Mobile technology may be the most significant development in the hotel industry since electronic guestroom door locks. Not only are guests using mobile devices to find, shop and book hotels (a Ypartnership/Harrison Group study says 42% of iPad owners use the device to shop hotel rates), but hotel operators and their employees have found many ways to improve operating efficiencies and sales and marketing acumen through mobile computing.

The Pan Pacific Hotel in Seattle recently adopted a mobile technology that links many of the property’s key departments—from housekeeping and in-room dining to front desk and valet—to ensure quick and effective response to guest needs. The application, HotSOS2go from MTech, uses iPod Touch technology to enable staff members to enter guest requests and service orders quickly and directly. The tasks are automatically assigned to the appropriate departments for action.

“Obviously, the system improves our operating efficiency because it reduces the number of calls into our Service One nerve center,” says Eli Houck, director of IT for the 160-room hotel. “Accountability is also important. Everyone on the system, whether they’re room attendants or parking valets, knows they’re responsible for fast acknowledgment of issues and to take ownership of them.”

Each morning, the system issues a report to property managers that lists most-requested items, any delays in response times and other data. Houck says managers use the report to make sure the system isn’t breaking down in any particular area.

About a month ago, the hotel added a sister application, REX Room Expediter, from MTech that assists in room attendant scheduling and, since it is a paperless solution, moves the hotel closer to its goal of sustainable operations.

Mobile technology also has a place in hotel sales and marketing. At a Residence Inn in suburban Cleveland, Director of Sales Lynsey Kreitzer uses a mobile application of the hotel SalesPro software to manage her sales and marketing functions, particularly when she’s off-property at sales calls.

“A couple of weeks ago I was out in the community and passed the offices of a company to which I’ve made a lot of phone calls and done some telemarketing but have never met the key contact in person,” she says. “It would be impossible for me to remember off the top of my head the name of the person, but I was able to look on my iPhone and get the contact info and account history immediately and make a spontaneous sales call.”

She also uses the system to access group and function information and to instantly check on room and meeting space availability and rates. A mapping function allows her to find her appointments.

“It makes it a lot easier for me to communicate both with clients and with my team at the hotel. If I’m out of the office, which as a salesperson I should be, I don’t need to worry about any miscommunications.”

All six Residence Inns in the Cleveland market operated by Interstate Hotels’ Crossroads division use the technology.