Holding several vice president roles at Singapore’s top hospitality groups in the past, Ian Wilson joins Techsembly with his knowledge and expertise in transforming hospitality cultures and productivity through leveraging data, analytics and automation. He is also an advisor and mentor for Singapore Tourism and Hospitality Industry and a SoftBank Robotics APAC Hospitality Market Expert.
What are some remarkable and notable innovations within hospitality you have witnessed over the years?
Hospitality really was a leader in e-commerce along with airlines. They continue to have very sophisticated distribution compared to other products. More recently, the most disruptive innovation may well be Airbnb rethinking what hospitality can be. As we look forward though, I see digitalisation, data, AI, and automation transforming the business. Hospitality is poised to change more in the next 20 years than it has in the last 2000.
As a futurist, what technologies are important for the industry?
The most immediate are a slew of contactless technologies which will allow us to digitalise many elements of a guest stay. Looking forward, AI and automation will allow us to remove low-value work for our employees and give them the capabilities to customise our customer journeys and improve our moments of truth.
What promising factors do you see in start-ups, and what makes Techsembly stand out?
I see so many promising companies solving real problems for the industry. The most promising factors are that hotels have had to cut to the bone during COVID, and startups can provide them with vital solutions to help them drive revenue and service in a labour constrained environment. Techsembly provides beautiful, turnkey solutions that will allow hotels to rapidly drive incremental revenue at the time they need it most.
What are your golden tips for hoteliers, especially with achieving profitability?
My best advice to hoteliers right now is to digitalise rapidly and build a data-driven culture that will allow you to improve all elements of your business.