All kinds of businesses in all kinds of industries, from hospitality to IT, are employing green initiatives in their operations. Even beyond environmental and social responsibilities, green practices make economic sense and resonate with consumers who in large part are becoming increasingly environmentally conscious. According to US Travel Association data, 43 million American travelers are “ecologically concerned.” With the environmental, economic and marketing advantages that “going green” brings, many hoteliers are now making environmentally-friendlier operations a priority.
In the hospitality industry, sustainable initiatives that are commonly employed include linen reuse programs, recycling programs (including in-room recycling bins), installing low-flow shower heads and energy-efficient light bulbs, using non-toxic cleaning products, composting food scraps, and installing smart in-room energy controls. But did you know that a cloud-based property management system can also reduce your environmental impact?
Cloud computing has long been considered an environmentally friendlier alternative to on-premise hardware. Cloud-based resources are shared among multiple users, enabling cloud service providers to maximize server utilization, boost efficiency and cut costs for clients. Moving systems to the cloud means that businesses can get rid of inefficient on-premise servers and cooling equipment, decreasing on-site power demands.
A cloud-based PMS can reduce your property’s environmental footprint in more visible ways, too. Take WebRezPro’s electronic signature capture feature, which can allow you to eliminate the use of paper during the check-in process. As one of our clients put it, “[Electronic signature capture] is a huge cost savings… This one new change might have the single greatest environmental impact of any change we’ve ever made. With email confirmations and now electronic sign-ins, our front desk is virtually paperless” (Jim Copus, Operations Manager at Montecito Inn, Santa Barbara, CA).
Cloud-based property management systems like WebRezPro also offer mobile housekeeping reports that provide housekeepers with instant room status updates. Via their mobile devices, housekeepers can access housekeeping reports on the go to see which rooms have just been vacated upon check-out and attend to them sooner; ensuring lights, TVs and air-conditioning are all switched off in a timely manner.
So if you’re thinking of moving your PMS to the cloud, you can sleep well at night knowing that not only will you be improving operational efficiency and cost effectiveness at your property, but contributing to a greener world, too.
