 100,0

Missing System 15 71,4

Total 21 100,0

Table 7: Representation of Future needs and demands of software

module in PMS

47
Figure 15: Representation of Future needs and demands of soft- ware module in PMS

A manager in the Use of AI in Hospitality Industry recommended that staff members could
perform emergency Use of AI in Hospitality Industry services for any room on any floor
of the hotels if they could rely on information sent via PMS in the form of SMS. The current
method of informing the staff of changes or crises is through mobile phones, which takes
time. While it is not possible to phone many employees for separate emergencies at the
same time, sending different employees different information at the same time via an SMS
system via PMS appears to be a good concept.

One person said that because PMS is based on command mode and requires extensive code
knowledge to operate various functionalities, the system appears to be hard. This concept
calls for the creation of a simple Graphical User Interfaced PMS to enable employees to
work more quickly and efficiently.

The graphical depiction of the AI module's future requirements and needs in PMS is shown
in Figure 15. The graph unequivocally demonstrates that 13.8% of respondents stressed the
importance of developing AI for smartphones for hotel operations, particularly the ability
to send timely information via SMS. Given that no one can deny the significance of
smartphones in modern life, it is one of the main demands of the day. The creation of such
a module will improve the modern PMS's usefulness and capability.
48
An overview of the empirical results

The researchers learn about artificial intelligence (AI) and its significance in the growth of the
hotel business as students in the field. It became clear how important technology is and how
it affects corporate management. Theoretical principles of ITCs and the application of AI to
the customer service process in the hotel business enlightened researchers.

The investigation of AI in three hotel chains provided a clear understanding of how hotels are
utilizing AI to manage their properties and service environments. According to the data, Opera
PMS is the most popular PMS across the three chains. Hotels like Scandic and SOKO are
utilizing Micros/Fidelio's AI. Variations in PMS usage were seen between Restel's domestic
hotels, which utilized Amadeus and Hotellinx PMS, and its international hotel chains, which
used Opera PMS.

In Finland, Opera PMS was the most popular PMS brand among foreign hotel chains. Opera
users were pleased with the AI and its functionality, but research revealed that they still require
further features and modules. Users who participated in surveys and interviews mentioned a
few issues with PMS use. There were not many PMS-related issues during the research. The
user's main request was for real-time, simpler AI.

User attention was primarily focused on smartphone technology and AI issues. For
reservations and informational purposes, hotel brands have not created mobile websites. The
users sensed the need for such changes. Users of the software revealed that, particularly in
the hotel's Use of AI in the Hospitality Industry section, it would be preferable if AI could
offer the ability to send SMS messages to the employee group regarding emergencies and
quick action to enable easy access for the customer.

The management of customer benefit cards was another issue that the respondents pointed
out. They require an AI module that can use the same card reader device to process client

49
benefit cards and keep customer accounts appropriately. Consequently, time and effort can be
spared to deliver customer service more quickly and effectively.

One of the problems that came up throughout the study was the language interface. Multilingual
interfaces need AI, with a primary emphasis on the Finnish language. The responders claimed
that this AI capability may make the system more friendly.

In conclusion, it is possible to create additional AI modules that can be added to modern AI

systems to raise their degree of friendliness and effectiveness. The study demonstrates the
potential for creating new PMS with enhanced features because domestic hotel chains have the
autonomy to choose services for optimal service delivery while taking technology
considerations into account.

Credibility and Dependability

The responses provided by respondents serve as the basis for the validity and reliability of this
study. The study process and the creation of empirical findings involved the explanation,
discussion, and triangulation of material mostly obtained via survey questionnaires and
interviews. The investigation was conducted with great rigor; all of the data and information
acquired were correlated with the research questions and delivered in the form of findings as
soon as they were obtained. The study's conclusions are extrapolated from management-level
interviews that were done to confirm the concerns expressed in the survey. Following the
survey, feedback sessions were held to verify the reliability and validity of the responses
provided by the participants.

"Representing people's or organizations' opinions, attitudes, and behaviors in quantitative terms

and deriving conclusions from numerical analysis for a study are made possible by quantitative
analysis." (p.220, Altinay & Paraskevas, 2008).

In the event of a survey, SPSS is used to process the data that was provided by the respondents.
The researchers spoke with hotel management in interviews to gain more information about the
research challenge and to get exact ideas for the survey's output.

50
The procedure and analysis were predicated on data gathered using a variety of techniques as
well as the theoretical framework of AIs. The AI utilized by three chains of hotels in Finland
was represented by the data gathered for the study. This representation serves as the basis for
the study. This research is a first step in the hotel business and could lead to more studies in the
future.

Conclusion

As hotel industry students, we were aware of the significance of artificial intelligence (AI)
and its implications for the sector during this research. The hotel industry's global expansion
has altered supplier-side customer service methods, and modern society's demands for and
needs from customers have been altered by the use of advanced technology. Another aspect
of the learning process included the degree of understanding at the hierarchical level inside
the organization. The intriguing experiences of conducting surveys and interviews helped us
understand how and why data must be gathered from many levels to evaluate the strengths
and weaknesses of the product as well as its AI area of service process.

Given that significant hotel chains were observed utilizing a comparable technology to run
their customer service locations, the AI market condition for PMS in Finland was
unexpected. We learned about the system's reputation, popularity, knowledge, and
dependability because of the rationale behind its use. In front of us, the idea of branding and
brand bonding was crystal evident. During the study, it was determined that training and
information updates regarding the system being used were critical. According to the study,
several inexperienced workers lacked the efficiency to operate the properties' installed
equipment correctly. As a result, the organization might experience a breakdown in the
services process, which could result in a lack of validation and authentication in transactions
between the organization and the client.

Until personnel receives efficient and dependable orientation and documentation about the
environment and system they leave and use, efficient systems and environment alone will
not suffice to provide efficient service. Technology adoption needs to be done with the needs
of the workforce in mind. The Scandic hotel chain has established a model for this procedure.
One respondent stated in a research interview that "we have both the older and newer PMS
of Micros/Fidelio and we are providing access for both the systems to our employees." The
respondent also mentioned that "the change will be made, it is obvious, and we are preparing
51
employees for it." Some employees still use the older system due to its mastery. [R3].

As technology changes, so do the opportunities, trends, and commercial opportunities. One

thing we discovered during the study was that an organization needs to be prepared to take

advantage of the opportunities presented by technology. Restel Group domestic hotel chains
are switching from older AI to newer in order to take advantage of the prospects presented
by technology. One respondent from the Restel group, which operates the Cumulus hotel
chain, stated as follows: "We were using some other systems, and we switched to Amadeus.
Now, some of us are switching to Hotellinx." This demonstrates our independence in
choosing how to use technology. Every piece of data collected was equally significant for
the problem's analysis from a tourism and technological standpoint.

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