Co-Creating Sustainable Hospitality Trainings Through Immersive Technologies

This project addresses the critical issue of staff shortages and training inefficiencies in the hospitality industry, particularly focusing on the hotel sector. It connects with the urgent need for innovative, and effective training solutions to equip (inexperienced) staff with hospitality skills, thereby improving service quality and sustainable career prospects in the hotel industry.
The project develops and tests immersive technologies (augmented and virtual reality, AR/VR) tailored to meet specific training needs of hotels. Traditional training methods such as personal trainings, seminars, and written manuals are proving inadequate in terms of learning effectiveness and job readiness, leading to high working pressure and poor staff well-being. This project aims to break this cycle by co-creating immersive training methods that promise to be more engaging and effective.
Hotelschool The Hague has initiated steps in this direction by exploring AR and VR technologies for hotel staff training. This project builds on these efforts, aiming to develop accessible, immersive training tools specifically designed for the hotel sector. Specifically, this project aims to explore the effectiveness of these immersive trainings, an aspect largely overlooked in the rapid development of immersive technology solutions.
The central research question is: How do immersive AR and VR training methods impact job readiness and learning effectiveness in the hotel sector? The one-year KIEM project period involves co-creating, implementing, and evaluating immersive training in collaboration with Hotelschool The Hague and Hyatt Andaz Amsterdam Prinsengracht Hotel in real-life settings. The partnership with Warp Industries, a leader in immersive technology, is crucial for the project’s success. Our findings will be co-created and multiplied through relevant sector associations such as House of Hospitality. This project aligns with the MV’s Impact Level 1: Transitions by promoting innovative training strategies that can lead to a fundamental shift in the hospitality industry, thereby enhancing social earning capacities.

Eindrapportage

Hague and partners from the hotel industry and XR technology sector explored how immersive training (AR/VR) can contribute to faster and better onboarding of (new) hotel staff. The project addresses the critical combination of staff shortages and the urgent need to efficiently train employees with limited or no hospitality experience, while focusing on reducing work pressure and enhancing sustainable employability.

Together with Hyatt Andaz Amsterdam Prinsengracht Hotel, WarpVR, and Stichting House of Hospitality, immersive training modules were co-created and implemented in real-life hospitality environments within partner hotels. The project investigated the central question: how do immersive AR and VR training methods impact job readiness and learning effectiveness in the hotel sector, and what conditions are essential for successful implementation.

The key outcomes include: (1) a validated first version of immersive training content for hotel contexts (e.g., housekeeping and guest interaction), (2) initial insights into adoption barriers, usability, and learning experiences, and (3) guidelines for scaling up through a community of practice involving HR professionals and XR experts