Challenges hotel and resort managers face today

Three top challenges of modern hoteliers in the recent years

Matthew Opferkuch, CEO and Founder of The Laundry Rooms, a high-end extended-stay hotel brand, pinpoints the problems in an interview. He highlights issues ranging from managing operational complexities in an extended-stay model to dealing with fluctuating occupancy rates, unpredictable guest behaviors, and maintaining a consistent luxury experience.

Opferkuch also emphasizes the ongoing struggle to balance guest satisfaction with profitability, especially as guest expectations rise in a market saturated with competing offerings. The rapid evolution of technology, coupled with the scarcity of skilled labor, has added further pressure on hospitality operators to innovate while maintaining quality standards.

His insights provide a valuable perspective on the shifting landscape of the industry, illustrating the need for flexibility and forward-thinking solutions in a space where the demands are constantly changing.

Let’s review these core challenges and explore best ways for the hotel industry, general managers and teams to overcome them.

Labor shortage

Many hospitality companies faced severe staffing shortages this summer. The industry is grappling with significant HR challenges as it struggles to attract and retain skilled hospitality workers. The rise of remote work, which offers greater flexibility and often better work-life balance, has pulled potential talent away from more traditional hospitality roles.

Additionally, low wages and demanding working conditions in the hospitality sector are making it increasingly difficult to recruit and retain quality employees. Many workers are seeking positions in industries that offer higher pay and more favorable working environments. As a result, hospitality companies must rethink their strategies by offering competitive compensation, improving workplace conditions, and investing in employee growth and development to mitigate the ongoing staffing crisis.

Inflation and rising costs

With the industry recovery bookings are coming back, but the costs are rising. Businesses are seeing significant increases in energy costs, food and drink price inflation and wages increase.

Inflation is 8.5% in the US and 9% in Europe. From gas and groceries to computers and clothing, everything is suddenly more expensive. This is squeezing margins and puts pressure on operators as well as property owners whose properties are managed by professional property managers.

In this economic climate, it’s essential to adopt technology-driven solutions that increase efficiency, reduce waste, and help absorb these rising costs without compromising guest experience. Balancing these factors is key to long-term sustainability.

Growing guest expectations

Remote access

Millennials are rapidly taking over the travel industry, and with that, some adjustments are needed for operators to stay competitive. For one, we’re living in a time of instant gratification and convenience. This is an era where apps and mobile devices can offer us products such as rides and food delivery with the push of a button, paperless entry, and a whole lot of convenience, personalization and efficiency. Also, due to recent COVID-19 related events, there’s a need to take things as contactless as possible.

Travelers had to go contactless during the pandemic and then realized that there are more benefits in it beyond COVID-19 safety. Remote check-in process and the ability to skip the front desk plays a significant role for a hotel’s position in guests’ evaluations.

To remain competitive in the evolving market, hospitality operators must embrace digital transformation by offering contactless experiences, mobile-friendly booking, and streamlined processes that meet the expectations of today’s tech-savvy, convenience-driven travelers.

Personalization

“Inspired” by the rise of digital retail, customer expectations in the hospitality industry have become increasingly demanding. Today’s guests no longer settle for generic service; they seek a highly personalized experience tailored to their preferences. Just as retailers use customer data to offer targeted recommendations, hotels now have access to vast amounts of guest information, from booking habits to past purchasing behaviors. By tapping into this data, hospitality operators can create tailored experiences that resonate with their guests.

Whether guests have a favorite hotel chain, belong to a particular loyalty program, or show specific booking patterns, these insights can be leveraged to enhance their stay. Personal details such as demographics, reason for travel, amenity preferences, favorite meals or beverages, and desired activities provide the foundation for delivering a memorable experience. This level of personalization not only elevates guest satisfaction but also opens the door for well-timed upsells, increasing revenue per guest. Whether it’s offering a spa package to a repeat traveler or suggesting a local experience tailored to their tastes, the opportunities for revenue growth are endless.

Moreover, this personalized approach doesn’t end at checkout. Data-driven insights can support effective post-stay marketing campaigns, helping hotels stay connected with guests even after they leave the property. By offering tailored promotions and rewards based on past behavior, hospitality operators can keep their brand top-of-mind, encouraging return visits and direct bookings.

Amenities

Therefore, hotels, resorts and short-term-rentals need to offer more value and streamlined experience for higher customer satisfaction. Everyone expects the outdated “amenities” of complementary toiletries, TVs, hairdryers, safes, irons, and laundry service. This is a given, and realistically, the majority of guests aren’t even using these as much anymore. Hotels need to take it up to an unprecedented level.

This means added benefits such as free high speed WiFi, entertainment systems, swift check-in and checkout services, and mobile-first service. In fact, according to a study conducted at Cornell University, guests actually want amenities that reflect the feeling of home such as an in-room coffee maker, apartment-style accommodations and kitchen facilities.

