Under his leadership, MGM’s CityCenter in Las Vegas became one of the most technologically advanced resorts in the United States, showcasing cutting-edge in-room automation.

During a visit to Sydney earlier this year, Campbell sat down with Ruth Hogan to discuss the evolving technology landscape and what hoteliers needs to know.

Scot, in a world where technology is continually evolving, how do hoteliers know when it’s the right time to invest in new systems?

Let’s face it, from a hotelier’s perspective, it costs money to be an innovator. If you fail fast, that impacts customer service. It’s a tragedy because it means everyone is waiting for someone else to do it. An innovator needs to step out in front, and when they are successful, everyone follows. I think that hoteliers should be thinking about what AI could help them with. Could predicted occupancy rates help with staff productivity and save costs? Would it be more productive to replace my PBX [phone system] with an AI engine using chatbots with real voice language to talk to customers?

Where do you see the biggest opportunity for hoteliers when it comes to hotel technology that can deliver returns?

I would go after the back of the house. How do I become more efficient? How do I save costs and increase productivity? I, personally, would wait until the customer-facing technology matures. You don’t want to make a mistake in front of a customer.

Steve Wynn [prominent US hotel owner and founder of Wynn Resorts] told me something in the early days that I have never forgotten. He said, “If you make a mistake in IT, and it costs me a lot of money, I want to understand that you’re not going to make the same mistake again. But, if you’re front of house, and a guest asks you to where the elevator is, you need to pick up their luggage and take them to the elevator. And if not, you’re fired.” It’s as blunt as that, right? That still lives in my head every day. That’s what hospitality is about. Don’t ever let the customer see you sweat. So, don’t put AI in front of them right now. Wait until it’s proven, baked and matured.

In the work that you are doing now, what are you hearing from hoteliers? What are their biggest concerns?

There’s a lot of technical debt going on. When it comes to AI, where does it draw its data from? Right now, you have all of these disparate data systems, and they’re on different platforms. Your hotel system might be on an AS400 and your revenue management system might be on an SQL Server. You need really good IT folk that can integrate these, find a data lake, and then add AI. There’s a lot of work to doing that – years, maybe, to get it to the place where it’s meaningful.

When you look 10 or 15 years down the line, how do you expect technology to be impacting the hotel experience?

I would hope that we as industry stay focused on what customers do at home; because remember, a hotel is a home away from home. And, for me, I want it to be better than my home.

I should have a button next to my headboard that turns everything off. When I’m at home, I have to walk over to the to the door and shut the lights off.

Our firm is working with Amazon on their new Alexa 2.0 product, which is conversational. You start a conversation, and it will keep up with you. You could say, ‘Hey, Alexa, can you bring me some tea bags and a kettle? And she’ll respond, “Oh, I can definitely make that happen for you; just one moment.” Three minutes later, someone has picked up the tea bags and the kettle, and they’re on their way to your room.

I think that the people that are scared of voice technology will soon warm to it, because it’s just so simple.

by Ruth Hogan