News Briefs

IDeaS, a SAS company and a provider of hospitality revenue management software and services, redoubles its commitment to providing a top-tier client experience with new enhancements to the IDeaS learning journey. This effort includes the implementation of live chat support, monthly live learning events, quarterly panels, and on-demand tailored virtual training sessions.  

The needs of hotels are changing, and as IDeaS technology adapts, the company is committed to investing in its teams and tools to ensure the best-in-class experience clients expect. Last year, the company introduced a “Client-First Framework” to evolve the client experience to meet tomorrow’s opportunities. In 2024, the company expanded and enhanced its learning offerings to meet client needs.

• Meeting clients in their moment of need – In an industry where timeliness is critical, resolving questions, concerns, and other system issues can’t wait. Effective support content and response speed are critical components of customer satisfaction, with most customers expecting companies to interact in real time. To ensure clients continue to get the help they need promptly, IDeaS now offers live chat support led by a skilled team of IDeaS’ Client Success professionals.
• Elevating the learning experience – IDeaS has committed to an expanded training approach. Among the planned enhancements are continual learning pathways tailored to specific client roles like revenue manager, sales manager, or general manager. These on-demand activities help build organization-wide knowledge of system capabilities and internal alignment with revenue management culture. As the hospitality sector continues to grapple with high staff turnover, these education opportunities will help clients quickly bring new staff members up to speed. Additionally, work is underway to revamp system help content to ensure it is practical and easy to use.
• Building a community of support – Education is an active effort, and building a community of peer learners is an effective way to foster these valuable interactions. To facilitate this, IDeaS has developed a calendar of live learning events. Community Connection sessions are a monthly forum where users can explore what’s new and discuss how to make the most of their systems with IDeaS and other users. Monthly Focus sessions provide interactive webinars covering practical, sought-after topics related to system management and more. Finally, quarterly Panel Discussions will offer a deep dive into strategy with industry and system experts—as well as a peek behind the curtain at what’s driving system outputs.

Sanjay Nagalia, co-founder, COO, and technology officer, IDeaS, said: “Providing a best-in-class client experience is one of the key drivers for our global teams. Effective implementation, training, and system adoption are crucial for our clients’ day-to-day work and ensuring they gain the most ROI from our solutions. To do so requires an ongoing learning journey. IDeaS is committed to listening to our clients, implementing the enhancements they need to be successful, and being a part of their journey today and tomorrow.” 

Coral Brevig, director, learning and development, IDeaS, said: “Client success is our success, and these enhancements to our support and training showcase our commitment to this shared goal. Whether working with newcomers or well-established clients, I’m excited about our efforts to keep users engaged and confident across their journey with IDeaS solutions.” 

Clients can view and enroll in upcoming live learning events via the IDeaS Discover Learning platform (accessible with an active user account and appropriate permissions). 

PathSpot  announced the launch of its SafetySuite, an innovative range of interconnected hardware and software tools designed to modernize and elevate back-of-house (BOH) safety procedures. PathSpot’s expanded product portfolio delivers best-in-class health, safety and hygiene management technology to help businesses that prepare and serve food drive profitability, simplify compliance and promote a Culture of Cleanliness both inside and outside of their four walls. 

Recognized for its flagship HandScanner that detects harmful bacteria contaminating employees in real-time, PathSpot’s SafetySuite now offers additional capabilities that enable brands to efficiently control the food and equipment safety itself.  This includes managing temperatures, tracking expiration timelines, monitoring hygiene and meeting other health-related inspection requirements to identify and mitigate unseen risks, optimize labor, reduce costs and foster a safer environment. Even more, its SafetySuite Hub centralizes cloud-based analytics from its range of solutions to improve visibility into food preparation in order to  help operators maintain consistent, high-quality food safety standards shared throughout  an organization – no handwritten, potentially  inaccurate audits required. Available from any connected device, the SafetySuite Hub provides real-time feedback, insights into data trends and smart recommendations that reduce risks across the safety spectrum, ensure accountability and empower operators to take quick action for audit-readiness. 

“As the hospitality and food service industries continue to face a variety of macro-economic challenges, brands simply can’t afford to spend time manually managing safety and compliance and risk the potential for food waste, expensive shutdowns, insurance hikes and audit failures,” said Christine Schindler, Co-founder & CEO at PathSpot. Schindler received HT’s Top Women in Restaurant Technology – Rising Star award at MURTEC 2023. “Our new SafetySuite digitizes the full health and safety system to save operators meaningful time and resources with tools that streamline the audit process, improve reporting accuracy and empower employees to focus on what matters most – the culinary and guest experience. We’re thrilled to be leading the way for digital safety and wellness for the food service industry as we work to make the preventable spread of foodborne disease a thing of the past.”

In addition to its flagship HandScanner, PathSpot’s innovative SafetySuite includes:

• PowerTemp - Low-cost temperature and humidity loggers track performance data to avoid bacterial growth, prevent food loss and comply with industry-specific requirements.
• PowerTasks - Task management system simplifies in-store checklists, allowing brands to track, manage and store electronic records for maximum operational efficiency.
• PowerLabels – Advanced label system pairs with existing printers to make food labeling quick and easy and improve reporting accuracy. 

“By embracing PathSpot, we’ve significantly improved our compliance and safety standards, reducing the risk to our brands by automating the onerous task of filling out manual HACCP logs,” said Doug Davis, Sr. Global Director of Food Safety at Marriott International.

