The 91-room Heathman Hotel in downtown Kirkland, Washington (a Seattle suburb) chose communications technology from Avaya (News - Alert) to provide superior customer service for its guests.

 

The need for a high-tech communication system to match the exacting demands of clients, many of who work for technology companies in and around Kirkland and a system with plentiful, flexible, and sophisticated features, with the capability to grow and change over the years led the hotel to Avaya IP Office particularly because the hotel could integrate IP Office with our property management software.

 

Avaya delivers intelligent communications solutions that help companies transform their businesses to achieve marketplace advantage. More than one million businesses worldwide, including 90+ percent of the Fortune 500 firms, use Avaya solutions for IP telephony, unified communications (UC), contact centers and communications-enabled business processes.

 

IP Office is Avaya's flagship voice and data communications system for small and medium businesses (SMBs). The hotel equipped its front desk and management employees, staff in the adjacent day spa, and the lobby with Avaya IP telephones, employees who need the added mobility with Avaya cordless IP phones and the guest rooms with the analog Avaya phones.

 

The Heathman Hotel integrated its property management system from MICROS Systems, with software from DuVoice, a member of the Avaya Developer Connection program, to create customized features that are tailored to the hotel's needs, further developing the hotel's efforts to provide the highest level of personal service. This further helps with the Heathman Hotel's 'Personal Concierge' service, which offers a single staff member, called a Personal Concierge, to fulfill the functions of front desk, bell person, concierge, and in-room dining; guests receive seamless service for all requests for the length of their visit.

 

"A hotel like Heathman, and businesses throughout the hospitality industry, absolutely must provide excellent service to their guests," said Geoffrey Baird, vice president and general manager of the small and medium business division at Avaya, in a statement. "Avaya unified communications provides excellence in communications, with integrated services — such as simultaneous ring to cell phones — that enhance staff productivity and help companies better serve their customers. In fact, all small businesses, regardless of what business they're in, need and value tools that enable greater productivity and top-notch client service. At Avaya, we are focused on delivering those tools to small businesses."

 

Heathman also relies on IP Office to help guests who may have emergency, guests who want to set their own wake up call, guests who want room maintenance and guests who want to change rooms during their stay but wants to keep the same direct number assigned to the room. The hotel's valet parking team uses Avaya IP phones to record in which numbered parking slot guests' cars are placed. When a guest calls to get a car, the guest's name appears on the valet's IP phone, along with the parking slot number.

 

"We are completely focused on anticipating our guests' needs, meeting their expectations proactively, and planning for their future requirements," said Les Utley, general manager of Heathman Hotel, in a statement. "With IP Office, and the ease in which it functions as a key element of our property management system, we are completely confident we can retain and enhance our reputation for superior customer service — which is what the hospitality industry is all about."

 

In the near future, Heathman plans to use further enhance the services it offers, by using IP Office's built-in conferencing system to offer free conference calls from its meeting rooms, which are used by several area companies.