Proposal For Outsourcing Security Services In Hyatt Hotels
Security Breaches in Hyatt Hotels
Imagine that you have been appointed as a consultant for a global hotel chain and have been asked to develop a proposal for outsourcing some of the services within the hotel to reduce costs, and consider the use of external expertise. You are to develop this proposal for the board of senior management.
The report is based on the accommodation management. There are numerous departments in the hotels and the department which is selected for the analysis is security department considering the fact that the need for security is increasing in a global hotel chain. Being a consultant for a global hotel chain Hyatt and have been asked to develop a proposal for outsourcing some of the services within the hotel that helps the company in reducing costs and considering the use of external expertise. The proposal is developed for the board of senior management of Hyatt.
Hyatt hotels and resorts believe in the comfort and safety of guest as their priority. To maintain the effective security system the company provide training for the security and well-being of the guest and visitors (Hyatt, 2017). Though, the fact is the global hotel is still facing some of the issues related to the security breach in the company. Hyatt announced that they faced the data breach which took place on 30th November 2015. On 15th January 2016, Hyatt hotel and resorts confirmed that hackers targeted payment card data from cards used onsite at 250 Hyatt locations (Krebs on Security, 2017). The hotel manager confirmed that the incident affected the payment card information which includes card number, cardholder name, expiration date and the internal verification code (Schwartz, 2016). This internal verification code is leaked at the time when guests manually entered or swiped their card at the front desk. These issues took place twice in 2 years, the security department of the company needs attention (Hotel News Now, 2017).
The role of the security department includes the protection of guest and staff of the hotel along with the property. The department also plays a role in a hotel to secure the actual premised and the property of hotel itself (Job Responsibilities, 2017). Some of the duties and responsibility of the department is discussed below: –
- Patrols: – The security guards in hotel move around to patrol the numerous parts of a property. They check the doors and stairwells to endure that no danger is lurking.
- Response: – this is the most important duty in which the security guards of the hotel respond to the calls and complaints about help. At this point in time, the security guard has to reach the place and make the guest calm (Sennewald and Baillie, 2015).
- Surveillance: – The role of the security team is very important when it comes to surveillance. The security team has to purchase, maintain and monitor security cameras, and other surveillance equipment. There is need of one or more than one person in the stationed office so that they can check the activities that are going to in hotel at different areas and take the step accordingly (Fennelly and Perry, 2016).
- Administrative duties: – Most of the global hotel appoints the security guard for 24 hours a day, seven days a week with flexible working conditions. The guard has to make a report in which the person is going to fill the activities that are encountered.
The assigned roles and responsibilities are fulfilled by each person in the hotel is checked by the senior security manager who manages all these duties. The management of duties and responsibilities are required as this is the way through which the team can safeguard any uncertain event or an activity in the hotel.
Roles and Responsibilities of the Security Department
Role of the customers might vary from person to person towards the security department of the hotel. Customers share the limited details with the Hotel so that they don’t have to face the difficulties later on. Along with this, the customers have to make sure for the details that they are sharing at the time of the online booking, mobile check-in services, public Wi-Fi and messaging apps as all these activities involve guest handling over the personal details. This is the way the customer safeguard their details from the hotel and preventing it from uncertainty. The role of the customer is to make the security staff aware if they get to know about the uncertainty that took place or going to take place in the hotel.
Customer needs from the security department of a hotel are increasing at present due to the number of breaches and incidence faced by the hotels. Each and every guest who visits the hotel checks the safety and security facility that they are getting and expecting (Torres, Fu, and Lehto, 2014). There are many customers who check the digital and technology facility that is provided by the company to customers. Though, this is the fact that these facilities invite the cyber-attacks in hotels. These facilities and services are offered by the hotels considering the demand of the customers. at the end, the customer wants the security department to safeguard the customer data.
Accommodation manager of Hyatt ensures that the Hotel is able to fulfill the customer expectations and needs as this is the way through which the company can create a positive experience for the customers. To ensure the same the manager takes the essential steps.
- The manager provides the learning to accountable and responsible staff for the security of guest or customers.
- Rigorous safety and security assessments and reviews (Hyatt, 2017).
- The manager appoints the dedicated fire/safety/life systems and monitoring.
- The manager tries to deliver the personalized services of security to the customer so that they don’t feel valued and through this, the company can share their views and opinions easily.
- The hotel security manager takes the responsibility to protect the personal data of customers. To safeguard the digital data in the current digital age is very difficult and this is the reason the manager of the department has to follow the strict guidelines. The strict guidelines fall under the two categories payment card industry (PCI) and personally identifiable information (PII).
The outsourcing of the security system is a viable solution for the hotel Hyatt. Hotel security is very important and this is the reason most of the hotels outsource the security equipment and system from the security agency. These agencies are specialist in this field that they ensure complete safety of the guest and the premises. Hotel outsources the advanced security technologies that help the company in safeguarding guests. These advanced technologies include integrated surveillance systems, advanced control system and lock and tools used for the asset protection in the hotel (Brinkkemper and Jansen, 2016).
