Case Study:
ACCOR Group Hotels
ACCOR is a major global group and the European leader in hotels. It is also the global leader in services to corporate clients and public institutions, operating in nearly 100 countries with 150,000 employees. It offers more than 40 years of expertise in hotel management, with 4,000 hotels in 90 countries, as well as business services that include employee and public benefits, rewards and motivation, and expense management.
ACCOR has 179 properties in Australia and the South Pacific. With such a vast range of properties in diverse locations, it is important to provide all staff with the best available technology solutions to help them meet the needs of today’s savvy travel market.
ACCOR Group Hotels Enable World-Class Service Through Advanced Communications Technology
The Challenge
The Novotel, Pullman, and Ibis properties of the ACCOR Group of hotels in Australia provide extremely high levels of quality, service, and convenience to business travelers and vacationers. To provide top-flight service, staff and management of the properties require fast, effective communications whenever a customer need or an emergency arises.
Over the years, the hotel group’s numerous paging systems had become more of a liability than a functional part of the communications system, due to reliability and ongoing support issues. The communications team, led by Kyle Stubbs, Telecommunications Manager for the ACCOR Group, reviewed the offerings of several distributors and technology providers to find the best approach they could to address the issues faced in all their properties. The team decided early in the process that pocket pagers were still required because they are small and discreet, as well as an efficient, effective way of communicating with individuals or groups of staff spread throughout a property.
The Solution
The leadership team reviewed proposals from a number of vendors. They were impressed with the reputation for reliability of Commtech Wireless, a division of Amcom Software. Amcom Software’s paging infrastructure capabilities made it possible to handle their broad range of paging needs. Their additional capabilities, such as the Fusion mobile event notification system, would allow for greater use of other required forms of messaging such as SMS and email alerts. In addition, the Amcom Software solutions provided hospitality-specific functionality, such as integration to fire alarms, engineering systems, and building management systems. Together, these solved key communications challenges in ACCOR’s businesses.
ACCOR also appreciated the value that Amcom Software’s reseller, Combined Communications, brought to the process. This was appealing to ACCOR, as it allowed them to obtain a consistent and reliable approach to solutions at their properties with one company attending to both the radio communications and messaging requirements. Explained Stubbs, “Quite simply, the knowledge and experience of both Amcom Software and Combined Communications provided a manageable process which was successfully tested at three of our properties.”
The Results
Three ACCOR properties in the Sydney area are now covered by a common two-way radio and IP-based messaging system. Desktop messaging from any property is now available, and the Amcom Software messaging capabilities provide real-time monitoring and alerts for any critical building system failure, such as chillers or other system monitors. The telephone interface allows instant and easy contact between staff via the widely available telephone system.
Integration of the Amcom Software system to the fire alarm systems that cover the three properties also provides an escalation-based method for managing this important safety consideration. In addition, call buttons installed in all meeting spaces across the Pullman and Novotel facilities now provide conference organizers instant access to client service personnel.
Kyle Stubbs summarized the Amcom Software solution’s benefits for ACCOR. “More of our staff can easily be contacted across our properties by use of the paging telephone interfaced with house phones. The fire alarm monitoring has allowed our site staff to check and address minor issues and false alarms before the need to call the fire brigade.”
She also pointed out additional features and benefits. “The conference call buttons have added another level of service for corporate guests. For our front office, we can now easily and quickly message staff across the three properties from desktop consoles, providing a timely customer service response. And when we host large events, we can ensure radios being carried by additional security personnel are part of the wider team. We have noticed that the added value available with the Amcom Software systems has led to greater staff efficiency and better customer service.”
For the ACCOR Group properties in Australia, the Amcom Software messaging system has provided reliable and timely communications and messaging. This has enabled the delivery of better service and more efficient use of staff, which has resulted in a better experience for their guests.
“We are always looking at ways to expand our customer satisfaction and experience across the ACCOR Group,” concluded Stubbs. ”This is our first multi-site deployment, and we will be monitoring its ongoing success to see where else we can achieve the same results. I am interested to see if we can take increased advantage of the Amcom Software system by greater integration to our building maintenance systems and the ability to send messages to digital handheld radios.”
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