Telephony as an integral service

By: Duván Chaverra Agudelo

When arriving at a hotel, the guest usually does not pay more attention to the phones that the rooms have and only makes sure that it is present at their bedside table. They all seem to be similar and with a variety of keys with different functions that are rarely used.

However, and despite the different alternatives that exist today to facilitate communication, this is still a product that offers an indispensable service for customers and for the hotel, as it ensures permanent contact and provides comfort when requesting the different services offered by the establishment.

But how interesting it is to know a little more about hotel phones: their operation, the way they are installed and the latest technological advances.

For that reason, the magazine GERENCIA DE HOTELES presents the following Case Study carried out at the Marriott Aguascalientes Hotel (Mexico), a 5-star establishment with 320 rooms that at the end of the previous year installed its telephone system with the latest technology. The integrating firm was Teledex through the manufacturer Cetis Group and the engineer Jaime González, corporate IT director of the Diestra Group (operator of the establishment), will accompany us in this analysis.

Initially, Jaime basically described what the communications project within the Marriott consisted of: "The project was based on the implementation of a hotel telephone system. Based on international standards and taking special attention to the tangible aspects to its customers focused on service. A hybrid system was used, contemplating digital, analog and voice over IP technology. The system is based on complementing and providing a communication service at the height of the guests, including the different alternatives that the market currently has such as cell phones and IP technology".

About the phone model that was installed in this hotel, the guest explained that "the phones used are part of the IPhone Series (wired and wireless) with the particularities of its location as in the case of public areas and rooms. The reasons for implementing it are due to its functionality, beauty, and presence to combine the splendor of the hotel facilities, allowing to have a durable, reliable, and easy-to-operate structure, "said the guest.

One of the requirements that hoteliers make when requesting the installation of a system such as telephony is that it guarantees the availability of the service 24 hours a day. "The Teledex equipment has allowed us to ensure that the telephone service in the rooms, the lounges and the public areas, during the entire time of its useful life, do not present operation failures or deterioration over time and given the wide range of models that exist we can harmonize them with all areas of the hotel," said Jaime González.

Objective: an integrated service
As the guest assures, the telephone service in a hotel is indispensable and "obligatory", because it shortens the distances and keeps in contact with all areas of the establishment. "The goal is to offer a complete service to the client, both inside and outside the hotel. In addition, the telephone system is integrated internally with other areas of the hotel such as the bar, the rooms, the lobby, among others that allow the guest to request the services they require instantly.

"Currently, there are commercial bets towards the innovation of services through IP technology, providing complementary information services, room service, sale and rental of services or entertainment, however we think to be very careful in this bet, which can become difficult to accept by users, who expect a simple spoken communication service. Perhaps with so many alternatives their handling can become difficult, since by mistake they can incur an unwanted additional charge or service."

In addition, the cost of this technology is considerable: "Financiers question these new technologies because of the level of investment, since they not only represent the acquisition, but the maintenance and incorporation into the operational processes of this alternative. The rules of the game will always be focused on returns on investment (ROI) and total cost of ownership (CTO)," said the representative of Diestra.

Results
Juan González explained that so far the Marriott Aguascalientes Hotel has registered a positive result during its first year of operation with respect to the operation of the telephone service. "It has allowed to obtain an easy use without operation failure rate. It has also achieved easy integration with different communication systems and compatibility to integrate functions intuitively."

On the opinions of guests regarding this technology, the guest indicated that "user satisfaction is calculated through exit surveys and complaint rate, among which the telephone service is not included, which gives us a good measure to know the behavior of the product."

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Integrating firm: Teledex
Manufacturers involved: CETIS GROUP Manufacturer of Teledex
Contacts: Chad Collins
Email: [email protected]
Hotel covered with the installation: Hotel Marriott Aguascalientes
Installation date: December 2009