Case Study

Chapter 7 / Electronic Business Systems ● 215

REAL WORLD CASE 1

Hilton Hotels Corporation: Data-Driven Hospitality

For OnQ to fulfill its mission, it needs to do more than deliver information; it needs to be a decision-support tool. For example, if a guest has complained in the past about being bumped from an overbooked hotel and moved to another Hilton property, the system will highlight that history should the same situation come up, thus making it less likely a hotel will ask that customer to “walk” again. One way OnQ already is yielding measurable benefits is in its ability to match customer reservations with profile database records. Before the system’s deployment, just 2 of every 10 guest reservations could be matched to an existing profile. With OnQ, it’s matching 4.7, and Hilton says that number can be closer to 6. Such success brings a smile to the face of Chuck Scoggins, senior director of Hilton.com and a key figure in the OnQ development project. Each customer profile includes a variety of information, from credit card data and stay histories to frequent-flier miles and room preferences, all of which can be used to match people to their profiles. The company considers its matching technology, which lets the front desk search through 180 million records and get answers almost instantly, to be critical intellectual property. “These are our algorithms, and we believe they’re the best in the industry,” Scoggins says. That’s why Hilton continues to custom-build most of its software instead of buying off the shelf. “I’m reluctant to replace something we’ve worked so hard on until we can be sure it will be a significant improvement,” Scoggins says. While OnQ helps Hilton run its existing operations, the system’s real return will be measured by whether it lets the company reinvent what it does and what it offers customers. Harvey hasn’t lost sight of the more distant future. Hilton’s 540-person IT staff spends about $132 million a year—about 2 percent of...