CRITICAL THINKING
tools. Tey can request personalized recommendations and provide direct feedback to customer service.
Mobile phones have also changed the travel industry because of their geo-location capabilities. A cellphone knows where you are and often what you want in that specific place. Such proximity can be an advantage for both travel operators and their clients, explained Jim Blackwell, digital market leader at BDO, a global business advisory service, adding, “Today the industry is trying to figure it out fast and furious.”
He gave the example of Avis, the car rental company. “It not only sends information in real time about your car booking, but, if there is a problem, it will search online and propose another car or option based on your tastes, needs, preferences and location. Airlines don’t do this well yet.”
Industry is also using IoT for luggage tracking. Some suitcases have built-in tracking tools so they can be located with one’s cellphone or computer. Apple’s AirTags are another way to track objects, not limited to luggage. It is no surprise that the global smart luggage market is predicated to rise 13% annually between 2025 and 2034.
IN THE CLOUD While mobile advancements enable time- and cost-saving capa- bilities for customers, cloud computing enables the travel industry to scale up and down quickly—and cost-effectively—based on changing demands for storage and computing power. Travel busi- nesses can avoid large upfront investments in infrastructure and instead pay only for what they use. In addition, from the cloud, travel industry agents, guides and booking managers can access data and applications anytime, anywhere. Cloud solutions are especially valuable when members of the workforce are faced with unforeseen events, whether meteorological or human-made. For example, an earthquake or bombing might destroy a local office, but not the information in the cloud.
Another attraction of cloud solutions is added security, such as strong encryption, multifactor authentication and other features of parallel importance to industry and DOD modernization efforts.
Te cloud and security are also first and foremost in DOD think- ing. U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Robert J. Skinner, then director of the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) and former commander of the Joint Force Headquarters – Department of Defense Information Network, laid out his three priorities for
LOST LUGGAGE
As the volume of lost luggage grows, so do luggage tracking options to deal with it. (Photo by Sergei Sarostin, Pexels)
DISA in his introduction to its full five-year plan, released in April 2024. Tey are to build a common information technol- ogy (IT) environment, a more robust cloud computing system and zero-trust cybersecurity in both IT systems and the cloud.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AI is more than the flavor of the month; it is the technology of the decade. Te travel industry is acutely aware of this and is inte- grating AI into operations at a seriously fast and furious pace as travelers can now plan trips using chatbots such as ChatGPT. A 2023 study by Longwoods International found that one-third of U.S. travelers were likely to use AI to plan their vacations, with that percentage expected to grow in the future.
“Generative AI provides the means of layering a chat-based application with a conversational user interface,” said Ingersoll. “Instead of having to understand commands and queries, you can just ask conversational type questions.” For example, a cruise director won’t need specialized training or language to ask, ‘How many passengers will disembark in Southampton and how many will board? How many eggs will I need for the next week of cruising?’ Faster and more accurate responses and less required training can translate to cost savings.
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