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Priorities Change for Hotel Tech
Speaking at HFTP's recent HITEC 2021 event, leaders in hotel technology said the pandemic has forced drastic changes for IT organizations across the industry, and that has necessitated wide-scale reprioritization of the projects they work on, HNN's Sean McCracken reports.
Dan Kornick, chief information officer for Loews Hotels & Co, said the IT department at his company has shrunk 30% from pre-pandemic staffing levels.
"It made us focus on what was important," he said. "You have to take a step back and say, 'We're doing 100 different things, but do those things matter? Do they move the needle?' So I think by having that focus, we were able to be more efficient."
Oyo Files for IPO in India
Hotel brand Oyo, which saw explosive growth fueled by investments from SoftBank and other firms in recent years before announcing company-wide cuts, has filed for an initial public offering in it's home country of India, seeking 84.3 billion rupees in investment — or roughly $1.14 billion. CNBC reports the company is also considering 14 billion rupees — $188.8 million) in pre-IPO placement.
"The Gurugram-headquartered firm said it would use proceeds from the IPO to pay off existing obligations and fund growth, which could include mergers and acquisitions," the news outlet reports.
Amazon Founder's Space Travel Company Target of Safety, 'Toxic Culture' Complaints
The New York Times reports Blue Origin, the rocket and space travel company founded by Amazon's Jeff Bezos, is "rife with sexism, intolerant of employees who dare to contradict their bosses and lax on safety," according to current and former employees of the company
Those claims were put out by a public essay issued by 21 such employees, which the company has disputed.
“Blue Origin has no tolerance for discrimination or harassment of any kind,” a spokesman told the newspaper. “We provide numerous avenues for employees, including a 24/7 anonymous hotline, and will promptly investigate any new claims of misconduct. We stand by our safety record and believe that New Shepard is the safest space vehicle ever designed or built.”
The next Blue Origin launch, which as four scheduled passengers, is set for Oct. 12.
How the Pandemic has Changed CIO Role
Chief information officers now have a front-row seat among corporate decision makers due to the COVID-19 pandemic, The Wall Street Journal reports.
According to the newspaper: "CIOs and other corporate technology leaders over the past year found themselves in greater positions of leadership, taking a critical role in facilitating the shift to remote work, reconfiguring supply chains, speeding up the automation of factories, and moving stores and restaurants online, executives and industry analysts say. CIOs also had a hand in strengthening the security and resilience of their companies which was tested this year as never before as the shift to remote work and collaboration tools opened new vulnerabilities for hackers."