The global hotel chain should implement the best payment gateway, firewall for Wi-Fi internal usage, secured booking engines and the external firewalls that help in safeguarding the sensitive data (Rao, 2017). These are few of the ways through which the hotels can deal with the main issue faced which is hacking of the personal card details of the customers. As of now, there is no security software, anti-virus system, and a tool that can provide the 100% guarantee to safeguard the cyber-attacks in the hotel.
Customer Demands for Security
The company finds some of the benefits of the security outsourcing that helps the company in achieving the customer needs and expectations. Some of the advantages of security outsourcing are discussed below: –
Superior expertise: – To gain the advantage of the superior expertise there is need of the outsourcing the technology. Global hotel chain needs the expertise details from the company who deals with the security issues on daily basis. This is a fact that the company who daily deals with the security-related issues is going to have higher expertise (Cruce, 2015).
Cost: – The in-house security team of the hotel is associated with more cost in terms of the salaries, office space, and operational cost. In the outsourced security team, the company has to pay for the service and the need of the Hotel is going to be taken care by the MSSP (managed security service provider).
The security outsourcing not only comes with the advantages there are certain disadvantages that hotel might have to face. Some of the disadvantages of security outsourcing are discussed below: –
Risk: – Hotel manages the customer data that is particularly sensitive to the hotel company. If in case the Hyatt hotel relay on the other company for the security then hotel might face trusting issue. It is essential for the hotel to check the outsourced company on which the hotel is going to relay for the security services (Cruce, 2015).
Suitable SLA: – Dealing and forming a contract with the outsourced company the hotel need to check the suitability of the service legal agreement. The suitability is required for the company so that the confidentiality can be respected and even backed up by both insurance and law. There are many security service providers who offer the insurance (Bachlechner, Thalmann and Maier, 2014).
It is recommended to the hotel to take the step towards the outsourcing of the security. The company should select the system according to their requirement and needs. The company can make use of the best payment gateway and secured booking engines as this is the only way through which the company can safeguard the data and winning the trust of customers. The company should outsource the services from a trustworthy security agency. The hotel should also make the purchase cyber security insurance.
Conclusion
The report throws light on the security department of the global hotel chain. The hotel selected for the analysis is Hyatt who operates the business across the world and believes in providing the delight experiences to their customers. Though, the company faced the hacker’s attack that created the impact on the security department of the company and exploited the experience of the customers with the hotel (Espino-Rodríguez and Lai, 2014). Furthermore, the report talks about the roles and responsibilities of the department. The role and needs of the customers are essential for the security department with the help of this the department is going to take the necessary steps to ensure that they are able to deliver the experience. In Hotel, there is a need for the outsourcing the security services that can help the company to safeguard the data or information of employees.
References
Bachlechner, D., Thalmann, S. and Maier, R., 2014. Security and compliance challenges in complex IT outsourcing arrangements: A multi-stakeholder perspective. Computers & Security, vol. 4, pp.38-59.
Brinkkemper, S. and Jansen, S., 2016. Collaboration in outsourcing: A journey to quality. Springer.
Cruce, A., 2015, Advantages And Disadvantages Of Outsourcing Security, Viewed on 5th January 2017, <https://www.monetarylibrary.com/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-outsourcing-security/>
Espino-Rodríguez, T.F. and Lai, P.C., 2014. Activity outsourcing and competitive strategy in the hotel industry. The moderator role of asset specificity. International Journal of Hospitality Management, vol. 42, pp.9-19.
Fennelly, L. and Perry, M., 2016. Physical security: 150 things you should know. Butterworth-Heinemann.
Hotel News Now, 2017, Timeline: The growing number of hotel data breaches, Viewed on 5th January 2017, <https://www.hotelnewsnow.com/Articles/50937/Timeline-The-growing-number-of-hotel-data-breaches>
Hyatt, 2017, Security & Safety, Viewed on 5th January 2017, <https://www.hyatt.com/hyatt/about/security-safety/index.jsp>
Job Responsibilities, 2017, Hotel Security Job Responsibilities, Viewed on 5th January 2017, <https://www.jobresponsibilities.org/hotel-security.html>
Krebs on Security, 2017, Hyatt Hotels Suffers 2nd Card Breach in 2 Years, Viewed on 5th January 2017, <https://krebsonsecurity.com/2017/10/hyatt-hotels-suffers-2nd-card-breach-in-2-years/>
Rao, B.G., 2017, Fix Your Risk, Viewed on 5th January 2017, <https://www.hotelierindia.com/fix-your-risk/>
Schwartz, M.J., 2016, Hyatt Breach: 250 Hotels, 50 Countries, Viewed on 5th January 2017, <https://www.bankinfosecurity.com/hyatt-breach-250-hotels-50-countries-a-8802>
Sennewald, C.A. and Baillie, C., 2015. Effective security management. Butterworth-Heinemann.
Torres, E.N., Fu, X. and Lehto, X., 2014. Examining key drivers of customer delight in a hotel experience: A cross-cultural perspective. International Journal of Hospitality Management, vol.36, pp.255-262