In my opinion every hospitality manager in any part of the world understands the importance of IT for the present and future business success. But why then are there are still many examples of IT implementation failures and profit losses? I think the main challenge for the successful IT selection and implementation is IT governance. Or in other words—what decisions should be made and who is making these decisions? Is it the CEO, CIO, functional managers, end-users, or all of them? The reality is that a majority of employees, including middle level managers, in many companies cannot identify who is responsible for IT governance. Therefore the decisions are usually made by either the CEO or CIO. The CEOs in most companies have a great strategic vision and business knowledge but lack technology expertise. Thus often they cannot define very clearly exactly what IT functionality is required to reach the company’s goal. On the other hand CIOs are experts in technology but do not necessarily know which IT solution is the best match for the company’s strategy. Therefore these inconsistencies lead to the poor IT decisions in the hospitality industry. Hence companies just buy expensive IS based on so-called ‘best practices’ which are not necessarily the best for their particular needs or more often ‘survive’ with some simple functional applications developed in-house.

But moving into the future hospitality companies need to change their IT governance practices-- because many companies may gain a competitive advantage by using IT to support their business goals. Thus what is the most effective and efficient way of managing IT governance for hospitality players in the future? First, ongoing IT education for the senior management will be required. And, very important, this education should be provided by independent consultants, not by ERP sales representatives trying to ‘sell’ their systems. At these educational seminars, managers should receive up-to-date information about IT innovations and all the existing IS product choices on the market. Thus the acquired knowledge will enable CEOs to think more ‘out of the box’, significantly increasing their ability to evaluate different IT options, and align them with the overall company strategy. Second, the role of the middle level managers and their participation in the decision-making process should be increased. The middle level managers in hospitality are usually from a younger generation and often more familiar with IT innovations. Also they work in different departments and know very well what each department needs in terms of IT functionality are how to make it work best for the business. Last, but not the least, the end-users should receive the required amount of training before the new IS implementation. Today every employee in the hotel should be familiar with IT and in-house IS all the way to housekeepers and maintenace. Therefore high-quality end-user training is crucial for the success of IS implementation. This should also be a responsibility of the departmental managers.

In conclusion I think that the role of the hospitality middle level managers in successful IT selection and implementation will gain in importance in the future. These managers, having knowledge in both: business practices and IT could become the CEOs best advisers for the IS selection. Also they would be the key people responsible for the successful IS implementation and customization. That’s why IT is a required course at all the best business schools today. I took it at the Cornell Hotel School and it changed my paradigm about why it was important for hospitality managers.