The Future is Human: Agentic AI for hospitality

The Future is Human: Agentic AI for hospitality

The phrase “AI is coming for your job” has been thrown around for years. But for Ayesha Ansari, Harri’s Director of Product for AI and Analytics, the story is far different. At the Hospitality Tech Expo, she took to the stage to discuss a different kind of artificial intelligence, one designed to empower hospitality operators, not replace them.

The real cost of automation

The promise of automation is tantalising, but the reality is often messy. Ayesha highlighted common friction points with customer-facing AI. She shared examples like McDonald’s AI-powered drive-thru, where 80% of interactions ended in friction. This example highlights a core truth: people still crave human connection.

To back this up, Harri recently surveyed 1,000 U.S. consumers, and the results were striking:

• One in three people said they would not visit a highly automated restaurant.
• 97% said they would give a “robot restaurant” a one-star review.

Hospitality is a people-centric industry. Guests want to talk about their food allergies, order a specific oat latte, or simply connect with another person. When AI tries to replace that core human element, it fails.

Empowering people, not replacing them

Instead of replacing the human touch, Ayesha’s team is focused on using AI to empower the people who run the business, from General Managers to Area Managers and front-line staff. This approach is generating a real return on investment.

A day in the life of a general manager

Harri’s AI platform, which includes the AI assistant Salli, is designed to handle the day-to-day administrative burdens that get in the way of operations. The first use case Harri tackled with its new AI was scheduling, which is notoriously complex. Factors like weather, marketing events, school holidays, and labour laws all play a part.

Ayesha showcased how Salli streamlines this process:

• Warnings: Salli flags potential issues, such as a scheduling overlap with school hours, before a manager publishes the schedule.
• Recommendations: Managers receive proactive recommendations for shift changes, which they can either accept or decline. The human remains in control.
• Support: For new managers, Salli acts as a built-in support bot, trained on Harri’s platform materials. It provides step-by-step guidance and even includes videos to help them learn the system.

Ayesha shared a story from a beta customer at KFC, who uses Salli to train new managers in just 20 minutes. This frees up experienced managers to focus on what they do best: leading their team and serving guests.

A look at what’s next

The potential for this type of AI is massive. Harri is already building out a roadmap to expand it’s agentic AI capabilities across different roles and modules within the platform.

• Area Managers: Salli can provide insights across multiple units, helping managers compare performance and identify trends.
• Hiring Managers: The AI can create and post job descriptions from templates, summarise candidate qualifications, and recommend top candidates.
• Front-line Staff: Employees can use Salli to swap shifts, update their availability, and even access training materials.

As Ayesha concluded, “Hospitality is a very, very people-centric industry.” The goal of Harri’s AI is not to replace the great people who serve our customers. It is to empower them.

Curious to see how AI can transform your HR and operations?