Date of Graduation

12-2021

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science in Human Environmental Sciences

Degree Level

Undergraduate

Department

Human Development, Family Sciences and Rural Sociology

Advisor/Mentor

Wang, Yao-Chin

Committee Member/Reader

Hamm, Dede

Committee Member/Second Reader

Cheramie, Lance

Committee Member/Third Reader

Way, Kelly

Abstract

Robots, Artificial Intelligence, and Service Automation, or RAISA, has become increasingly accessible and affordable for a wider demographic of businesses, including hospitality operations, to implement over the last couple of decades. Especially over the past five years, we’ve seen a significant surge of interest in automating within the service industry and a coupled sense of uneasiness that this technological development would in turn displace the human workers, due to factors such as cost of labor and perceived removal of human error; however, this thesis will posit that automation is most effectively used by augmenting the capabilities of the present workforce. Integrating smarter technology and an Internet of Things can vastly improve efficiency for the workers, and allow them to defer menial tasks while having more time and resources for more significant duties or issues. Therefore, instead of feeling apprehension about automation, it is more prudent to use it as a tool to better equip the service workforce. To justify this, five front desk workers from the Graduate Fayetteville hotel have been interviewed regarding their opinions and knowledge of RAISA. The analysis is qualitative in nature to gain a more thorough understanding of how a local selection of employees would benefit from these improvements.

Keywords

Hospitality; RAISA; AI; Technology; Labor; Artificial Intelligence

Additional Files
Logan O'Hara - Interview Transcripts.pdf (93 kB)
The transcripts for each interview conducted.
Logan O'Hara - Thesis Tables.pdf (86 kB)
The tables compiling responses from the interviewed employees.
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