The definition of a ‘great stay’ has evolved. In an era of digital-first travel, guests demand more than just the hospitality basics; they expect the seamless, high-speed connectivity they rely on at home, wherever they are on the property.
For Jim Conaway, Vice President of IT for Lodging and Hospitality Management, which own 18 hotels, nine restaurants, and various commercial properties, keeping up with these expectations is an operational imperative. In his 22 years at Lodging Hospitality Management, Conaway has seen firsthand how the “device explosion” has fundamentally changed network requirements.
The New Reality: Managing Thousands of Devices
In the past, a 500-room hotel might have seen 200 to 300 devices online at night. Today, that number has quadrupled to more than a thousand. With guests traveling with laptops, tablets, streaming devices, gaming consoles, and smartphones, the density of connected devices per room has skyrocketed.
For the guest, this means the difference between a frustrating stay and a relaxing one. When the network is robust, guests can seamlessly stream their favorite shows, join video calls for work, or connect their gaming consoles without lag. “Guests are now expecting in the hotel exactly what they have at home,” says Conaway. “Any downtime is not allowed at this point in the game.”
Operational Intelligence: Beyond Just Connectivity
To meet this demand, Lodging and Hospitality Management transitioned from a fully on-premises environment, where wireless controllers and management were handled locally, to a cloud-managed Cisco Meraki network. This shift was not just about faster Wi-Fi; it was about creating a resilient foundation that could handle massive traffic influxes without requiring constant manual intervention, mirroring the cloud-based move of other hotel services like Property Management Systems (PMS).
While the network provides the backbone for the guest experience, Conaway has leveraged the Cisco Meraki platform to transform daily operations. By deploying over 700 Meraki smart cameras, the team has moved beyond traditional physical security.
Unlike legacy CCTV systems that made exporting video a cumbersome process, the AI and analytics built into Meraki cameras allow for proactive management:
- Operational Oversight: General managers monitor lobby traffic and meeting room availability in real-time.
- Proactive Security: Motion alerts and audit logs provide immediate oversight of sensitive areas, such as hotel gyms, restaurants, and bar locations.
- Rapid Response: The team can now utilize attribute search—for example, quickly searching all video for anyone wearing a yellow shirt—to identify incidents. In one instance, the team identified a guest who damaged property and provided encrypted video evidence to law enforcement within 15 minutes.
By breaking down the silos between traditional network security and physical security, the team has brought comprehensive visibility together into one platform.
Perhaps the most significant benefit for Conaway’s team is the drastic reduction in support tickets. Unlike legacy systems that require frequent reboots to stay functional, the Cisco Meraki environment is remarkably self-sufficient.
“I can go to sleep at night knowing that these networks are going to remain up and function as they are supposed to,” Conaway notes. By removing the need for manual power-cycling and troubleshooting, his team can focus on strategic initiatives rather than putting out fires.
In a world where guest satisfaction is tied directly to the reliability of their digital connection, having a network that heals itself and provides deep operational visibility is the ultimate competitive advantage.
The landscape of hospitality is changing, but with the right infrastructure, your business can stay ahead of the curve. Learn more about how Cisco Meraki can help you streamline your operations, secure your assets, and deliver the flawless experience your guests expect.