Hospitable

About Hospitable

Hospitable is a podcast that discusses how to make hospitality MORE human through technology. Hospitable focuses on discussing the leading challenges facing the hospitality industry and to explore the latest trends, technologies, and best practices that are shaping the industry. Each episode features interviews with hoteliers, restaurateurs, chefs, industry analysts, and other experts who share their insights and experiences on topics such as customer experience, sustainability, innovation, staffing, and more. Hosted by Rob Napoli

Publisher

Omniboost

Category

business · technology

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

9 Sept 2023

Latest episode

25 Dec 2025

Latest episodes

3 of 47 episodes have a transcript.

1. 

   25 Dec 2025TRANSCRIPT

   AI Won't Kill Hotels, It'll Upgrade Them with Dr. Fredrik Sjoberg

   AI isn’t coming to replace hospitality, it’s coming to restore it. In this final episode of Hospitable, host Rob Napoli sits down with Dr. Fredrik Sjoberg to explore how unified data, better hotel education, and AI-driven tools will shape the next decade of hotel innovation. As founder of Maison and a professor at NYU, Fredrik brings a rare combination of academic insight and hands-on startup execution. From shifting guest expectations to the real problem behind “bad tech stacks,” this conversation uncovers why the future belongs to hotels that connect their systems, elevate their teams, and adopt AI as a co‑pilot, not a replacement. 🧩 Topics Covered - Why AI will transform hotel service without removing the human touch - How data unification unlocks real personalisation & operator advantage - Why hospitality schools must teach business, tech & integrations - How AI can relieve staffing shortages and operational overload - Where hotels should begin their digital transformation journey - Why young talent and student collaboration will drive the next wave of innovation Whether you’re a hotel operator, tech leader, educator, or future hospitality founder, this episode breaks down the mindset and ecosystem needed to thrive in the next era of guest experience. 📢 Like, subscribe, and comment: What’s one task you’d let AI handle tomorrow? 🔗 Learn more about Maison: https://www.maison.cx 🔗 Learn more about Omniboost: https://www.omniboost.com ⏱️ Timestamps 02:45 How Gen‑Z Views Hospitality Careers 05:30 Confusion Around Hospitality Jobs 08:40 Guest-Facing Roles vs. Corporate Paths 10:55 The Future of In‑Keeping & Personality-Driven Hotels 13:50 Travel Culture, Work Flexibility & Misconceptions 16:50 How Travelers Choose Hotels Today 20:12 Community-Driven Hotels & “Hidden Neighborhoods” 23:30 Data: The Operator’s Missing Advantage 26:05 Connectivity Problems & Bad Integrations 29:35 Tech Stack for Next-Gen Hotels 33:20 Unique Concepts & Rapid Hotel Iteration 36:15 Why AI Matters for Operators 39:45 Conversational AI & Personalisation 47:00 The Future: Human Service + Digital Co‑pilots Connect Dr. Fredrik Sjøberg: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fredrik-sjoberg-6851174 Maison: https://www.maison.cx Rob Napoli: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robnap Rob Napoli: https://www.robnapoli.com Omniboost: https://www.omniboost.io Show Produced by: Niranjan Deshpande (Nick), Broken Frames Studio, www.brokenframesstudio.com #HospitalityTech #AIinHotels #HotelTechnology #HotelInnovation #DataUnification #FutureOfHospitality #HospitalityEducation #HotelOperations #GuestExperience #ConnectedEcosystem #MaisonTech #Omniboost

2. 

   11 Dec 2025TRANSCRIPT

   Stop Fearing Tech, Start Scaling with Ricarda Müller from #ibelsa

   The best hotel tech doesn’t replace people, it empowers them. In this episode of Hospitable, host Rob Napoli sits down with Ricarda Müller, COO and Partner Manager at ibelsa, to explore how their people-first, modular PMS became a favorite across the DACH market. From zero downtime in 8+ years to smart integrations and AI-driven workflows, ibelsa is proving that great tech starts with great relationships. 🧩 Topics Covered - Why modular PMS beats all-in-one systems for scaling with control - How ibelsa achieved 8 years of zero downtime, and why it matters at reception - Building trusted integrations (POS, Omniboost, accounting, and more) - How AI, automation, and mobile-first tools are transforming operations - The hidden advantage of having no outside investors - What hotels really need in a tech partner (hint: it’s not more features) Whether you’re running 20 rooms or 200, this episode is packed with practical lessons for choosing, scaling, and trusting the right hospitality tech. 📢 Like, subscribe, and comment below: What tech decision helped your team the most this year? 🔗 Learn more about ibelsa: https://www.ibelsa.com 🔗 Explore Omniboost: https://www.omniboost.com ⏱️ Timestamps 02:08 “Find a way to make fun”, Workaholic or passion-driven? 03:38 How ibelsa differentiates in a crowded PMS market 06:36 Eight years with zero downtime 07:47 Customer-led roadmap & no external investors 09:27 Modular PMS: Scaling from 10 to 150 rooms 11:04 Why “all-in-one” systems rarely win 13:01 Building smooth integrations with POS, channels & Omniboost 16:04 Staff shortages, AI, and dynamic pricing as must-haves 21:09 “AI today is the most immature it will ever be” 22:20 What’s next on ibelsa’s roadmap 24:19 Best travel memories & belief in people Connect Ricarda Müller: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ricarda-m%C3%BCller-carminho-75324039 ibelsa: https://www.ibelsa.com Rob Napoli: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robnap Rob Napoli: https://www.robnapoli.com Omniboost: https://www.omniboost.io Show Produced by: Niranjan Deshpande (Nick), Broken Frames Studio, www.brokenframesstudio.com #hospitalitytech #hotelpms #cloudpms #hotelsoftware #hospitalityindustry #ibelsa #omniboost #hoteltechnology #hospitalityautomation #hotelintegration #dynamicpricing #hotelmanagementsoftware #aiforhotels #hospitalityai #pmsintegration

