First Look: Synchronizing Smartwatches at the Four Seasons Maui
he Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea might be on a laidback island, but it's incorporating the latest tech to enhance hotel operations.
When
the resort opened in 1990, staff used landlines and two-way radios to
handle logistics. Now driveway personnel are engaged in subtle
smartwatch action as well-heeled and celebrity guests approach in their
cars. It's part of a test, which may be expanded to the rest of the
resort over the next year.
PCMag was in Hawaii recently, and met up with marketing and public
relations manager Crissa Hiranaga, guest services manager Alex Howell,
and IT director Jorge Gabriel to see the smartwatch system in action.
We
all stood just inside the forecourt, facing the lush, tropical
plant-shaded driveway that encircles a fountain. Several hospitality
staff dealt with guests as they arrived, directing them to the front
desk, doing the warm Hawaiian lei greeting, placing fresh orchids around
the necks of female guests or traditional black kukui nuts for the men.
Then Eli the head doorman looked down at his left wrist, touched the Pebble SteelBest Price at Amazon smartwatch, quickly scrolled through what seemed to be several messages, and his staff moved into formation as if by magic.
Two vehicles approached. An SUV with darkened windows pulled up in
front of the hotel entrance and Someone From Hollywood (one has to be
discreet at the Four Seasons) disembarked. They were greeted by name (it
was all in the watch message), their luggage dispatched swiftly, a lei
draped over their shoulders, and they disappeared into the hotel.
The second vehicle was much larger, and you could tell there must be
lots of luggage inside. It pulled into a side area, was quickly
unloaded, and continued on to the front entrance to bring the guests out
of the humidity and into the air-conditioned comfort of their rooms as
soon as possible.
It was impressively swift and there was no messing about; this is a
well-oiled machine. What made it more interesting was the virtual hush
that accompanied the whole process. The smartwatches make jarring
walkie-talkie blasts a thing of the past, and they are more
understated than bulky communication devices.
"Wearables are a game changer for us in the hotel business," Howell
told PCMag. "It's enabled us to both personalize the tech and streamline
the whole experience. We never felt comfortable having staff looking at
their phones, because the perception is that someone isn't working when
they're doing that. The smartwatches are much subtler and, well,
smarter."
Gabriel explained how it all works behind the scenes: "The most
important thing, for us, is having that two-way communication. We have a
rapid response back-end system that the watches take and receive
messaging from."
But
why the Pebble Steel? All agreed that form and function was important,
but so was flexibility. "We wanted something elegant in wearables but
not flashy or garish," Hiranaga told PCMag.
"And we needed it to integrate with both iOS and Android," added
Howell, "as well as with several US mobile telephony carriers. We can't
be locked into one system."
"It's remarkable how, since we've been doing this trial, the Pebble
tech team have iterated on their back-end tech on a constant basis,"
agreed Gabriel.
Gabriel said innovation at a hotel or resort level is encouraged, as
long as there's a willingness to share. "The group has 98 properties in
41 countries so it's a huge undertaking to disseminate new tech. But we
have several opportunities a year to come together as IT directors, at
hospitality trade shows, or internal Four Seasons IT events, such as the
next one in Orlando, Florida, this summer, see what's happening at
other places, and get a sneak peek of upcoming cool stuff."
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