Solving sustainability challenges: The role of digital technologies and tech startups

Sustainability is becoming a crucial aspect of business operations and models, but the service sector has been slower to adopt sustainable practices. In this article, EHL Associate Professor Carlos Martin-Rios explains the industry is showing interest in resource management but lacks direction on how to link it to a competitive advantage. Digital technologies and their associated startup ecosystems hold a key to supporting the sustainable...

Carlos Martin-Rios

Sustainability is slowly becoming a driving force in reshaping the business model and operations of firms. As the aspiration of sustainability implies profound, fundamental transformations of the economy and society, organizations must not just care or aspire to being sustainable but firmly activate sustainable practices for business success.

Compared to the manufacturing industries, the service sector - including tourism, hospitality, foodservice and business services - has been slower in adopting sustainability practices and transforming their core business models and innovation strategies to advance the sustainability transition.

Read the full article on hotelyearbook.com

The Hotel Yearbook 2023 - Annual Edition

As we have embarked on 2023, it is evident that the hotel industry has made a robust recovery from the

pandemic.

Occupancy and pricing have returned to their pre-pandemic levels. However, the future of our

industry is contingent

on how nimble the hospitality sector can be in adapting to ongoing innovation, changing market

conditions, evolving

consumer preferences, new staffing challenges, and sustainability realities. These uncertainties are

the new normal

in an unpredictable world.

Carlos Martin-Rios (PhD, Rutgers University) is associate professor of management at EHL Hospitality Business School, Switzerland. His research is situated at the intersection of sustainability and innovation management, with a focus on applying management theories to address grand challenges, particularly within the food value chain.

EHL Hospitality Business School (Lausanne) is an ambassador for traditional Swiss hospitality and has been a pioneer in hospitality education since 1893 with over 25,000 alumni worldwide and over 120 nationalities. EHL is the world's first hospitality management school that provides university-level programs at its campuses in Lausanne and Chur-Passugg, as well as online learning solutions.