Critical evaluation of how Covid-19 changed crisis management within the Hospitality Industry while reflecting on lessons learned and identification of organisational improvement opportunities for use in a future crisis

Introduction:
Crisis management refers to the series of strategies that are applied to help a company to deal with a major change (Wilk-Jakubowski, et al., 2022). The occurrence of a crisis can be due to an unpredictable event or unforeseeable consequence of any event that is considered a potential risk. The outbreak of Covid-19 was a major crisis faced by the hospitality industry across the world as this industry particularly suffered the most (Abhari, et al., 2022). Due to national, federal, and state legislations, hotels, restaurants, theme parks, etc. were shut down which affected both the business owners and workers. The industry deals with instability as it is highly competitive thus such a crisis further worsens issues such the staff retention and revenue growth. These areas along with cost management as per the increasing demands of customers are still facing risks while many brands managed to improve working conditions and communication through advanced technology, especially cloud technology. In this essay, both positive and negative aspects related to the role of Covid-19 in changing crisis management within the hospitality industry while reflecting on lessons learned and identification of organisational improvement opportunities for use in future crises will be discussed.

Main Body:
The advantages of Covid-19 on crisis management within the Hospitality Industry while reflecting on lessons learned:
The impact of Covid-19 has been detrimental as it left people without their jobs and family so it changed their life altogether. The pandemic has made a huge negative impact, especially in the hospitality industry. The hospitality industry includes various businesses that fall under this large umbrella such as hotels, motels, resorts, restaurants, theme parks, and more. Due to the breakout, everything was shut down so this industry has faced the major risks pertaining to the pandemic. However, the industry bounced back from the crisis as it is evident in its post-pandemic performance. While dealing with this disruption, the hospitality industry learned a few lessons in terms of daily operations, IT adoption, and guest service (Ngai, et al., 2021). The industry learned how significant it is to incorporate cloud technology in operations. The majority of the industry across the world has been investing in information technology. However, cloud-based technology has been great for better connectivity and eliminating maintenance of bulky hardware (Lu & Xu, 2019). The crisis during the post-covid era is managed through cloud-based hotel property management systems (PMS). It allows management to undertake tasks better than conversational systems while investing less cost and enhanced process automation.

Due to the restrictions enforced by the government during the pandemic, the industry faced a huge risk in managing employees. However, from this lesson, the industry quickly learned that besides critical staff, people working in departments such as accounting, marketing, and reservation management can work from a remote working setup (Oliinyk, et al., 2022). This transition has been done effectively through a risk management strategy that includes cloud-based property management systems. During the post-covid era, hotels, restaurants, etc. are preferring cloud-based PMS. Such PMS is great for remote management of inventory, training, remote management of reservations, and more. Cloud systems are accessible to anyone and anywhere thus it is easier than on-premises solutions.

The loss that the hospitality industry suffered during the pandemic was devastating which further restricted them to offer huge discounts to lure customers. It was nearly impossible for the industry as it suffered huge financial losses. Based on such a lesson, the industry started putting emphasis on value selling. Cloud PMS and integrated digital marketing solutions have become a major part of Crisis Management that helps hotels to offer rates and packages based on demand and occupancy (Hao, et al., 2020). Therefore, the industry has been successful in increasing room sales and occupancy. The major risk due to Covid-19 was the transmission of the virus by touching any surface this elimination of physical touchpoints was a major risk management strategy for the industry. Besides the sensor-based doors, lighting systems, and taps, the majority of the hotels and restaurants are offering self-check-in and checkout, amenities control in rooms and payment facilities, etc.

The disadvantages of Covid-19 on crisis management within the Hospitality Industry while reflecting on lessons learned:
This industry's primary focus has always been the guest experience which contributed to risk within this quasi-pandemic world. Challenges remain for the industry as its crisis management fails to eliminate fundamental economic and regulatory challenges. This highlights the need for an effective change management strategy. One of the major issues associated with the hospitality industry is that employees receive the lowest hourly wage. The turnover rate was already higher which was heightened by the pandemic. The turnover rate became 130% during the pandemic (Forbes, 2023). However, it is reduced to 86% post-covid yet it is the highest in the private sector. Even though other industries recovered by adding jobs, the hospitality industry is still down by 6.7% from the pre-pandemic era as of 2022 which amounts to above 1.1 million jobs. Such an issue is still evident within this industry because there is a direct link between employee retention and workplace conditions.

