The pink-red digitalization glasses!

I would like to make it clear from the outset that my gut feeling is not right about 100%. I don't think anyone can claim that. It's not just about my gut feeling, or that of someone else, but generally about the different perspectives that are necessary when choosing a system.

A few weeks ago, I received a call from a customer with the opening words "Oh Steffi, I wish we'd listened to your gut feeling!". To explain this in more detail, we need to travel back a year. A hotel - specifically a new opening - was looking for different systems for its system landscape. Due to the complexity, the hotel's employees sought our support after doing their own preliminary work. In the first step, we worked out which systems were needed and then prioritized which tool should be used when and thus selected. We had three providers to choose from for one type of system (I don't want to mention the name or functions of the system here). 

We discussed the functions and processes. We weighed up the pros and cons, set very clear functional requirements and, of course, compared the prices. There was a clear favorite. It was clear for everyone. Not for me. Why? I can't say for sure. Neither then nor now could I give any concrete reasons for my reservations. The sales process was nice and pleasant. Nevertheless, there was something interpersonal that made me suspicious and proved to be true in retrospect. It wasn't just that there were so many problems with the commissioning (this can happen and is human) - but also the way the answers were given, the response times of the provider and also the behavior of the management was and is not a partnership for me. 

So you should only choose your system based on the likability of the sales managers? No. Not at all. But an IT selection is not just based on hard facts. Many factors - including interpersonal ones - play a role. Some hotels like to be pioneers, want to experiment and try things out. This calls for system providers with a completely different corporate culture and philosophy than hotels that rely on tried and tested systems. The chemistry between hotel and system provider must be right. This is certainly not necessary for every system to every extent - but if I have many points of contact with the system and may also communicate frequently with the support team, this is essential for good cooperation. Some need personal support and a concrete human connection, an account manager - others are satisfied with a ticket system with changing contact persons, but perhaps a faster response time. 

In addition to a general strategy in the companythe Customer journey of my guests and also the Degree of employee utilization, In my opinion, therefore, there should also be a certain degree of soft factors be included when you decide on new systems. In the words of an old friend: "I just wanna make sure that you tick the way I tick..."