Smart technologies in hospitality: effects on activity, work design and employment. A case study about chatbot usage

Abstract

This article aims to overcome the empirical limitations of tourism studies concerning customer experience, to focus on the transformations of work activity. From an ergonomics perspective focusing on work activity in two hotels, the article proposes an analysis about smart technologies based on a case study of a chatbot or conversational agent (CA) and proposes an alternative to implement technology in work design. This study uses a systemic approach and incorporates semi-structured interviews, UX curves with different stakeholders (N=7) from touristic organisation: strategic, operational and design workers. Results show that the different stakeholders do not share the same representation of chatbots. Designers and strategy workers consider the technology as a way to improve the customer experience and reduce work constraints by eliminating tasks and creating a new tasks redistribution. Furthermore, the use of chatbot reveals greater flexibility for the operational staff. We also note reconfigurations of work for both staff and designers in order to allow chatbot evolutivity and efficiency over timeIn the light of these statements, this research shows that the deployment of technology cannot be successful without a comprehensive analysis of the work activity context. This study also highlights the role of human intelligence in the creation of evolving and contextually adapted tourism systems. From a general point of view, the introduction of technologies has led to a profound reorganisation of the stage and backstage tasks. They can also be deleterious to work and service relationship when the conditions of their implementation are not thought out in advance. The article suggests to design these work systems through a human-centred approach by contributing to the development of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology at the service of humans and their work.