One of the industries that I work with is hospitality, specifically the hotel industry. In the past, video surveillance meant cameras hooked to a VCR in the back room. If a bad person did something terrible you would go to the back room to review the tape. The only person interested in the system was the person responsible for security at the property. Clearly there was value in this to the security person, but where was the value for the rest of the organization? Video was a necessary tool that was only used for one purpose.
Today, Managed Video is enabling hotels to take video that had been used only by the hotel security officer and make it available over the web, allowing a new set of users to do their job better and have a positive impact – even if they aren’t on site. In the hotel world this means that the general manager of the hotel can now sit at home (or in an airport or coffee shop) and watch live video of what is going on in real time. He or she can also share recorded video throughout the organization to highlight best practices or to call out bad behavior. For example, one issue that is always of concern is how staff is handling cash. With Managed Video it is possible to quickly perform audits to ensure that company processes and procedures are being followed.
Two of the key goals in the hotel industry are brand consistency and customer satisfaction. These are tough goals and they’re made more difficult by the industry’s high employee turnover rate. For the hotel management group, Managed Video allows the corporate staff to watch and influence the operations of multiple properties without being on site. For example, it is now possible for the marketing team or operations staff to view remote properties to make sure they are well staffed, clean and staged in a consistent manner.