September 21, 2010— CHICAGO—For Hyatt CIO Mike Blake, streamlining the back-end systems has become a major priority. To that end, the company recently contracted with Microsoft to switch to their software and revamp the back-end systems of all of its properties worldwide.

Part of that move is to make its systems more cloud-centric, but Blake doesn't take credit for that. He noted that, "We were in the cloud before there was a cloud," with a lot of outsourced data centers and other projects. It's a corporate direction to try and streamline systems and Blake is charged with making sure it happens smoothly.

Ultimately, Hyatt decided to go with Microsoft's Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS), which features Microsoft Exchange Online with Microsoft Exchange Hosted Filtering, Microsoft SharePoint Online, Microsoft Office Communications Online and Microsoft Office Live Meeting.

The components replace a system Hyatt was using that, according to Blake, isn't a bad system, but isn't as easily scalable, and wasn't as easily plug-and-play with many of the new mobile platforms.

The Microsoft system will also give Hyatt new options for communicating with staff.

"Every Hyatt employee in North America will now have an e-mail address," Blake said, whereas previously, only key staff members had a company address. This, he said, allows it to do other things, such as automate in human resources. It plans to start creating all work schedules, for example, in the computer system and e-mailing it to employees, which is a much more efficient system than the one the hotel company currently uses.

In addition to a streamlined and universal e-mail system, Hyatt will also have access to functionality such as shared MS Word documents, Blake said. He pointed out the benefits, citing multiple lawyers, for instance, could be working on a single contract in multiple locations. Once the system is in place, that functionality could be extended to customers booking groups or meetings, allowing everyone make changes to a single document at one time.

"Two of the short-term benefits we'll see right away will be a more stable e-mail system, and I think our users are going to be very happy about the functionality Outlook and SharePoint will give them," said Blake. "Our users will have functions they can enjoy and use. The ability to share and connect with customers is a huge long-term benefit."

For now, Blake noted, the bulk of the changes will be on the back-end, so customers won't see a major change. However, once the system is rolled-out, he expects the services will start to be more visible.

Getting the ball rolling

Hyatt signed the contracts with Microsoft just recently, so the process of changing over to the new systems hasn't started yet. "I can tell you [the move has been] fantastic because we haven't done anything yet," Blake joked. "We're still in the planning stages, and haven't really moved anything yet. We will start moving pretty aggressively toward the end of this year and first quarter of next year."

He anticipates the change-over will be smooth, noting, "it is a pretty tried-and-true process." He believes that any issues will be around change management and training employees on usage of the new systems. "It truly is a platform that's extendible. Everything talks to each other," he noted.

Once this move is complete, Blake doesn't see Hyatt ending there. "As with anything, I think it's a journey," he said, "and the decision to move to BPOS was just the first step." As to where the company will go next, that he doesn't know yet. He just knows upgrades and thinking about the cloud are things he can't afford to ignore.

"These kind of cloud decisions are more into the future, but the future is now," he noted. "You don't need to know how the power gets into your house, you don't need to know how it works, you just want to know your toaster works. That's how it is. I don't think my users care how the e-mail is routed or which server it uses. They just care that it gets there in time and is easy to use."

Microsoft's solutions, he believes, are the best choice for that. He pointed out that there are other great solutions from companies such as Google and Apple, but right now, the bulk of companies across all industries aren't using those platforms. He felt it was better to have Hyatt on a more universal system. But he's not closing his mind to anything for the future as both technology and Hyatt evolve.