Design Thinking

Storytelling

Challenge & Selection    I am working for a global hotel chain group, examining the operations of hotels in the room  divisions environment, including but not limited to checking in at front desk, concierge  services and in-room staying experience. For the time being, the COVID-19 pandemic has  been impacting the global economy. Hotel industry has been seeing the pandemic as a  challenge and a threat in terms of the operational amendment and adjustment, as well as a  difficulty to understand the changes in customer preference, expectations and behaviours. In  particular, the hotel industry is looking for measures and strategies that cope with the current  and post-pandemic situation, in terms of, for example, hygienic measures and social  distancing restriction. We are working to redevelop the standard operating procedures so as  to enhance the customer touch points encountered in the guest journey design. We are  looking into areas that can enhance customer confidence and loyalty towards the hotel, and  hotels can deliver the guest experience in a safe way.    Storytelling is selected to demonstrate how guest encounters hotel staying touch points  throughout their guest experience with the hotel. We have been applying, for example,  imagination and journey map (as supplements) to look for potential business problems and  opportunities. Customers and their experience are being simulated, as a storytelling.      Application    We first understand the customer preference and expectation first, particularly concerned  with staying in a hotel after the pandemic. Due to the increased health awareness, guests  may be more aware of the hygienic control and cleanliness of hotels. They may even prefer a  totally new hotel staying experience, for example, enjoying movies in room and having a in- room dining more frequently. Then, the story goes on to the moments of truth and guest  service encounters. These involve various touch points (and even pain points) from the hotel  perspective. In hotel operations, the story is about how to deliver guest experience with  colleagues and all the hardware they have. Storytelling tells hotel how colleagues shall work  in the hotels in order to meet the new guest expectations. The storytelling includes arrival  stage, staying stage, and post-staying stage throughout the guest journey. It involves the tool  of journey mapping, as well as persona, that we use to identify customer types. Napkin  pitches are also used to see the (potential) big ideas of our solutions and changes in hotel  operation.       Insight & Approach    Design thinking is useful in the covid situation. Covid is totally new to us, to the hotel industry.  We can hardly make past reference to previous finding, industry publications and experience.  We are looking for new opportunities and possibilities under the situation with a lot of

uncertainties. This challenge offers a very practical experience of applying design thinking to  a real-life business problem. Solving business problem can go through the various steps in  design thinking.     Visualization (tool) is also applicable in this scenario. It helps visualize the guest journey  processes and changes in standard operating procedures. It is important to develop a new  idea as no past experience can be referenced, and the new practices require both hardware  and software support. Visualization helps identify possible problem in application and suggest  improvement and enhancement.