3. 

   27 Nov 2025TRANSCRIPT

   Property Champions, Clean Data, Better Hospitality: Belmond’s Formula with Tiago Alves

   How do you build a connected tech ecosystem for 42 luxury properties, across trains, safari camps, river cruises, and hotels, in multiple legal jurisdictions? In this episode of Hospitable, host Rob Napoli sits down with Tiago Alves of Belmond to unpack one of the most ambitious digital transformations in global hospitality. From fragmented PMS systems to a unified, cloud-based platform, with 40+ integrations and an in-house API layer, Belmond’s journey is a masterclass in data unification, change management, and making hospitality tech actually work for people. 🧩 Topics Covered - From duplicated guest profiles to a single source of truth - Why Belmond built its own API & integration layer - The role of “property champions” in driving adoption - Legal, tax & compliance realities of cloud PMS across multiple countries - Lessons from delayed go-lives—and what they’d do differently - How Belmond automates the predictable so staff can focus on guests If you're leading a PMS migration, building a hotel tech stack, or struggling with data silos, this episode is a blueprint you can’t afford to miss. 📢 Like, subscribe, and drop a comment: What's your biggest challenge in connecting your hospitality systems? 🔗 Learn more: https://www.omniboost.com 🔗 Explore Belmond: https://www.belmond.com ⏱️ Timestamps 00:00 Cold Open: Building a Connected Ecosystem 01:14 Meet Tiago & Belmond’s Tech Award 02:12 “Just Another Tech?” – Why This Project Mattered 03:23 20 Years in Hospitality Tech 04:27 Who is Belmond? A Diverse Luxury Portfolio 05:14 The Problem: Fragmented PMS Databases 06:42 Finding the Right Partner in a Legal Landscape 08:20 Involving Cross-Functional Teams from Day One 10:00 Property Champions & Local Ownership 11:37 Balancing Standards & Local Needs 13:19 Change Management & Tech Aversion 19:03 Delays & Building an In-House API Layer 22:35 Scaling to 40+ Integrations 26:05 Go-Live Realities: Migration & Cleanup 29:06 Owning the Data Pipeline 31:38 What Tiago Would Do Differently 36:26 Automating the Predictable to Free Up Staff 44:18 How to Reach Tiago & Closing Thoughts Connect Tiago Alves: https://www.linkedin.com/in/talves Belmond: https://www.belmond.com Rob Napoli: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robnap Rob Napoli: https://www.robnapoli.com Omniboost: https://www.omniboost.com Show Produced by: Niranjan Deshpande (Nick), Broken Frames Studio, http://www.brokenframesstudio.com #hospitalitytech #hotelpms #belmond #cloudpms #hotelsoftware #hospitalitydata #systemsintegration #hospitalityapi #hoteltechnology #dataplatform #aiforhotels #hospitalityautomation #hotelmanagementsystem #pmsintegration #connectedhospitality

Inside a recent episode

AI Won't Kill Hotels, It'll Upgrade Them with Dr. Fredrik Sjoberg

Published 25 Dec 2025 · Transcript excerpt

[…] Like you can also create that to know what your guest is. So if you have the data on what your guest is or who your guest is and how long they stay. Exactly. You can then train that model to really provide the experience they want. If it's it's a out of town guest that's there for pleasure versus business, they have a whole different track of information that you can give from an operator level and different partnerships and things from the community. So you're curating to business travel or the project. That hyper -personalization that we all been talking about forever, I think it's closer than we think. […]

Who has been a guest on Hospitable

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Vincent Gitsels
• Romano Ruijtenburg
• Gerald J Leonard
• Kees Zorge
• Levar Jackson

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

YouTube views

66,337

Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

1 ratings

Spotify

4.7 / 5

14 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 67 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

71

Social presence

0

YouTube

85

Engagement

71

Contact Hospitable

Guest appearances

Does not typically book guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

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