During his 35-year career in the hospitality industry, he has focused on designing and implementing systems that improve the guest experience. Prior to joining Sage, he held senior-level technology positions at Highgate, Interstate Hotels & Resorts and Stout Street Hospitality. He is also involved with a number of hospitality associations, including HFTP and HTNG and is a frequent presenter at educational sessions as well as a contributor to industry publications.

Since joining Sage in 2023, Parker has undertaken a number of technology initiatives. One is a testing of Microsoft Copilot with a team of corporate and hotel-based operators. “We’re trying to find out where it’s a good fit and where it’s just fluff,” he said.

He is also leading the charge for using AI-based housekeeping tools at Sage-managed properties. Parker is a fan of Levee, a solution that scans recently cleaned guest rooms and provides real-time feedback so that housekeeping staff can address any overlooked details. “The system can identify anything that is missing or out of place, such as towels, water bottles and pillows,” he said, adding that the solution helps reduce inspection times because there are fewer errors.

Still another initiative he has pioneered at Sage is the deployment of cloud-based tools to support the onboarding of hotels to the group. “The more we can automate, the better we’ll be at making these hotel teams successful."

Parker notes that the hospitality industry often lags behind current technology trends; for example, many property management systems are still premises-based, with character-based user interfaces and serial-based data exchanges. “It’s critical that we continue to push forward with better solutions,” he said, adding that younger team members, who have grown up on touch interfaces, expect a modern, high-tech work environment. “If we want to attract and retain top tech talent, we have to make innovation a habit.”

Finally, Parker is always pushing for more thorough documentation. “It may be boring, but it’s critical, especially for a management company,” he said. When it comes to software, he gives high marks to Monday.com and IT Glue for project management and IT document solutions, respectively.

Looking ahead, Parker plans to remediate technical debt related to systems that are beyond their usable age. “Too many systems were neglected post-pandemic because of supply chain issues and restrictions on capital,” he said. “Brands are pushing hard to modernize infrastructure so that it’s safe, manageable and resilient.”

JEFF’S INDUSTRY PREDICTIONS:

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE WILL EMPOWER TEAMS SO THAT THEY SPEND LESS TIME BEHIND THEIR SCREENS AND MORE TIME WITH GUESTS. “OPERATIONAL LEADERS SPEND TOO MANY HOURS ANSWERING EMAILS, REPLYING TO GUEST COMMENTS, AND BEING IN THEIR OFFICES WHEN THEY SHOULD BE OUT ON THE FLOOR. HOSPITALITY IS STILL ABOUT PEOPLE.”

TALKING DIRECTLY TO A HUMAN BEING WILL BE COOL AGAIN. “CHECK-IN VIA KIOSK OR MOBILE DEVICE HASN’T HAD THE ADOPTION CURVE WE EXPECTED,” HE SAYS. “PEOPLE STILL WANT A FRONT DESK EXPERIENCE, ESPECIALLY AT LUXURY PROPERTIES.”

CREDIT CARDS AS WE KNOW THEM WILL BECOME OBSOLETE. “MANY PEOPLE DON’T EVEN CARRY A TRADITIONAL WALLET ANYMORE. EVERYTHING IS HAPPENING OVER THE PHONE.”