Another challenge that stems from this is that the industry faced labour shortages and higher workloads as people wanted to have frequent room cleanings and sanitization of public spaces. Besides, the sector is required to comply with existing and new state and local regulations on cleaning and labor management. The issue exists if a hotel fails to meet these standards, it can become costly (Yacoub & ElHajjar, 2021). It is not just about fines but losing revenue and damage to the reputation of the company. The attempt to address such challenges such as digital technology, and training employees on new tools and protocols can further improve business costs. The sector is still facing challenges due to addressing guest and employee needs while operating within a budget. Considering the critical juncture, the hospitality industry needs to quickly respond and deal with the crisis. It shows why risk management within the industry is vital but as the industry is already under intense stress, a series of initiatives are required with a cautious approach.

Identification of organisational improvement opportunities for use in future crises:
Identification and analysis of crisis are essential as it outlines opportunities for use in future crises. Identification of emerging risks is critical for reducing the uncertainties of actions. Both aspects such as loss of reputation and revenue should be evaluated based on their occurrence and impact on the organisation. These can be categorised as low, medium, moderate, and catastrophic. Identification of these risks helps in developing a comprehensive risk management strategy. First, the industry must focus on curating new experiences. When the customers of the industry develop an interest in something, introducing a new product is effective to attract attention. The strategy is to provide various experiences within a property so guests extend their stay (Naeem, 2021). For example, providing a stay that is inclusive of all meals or providing dinner with a diverse menu.

Rather than just focusing on a particular segment of customers, the companies within the industry need to widen their focus. Traditionally, resorts and hotels have always catered to corporate and wedding guests. But, it can be widened by attracting joint families, pet owners or lovers, or millennials or Gen-z travelers (Corbisiero, et al., 2022). However, such a push should be built on visitor-friendly measures. For example, there should be a blend of automated and personalised services for delivering welcome messages and tips on things to do while on vacation. These are highly attractive measures for millennial and Gen Z travelers. On the other hand, pet-friendly services will attract pet parents.
Collaboration, a firm sharing risk is a highly effective risk management strategy. A hotel or restaurant can reduce individual risk by collaborating with vendors. Partnerships that work in the sector include restaurants tying with wine certification programs and institutions for specially curated menus, and ready-to-heat packages from FMCG companies are also major collaboration opportunities (Hobbs, 2020). Also, expanding digital presence is essential to improve loss of revenue. Social media marketing is cost-effective and widely popular thus it can be a major way to improve stability (Chu, et al., 2020). Also use of online personalised business accounts to improve the accessibility of clients is effective. When hotels and resorts make their premises multifunctional, they can improve revenue streams. For instance, coffee shops are a new way for startups to take interviews or business meetings. Similarly, hotels provide their spaces to customers for the purpose of client meetings, conferences, and other co-working solutions. Many brands have already started providing 'workcations' to its customers. So that they can blend work commitments and leisure pursuits to take advantage of remote working. However, monitoring risk is essential after risk management strategies are implemented. For that, companies need to track risk variables and address them quickly to avoid possible reactions and devastating repercussions.

Conclusion:
The essay reflects on how many companies have created opportunities for them to leverage the technology especially cloud-based technology after facing huge financial losses due to the Covid-19 crisis. PMS which is based on cloud computing has become a major tool for process automation. However, the issue of a huge turnover rate although reduced after covid, is still a concern for companies due to the increased demand for maintenance from customers. However, there are opportunities to mitigate such risk through an effective risk management strategy that includes attacking a broader customer base, utilising the existing properly, collaborating between companies, and more.  
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