Guest services are at the core of the travel business and vacancies along the frontlines can have negative impacts on guest experiences among other residual effects. Maintaining team strength and skill sets are crucial for smooth and efficient operations in smaller and midsize travel providers. In many cases, new hires do not get the training they need or are subject to slower training methods, further delaying full deployment of the new hire. Poor training and onboarding can set the stage for longer term problems in guest experiences and brand reputation. New technologies can deliver training much more effectively and at a faster pace than traditional methods of training, reducing and eliminating potential service and quality gaps in guest service teams.

The Role of Frontline Teams

The travel business is customer centric business and depends on customers, or guests, to generate revenue. Guest services as it is known specifically, is delivered by frontline teams and represents the human face of the travel brand. In many cases, the frontline team is the first interaction the guest has with the travel provider and that and subsequent interactions can greatly impact the overall guest experience and the guest’s perception of the travel brand. Frontline teams play a crucial role in travel businesses and negative guest experiences can have far reaching effects on brand reputation, transactional value and guest loyalty. Having a well trained frontline team is critical in setting the stage for positive and exceptional guest experiences and perceptions. Vacancies along frontline teams or limited skill sets among individuals can create service and quality gaps, leading to negative guest experiences.

New Hire Transitioning

The transition, or onboarding phase of hiring is a critical point in the new hire’s training phase. Essential and foundational skills, organizational habits and expectations are meant to be delivered during onboarding, equipping the trainee with resources to meet those expectations. Older and slower methods of training result in ineffective onboarding and sets the trainee up for failure, increasing the potential for service and quality gaps. New technology innovations can improve onboarding effectiveness and ensure that new hires have the skills and habits they need to perform their duties accurately and efficiently and at a much faster pace than traditional methods of training.

Innovations Drive Training Effectiveness and Speed

AI technology has proven practical in the travel industry as adoption continues in most facets of the business. Training technology can also benefit from AI models by delivering skills and habits with a much higher level of engagement and in real time. Training platforms that are designed specifically for the travel industry, such as hospit-AI-lity, can be much more effective in deploying new hires and maintaining frontline team strength and skill set. AI based training tools can train new hires faster and more dynamically than older training methods. Real time skill use and evaluation ensures deeper comprehension of concepts and learnings.

The Bottom Line

Small and midsize travel providers have more at stake when it comes to brand reputation and ensuring high levels of guest experiences on a constant basis is crucial to maintain brand equity and guest loyalty. Service gaps caused by vacancies along the frontlines will negatively impact guest experiences and successful new hire transitioning and onboarding is critical in maintaining service levels and closing potential quality gaps. AI based training technology can deliver essential skills and training at a much faster pace and more effectively, reducing and eliminating any potential service and quality gaps. AI powered training platforms, such as hospit-AI-lity are the next generation in training tools and deliver next generation benefits to travel businesses.