Experiences curation and add-ons

Personalization also goes another way; guests want their experience to be unique. Guests who are staying at your property want an experience that feels authentic to their destination. Yes, it’s efficient to design and outfit every Hilton property globally the same way, or have every Riu or Club Med look the same. From a branding perspective, it totally makes sense. But if you can’t tell what city or country you’re in from inside your hotel, it’s a missed opportunity to add personality and character to a guest’s adventure. A hotel room should reflect the spirit of the city or neighbourhood. More and more operators are tapping into local experiences, home-grown cuisine and taking their design cues from the local artisans and architecture. This is what increases guest satisfaction and brings positive reviews.

Modern guests measure service quality of an accommodation business by the ability to provide a personalized experience, contactless and quick access to the room, qualified staff and more. How can a hotel or resort meet these expectations with the labor shortage and rising costs in the current economic downturn? More and more hotels are turning to technology looking for solutions.

Keep up with the latest technology

These days, hotel and resort guests are more tech savvy. While intuitively, one would assume that a hotel/resort stay would mean a period of rest, relaxation and disconnection — it is a vacation after all — the truth is actually the opposite. They want the same, if not more, tech and connection options than at home. As indicated above under “must-have” amenities, there are a plethora of technology upgrades that are the bare minimum that a guest is looking for.

While that does come with a lot of incremental cost for resort or hotel owners, there is also a way to leverage technology to find efficiencies and help the bottom line. For example, the automation of regular day-to-day activities and processes, can offer both the hotel and guest a streamlined experience. For example, on the guest side, remote check-in and checkout, smart locks controlled by a mobile phone, and the ability to control the room’s entertainment options via a smartphone.

On the host side, the above technology options can cut down on staffing needs, while the implementation of a Property Management System (PMS) can help manage bookings, automate cleanings, consolidate guest profiles and communications, as well as manage other minutiae of hotel management such as staffing. There are plenty of different PMS services available, each offering similar features, thus managers should do the due diligence in figuring out which one would suit their venue best, and implementing it.

In addition to PMS there are tools, helping hotels and vacation rentals overcome operational challenges, eliminate negative reviews, improve pricing, monetize add-on hotel services, etc.

Reputation management and visibility

Online Reputation

Today, if you’re not on the internet and have good things said about you, then you might as well not exist. Guests always take a look at a hotel’s brand reputation and reviews before deciding to book a room. Hence, hotels need to be mindful of what guests are sharing online. While this isn’t a new phenomenon, as reviews and reputations have traditionally never been a make-or-break moment for chains, it’s become more evident now that social media has become what it is. With third party feedback sites and a generation of guests that aren’t shy with their opinion, transparency is not the exception, but the rule. Hotels can no longer hide weaknesses and limitations from guests. The travellers of today make informed decisions not only from marketing/advertising campaigns, but also through the testimonials from other travellers.

To appropriately manage this, hotels need to monitor their reviews and offer reviews themselves, as well as stay on top of what guests are saying on other platforms. Investing in a PMS with a review management system, such as what Enso Connect provides, will help hotels monitor, manage and respond to online reviews in a timely manner. If there is a valid issue with a guest’s stay, hotels can immediately offer assistance, address the problem and seek to rectify it. This proactive behaviour can do wonders for a hotel’s reputation and desirability to travellers.

Social Media

The concept of travel has been fundamentally changed by the introduction of social media, which impacts the customer journey in every stage. During the planning phase, social media posts offer inspiration, more so than any guide book or blog post can. In fact, over 83% of millennials admitted that they’d be more inclined to book a hotel if someone they followed had shared a positive experience and post about it. Then, they’d most likely book the hotel directly via that social media post. Conversely, over 49% said that if they couldn’t find a link through social media, or if a booking site took too long, they’d abandon the reservation attempt completely.

This only goes to show that managing your hotel/resort on social media transcends simply posting on your channels and maintaining a vocal and positive presence. It’s also about making your place social media friendly as well. This means making it easy for your guests to showcase your hotel with Instagram-worthy photo opportunities, high-speed WiFi throughout, and leveraging guest accounts, testimonials and reposts on your own channels.

Finding the tools for your property to succeed

The most effective way for hotels and resorts to navigate the changing landscape of hospitality with ease is by embracing technology and partnering with solutions that automate routine tasks. Automation can streamline operations, freeing up valuable time for staff to focus on delivering exceptional guest service. By facilitating timely communications, automating check-ins, and handling other administrative functions, these technological tools help eliminate friction from the guest experience.

In an era where travelers expect the same level of comfort and convenience they enjoy at home, offering technology-driven amenities is no longer optional—it’s essential. Modern guests want seamless connectivity, smart home features, and on-demand services at their fingertips. From contactless check-ins to personalized in-room experiences, the integration of technology not only enhances guest satisfaction but also enables hospitality businesses to remain competitive.

By evolving alongside their guests’ expectations, hotels and resorts can offer a level of service that is tailored to each individual’s personal preferences. This goes beyond just meeting basic needs—it’s about creating a customized, memorable experience that keeps guests coming back.