“We use PathSpot across all of our commissaries,” added Rob Trudel, VP of Quality Assurance at Bento Sushi. “My staff loves the cooldown process probes and environmental temperature sensors because they replace the need for pen/paper HACCP forms. And the HandScanners are a constant gut check on handwashing. This stuff is too important to mess around with. The more you reduce the risk of manual error, the more trust you earn with regulators. It’s a no-brainer, and it should be the industry standard.”

To learn more about PathSpot’s SafetySuite, please visit https://pathspot.com/ or request a demo here: https://pathspot.com/request-demo/.

When I Work, a provider of shift-based workforce management software used by more than 200,000 workplaces worldwide, is excited to announce its new product, When I Work Payroll. When I Work Payroll is designed to make it incredibly easy for small businesses to run payroll. Because the employee schedule and time tracking data are on the same platform with payroll, businesses can pay their hourly workers quickly, with a single click. There’s no data entry or uploading timesheets, so there’s less chance for errors, letting small business owners spend time on their customers, instead of being stuck in the back office.  

“It’s been great to have all of our scheduling and payroll information in one place. We don’t have to verify numbers in two places anymore—we’re able to verify and run payroll in 10 minutes now,” said Tim Hogg, owner of Tressia, a popular North Carolina restaurant.

Payroll from When I Work is comprehensive. Your employees track their time by clocking in and out of the mobile app and our payroll software calculates all the data in real time, including hours, breaks, overtime, and paid time off. When I Work automates payments and tax filings to make everything transparent. Employees can update their own payroll forms and personal information through the app. The system automatically handles taxes and sends direct deposits. When I Work also files your payroll taxes with the IRS. 

 “We consistently hear stories from small business owners about the countless hours they spend manually syncing and reconciling errors between systems,“ said Kavitha Radhakrishnan, Chief Product Officer at When I Work. “Our customers want an easier alternative to legacy payroll software, and they have a long history of trust with us, so we created Payroll for them. Now our small business customers can focus their valuable time on what they do best—building their teams and running their business." 

LUX Interactive, a pioneer in digital innovation, proudly announces a groundbreaking collaboration with Red Roof Inn (RRI) aimed at revolutionizing its digital infrastructure. This innovative partnership drives the seamless migration of RRI's website from Tridion on-premise to Tridion Cloud, setting a new benchmark for digital excellence.

Red Roof Inn, a renowned hospitality brand with nearly 700 properties spanning multiple brands, sought a cutting-edge solution to elevate its digital presence and operational efficiency.

Benefits of Tridion Cloud Migration:

• Enhanced Scalability: Tridion Cloud's adaptable infrastructure empowers RRI's website to effortlessly manage increased traffic, ensuring uninterrupted user experiences during peak demand, aligning with RRI's growth trajectory.
• Agility and Rapid Deployments: The migration facilitates agile deployment of updates, new features, and improvements, enabling RRI to swiftly adapt to market changes and user preferences
• Cost Optimization: Operating on Tridion Cloud eliminates on-premise infrastructure overheads, optimizing RRI's expenditure. The pay-as-you-go model ensures efficient resource allocation and cost savings.
• Robust Security Measures: Tridion Cloud boasts robust security protocols and compliance standards, fortifying RRI's data protection and ensuring adherence to industry security regulations.
• Performance Enhancement: Leveraging Tridion Cloud's distributed server infrastructure enhances RRI's website performance, resulting in faster loading times and an improved user experience, thereby boosting engagement and satisfaction.
• Reliability and Disaster Recovery: Tridion Cloud's redundancy and disaster recovery mechanisms guarantee uninterrupted operations for RRI. Reliable failover systems ensure website resilience against potential disruptions, ensuring continuous availability.
• Innovation and Integration Capabilities: Tridion Cloud's suite of services and integrations empowers RRI to innovate rapidly. Access to cutting-edge technologies and seamless integrations with third-party services enables RRI to remain competitive and innovative.

The collaboration between LUX Interactive and Red Roof Inn signifies a significant leap towards digital transformation, showcasing a commitment to leveraging technology for business elevation. The migration to Tridion Cloud heralds a new era of efficiency, scalability, and innovation for RRI's digital infrastructure.

Seabourn, the leader in ultra-luxury voyages and expedition travel, has announced that its fleet of ultra-luxury ships has been equipped with next generation Wi-Fi connectivity with SpaceX's Starlink, the leader in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite technology. The upgraded technology provides Seabourn's guests with faster service, greater connectivity and more reliable Wi-Fi wherever Starlink's services are available.

"Following the positive feedback we received from our guests from the successful rollout of Starlink's enhanced connectivity on our expedition ships, we are thrilled to share that both our ocean and expedition ships in our ultra-luxury fleet now feature Starlink. Our guests can now choose to connect or disconnect as they wish during their extraordinary journeys with Seabourn," said Natalya Leahy, president of Seabourn. "Whether exploring the polar regions, cruising the Mediterranean, or navigating across the oceans, our guests can now enjoy an even more dependable connection, enabling them to effortlessly share those cherished 'Seabourn Moments' and experiences with their loved ones when they are sailing with us."

"We are so proud to provide a high level of enhanced technology for our guests who want to stay connected, whether it's sharing their personal experiences with friends and family or staying connected with work," added Kathleen Erickson, Seabourn's vice president of technology. "Having this technology will only enhance their experience when they sail on Seabourn."

Starlink is now available on Seabourn's two new purpose-built ultra-luxury expedition ships, Seabourn Venture and Seabourn Pursuit, as well as its ocean ships, Seabourn Sojourn, Seabourn Quest, Seabourn Encore and Seabourn Ovation.