Hospitality currently faces a bit of a paradox – there’s ample demand and opportunity for growth, but there are considerable barriers to making the most of either. 

For instance, Hotel occupancy returned to pre-pandemic levels earlier this year. International Passenger Survey (IPS) figures, recently released by the Office of National Statistics, have also revealed that there were an estimated 42.6m inbound visits to the UK throughout 2024. Collectively, these visitors spent £32.5bn and stayed for an impressive total of 293m nights.

Most major cities throughout the UK are feeling the benefit of this trend. Unsurprisingly, London experienced its highest ever average daily rate (ADR) and revenue per available room (RevPAR) on record, according to data from CoStar. Edinburgh also fared well throughout 2024, at 84.2% occupancy and with ADR up by 10.3%. Similarly, Cardiff also hit record ADR and RevPAR figures, and Manchester experienced strong spikes in demand, too. 

Understaffing and Burnout 

Whilst occupancy rates are improving, staffing shortages have not. According to UKHospitality, there are around 132,000 vacancies across the sector, 48% above pre-pandemic levels. This has left hospitality teams contending with chronic burnout. 

Hospitality Action has reported that 62% of junior employees now consider burnout ‘part of their job’. Half of all managers have also reported experiencing their own forms of burnout. The leading cause, cited by 57% of respondents in a recent survey, was understaffing, followed by excessive workloads and a poor work-life balance. 

We know from our conversations with operators that this has had a major impact on the morale of their teams. Crucially though, it’s not just the volume of work that causes team members to quit or stumble – it’s the nature of the work itself. 

What Hospitality Automation Can (and Should) Do 

In an industry like hospitality, AI can’t automate everything. Nor should it. Instead, it should prioritise the automation of unrewarding, time-consuming, and routine tasks. In practice, this means: 

• Processing routine queries that require limited judgement

• Eliminating predictable tasks that repeatedly come up

• Dealing with admin that doesn’t require a human touch 

In doing so, it reduces pressure at the front desk – the focal point of stressors and bottlenecks for most hospitality businesses, regardless of whether they’re major hotel chains or boutique properties. This empowers teams to focus on high-impact interactions with guests that drive better outcomes for brands, properties, guests, and staff. 

It’s this application of AI that’s often talked about but, as of now, is rarely delivered. A people-centric application doesn’t remove the human element, but allows it to take centre stage. When it’s able to, there are clear and tangible benefits for all stakeholders. 

A Better Use of Time – For Everyone 

Of course, these lessons are applicable to other industries, too. Most service-based roles have their own form of tension, the constant juggling of routine tasks and actions that really drive value. 

In hospitality, this is the difference between a routine call or personally guiding a guest to their room whilst making friendly conversation. In healthcare, it might be the difference between filling out large volumes of paperwork or being able to directly explain a procedure to a patient in an informative and comforting way. In retail, it’s the difference between having to quickly work through a queue or providing tailored recommendations. 

It’s these latter interactions that customers tend to remember and, ultimately, cause them to trust a brand. By emphasising them, making them more deliverable, we can protect service-based roles, improve experiences for guests / customers, and provide much more rewarding working environments. 

Our Approach at DreamDesk 

At DreamDesk, we’ve always believed that AI can and should be human. Human in how it sounds, human in how it assists people, and human in the opportunities it produces. This approach, combined with our knowledge of the hospitality industry, has helped us to produce an AI-powered solution that works for people. 

Each aspect of our technology has been designed to dial in specific pain points, factoring in the requirements of diverse properties, hospitality teams, and guests themselves. As of now, DreamDesk:

• Matches the unique tone of each brand and property in which it’s deployed, covering more than 35 languages and dialects

• Accurately answers 100% of calls, ensuring no queries or opportunities are missed by operators

• Automates up to 90% of routine forms of communication across calls, emails, chatbots, and WhatsApp

• Reduces front desk workloads by 60%, allowing teams to prioritise high-value interactions with guests 

These are practical and impactful outcomes for hospitality businesses, whether it’s a question of a large chain of hotels, family-owned properties, or small B&Bs. By emphasising very specific, day-to-day painpoints, we’ve been able to craft a solution that puts people first and drives value throughout every single application. 

Automation and AI don’t have to be impersonal, they can empower people to be more personal when they’re designed around real-world problems. At DreamDesk, we’re working to solve the burnout facing hospitality teams, creating more impactful work, and fundamentally improving the guest experience. 

Ready to give your team more time for what matters? Get a closer look at DreamDesk with a personalised demo: https://dreamdeskai.com/book-a-demo/