Is Your Hospitality Business Ready for a Robot?

Three ways to prepare your staff and workplace.

As more businesses in the hospitality industry consider robots as a solution to a thinned frontline service workforce, owners and operators must recognize that their investment in a service robot extends beyond the hardware and software. It may require targeted training, small architectural and design improvements to the physical space, an assessment of organizational and managerial readiness, or all of the above. Service robots can help elevate customer service if their purpose is clear, if their physical environment is conducive, and if leadership actively supports staff during the adoption process.

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  Cynthia Mejia is the interim dean and an associate professor at the University of Central Florida Rosen College of Hospitality Management. Her research focuses on technology acceptance and use among frontline workers in the hospitality industry.
  

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  Hannah Crandell is a doctoral student in Industrial-Organizational Psychology at the University of Central Florida. She studies vulnerable populations at work with a focus on well-being.
  

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  Mindy Shoss is a professor of psychology at the University of Central Florida. Her research examines the future of work, worker well-being, job insecurity, and adaptation. She is a fellow of the Society for Industrial/Organizational Psychology.
  

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