Impact of Automation on Service Efficiency and Guest Satisfaction in the Hospitality Industry in Kerala

Abstract

Digitalization of hospitality services and automation is one of the fast-growing trends of the services sector, but only limited research has focused on finding the relationship between automation and service efficiency/customer satisfaction in culturally inclined tourism destinations like Kerala. The current study examines the impact of automation on service efficiency and customer satisfaction in Budget, Mid-scale, and Luxury hotels in Kerala. A descriptive, quantitative research design has been employed, and the primary data were collected from 384 hotel guests through a structured questionnaire using a 5-point Likert scale, and data were analysed with the aid of SPSS 26 through linear regression, Pearson correlation, and one-way ANOVA. The regression results demonstrated that service efficiency is significant in explaining variation in customer satisfaction (R = 0.672, R² = 0.452, F = 220.423, p < 0.001), and automation (β = 0.672) is a positively affecting variable. The Pearson correlation shows that customer satisfaction has a strong positive association with automation experience (r = 0.614, p < 0.01). One-way ANOVA suggests a significant difference in customer satisfaction across hotel categories (F=29.842, p < 0.001), with luxury hotels having the highest mean (M=35.61), mid-scale hotels next (M=31.92), and budget hotels last (M=28.45). Automation positively impacts service efficiency and guest satisfaction. Still, it has to be implemented at a rate that complements the human element of services, without losing Kerala's traditional service values.