Looking back on the past year, one of the biggest buzzwords in the digital space has been the ‘tech stack’ (or technology stack). While there aren’t too many people talking about it in hospitality, it’s a relevant term to help you choose the right technology in order for you to manage your operations and marketing.
Simply put, a hotel technology stack is a description of all the software and programs you use to manage your digital marketing, operations, booking software, revenue management, third-party distribution, guest services and more. Startups often depict their tech stack like a quadrant or map, where you see all the technology you have in place divided into the different categories of their uses. When laid out visually, you can easily see the gaps in your stack – where there are opportunities to streamline manual processes with technology – and the places you’ve invested your technology so far.
A hotel tech stack is a description of all the software and programs you use to manage your digital marketing, operations, booking software, revenue management, third-party distribution, guest services and more. Startups often depict their tech stack like a quadrant or map, where you see all the technology you have in place divided into the different categories of their uses. When laid out visually, you can easily see the gaps in your stack – where there are opportunities to streamline manual processes with technology – and the places you’ve invested your technology so far.
Tech stacks vary in size and type, of course – a small property will have fewer tools than a larger one, but even “manual” tools can be included as part of your tech stack (that will give you a better picture of where you might want to switch something manual to something automated). Plus, a light tech stack isn’t necessarily a bad thing – the “lighter” it is (i.e. fewer tools), the more likely you’re able to be flexible and adapt to new processes or tools and the less likely it is to hold you back (on the flip side, lighter stacks are not as scalable when you do need extra tools to improve your operations).
