The latest study by HFS Research, in partnership with WNS, sheds light on the pressing concerns plaguing travel and hospitality firms. A survey of 315 industry participants across airlines, airports, hotels and online travel agencies reveals a resounding consensus: The double blow of adapting to changing customer expectations and navigating digital disruption is the primary challenge facing organizations today.
Figure 1: Challenges Facing the Travel and Hospitality Industry
Source: HFS Research, 2024
At the heart of this challenge lies the need to revamp service offerings to align with evolving customer needs while simultaneously attracting and retaining top talent. It's a delicate balancing act that underscores the imperative of staying competitive and securing human capital in an increasingly dynamic landscape.
Operationalizing Customer-centricity
The demand for personalized, and even hyper-personalized, services stands as one of the paramount expectations of the modern consumer. Safety and wellness standards are also high on the priority list. However, when considering the environmental impact of purchases, opinions are varied and often conflicting.
But what does putting the customer at the center of operations truly mean? It's more than just a superficial makeover or the implementation of a rudimentary chatbot. True customer-centricity requires a fundamental re-orientation of the organizational mindset – a pivot from the inside out.
Operationalizing customer-centricity demands a holistic approach – from the frontlines to the back-office. Travel and hospitality firms must undergo a process of internal re-organization aimed at aligning every facet of their operations with the needs and expectations of the customer. This entails not only modernizing legacy systems and processes but also leveraging the broader ecosystem to drive innovation and efficiency.
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Figure 2: The Need for Organizations to Change the Operating Model
Source: HFS Research, 2024
Digital Maturity and Operational Challenges
Yet, as the survey data reveals, travel and hospitality firms are grappling with varying degrees of digital maturity, with many lagging in critical areas such as sales, marketing, procurement and HR. Legacy systems and outdated processes remain stubborn barriers to progress, hindering efforts to adapt to the shifting sands of customer expectations.
Only 27 percent of travel and hospitality firms believe they have achieved full digital maturity.
Source: HFS Research, 2024
The path ahead demands a concerted effort to enhance digital maturity and embrace operational changes aligned with the evolving landscape of customer expectations. It's a journey that requires a strategic focus on modernization, connectivity and agility – a journey that promises to unlock untapped value and propel travel and hospitality firms into a new era of growth and resilience.
Dive deeper into the insights and recommendations, outlined for the travel and hospitality industry, in the comprehensive report by HFS Research in partnership with WNS.
FAQs
1. What are the biggest challenges travel and hospitality firms face in 2024 and beyond?
Travel and hospitality organizations are navigating a complex landscape shaped by evolving customer expectations, digital disruption, talent shortages and rising operational costs. Success requires balancing customer-centric innovation with operational efficiency and resilience. WNS helps organizations address these challenges through intelligent operations, digital transformation and analytics-driven decision-making that improve both customer outcomes and business performance.
2. How can travel and hospitality firms accelerate digital maturity while maintaining business agility?
Many organizations continue to face challenges associated with legacy systems, fragmented processes and inconsistent digital capabilities. Accelerating digital maturity requires modernization across technology, operations and organizational culture. WNS helps travel and hospitality enterprises build agile, future-ready operating models that leverage AI, automation and advanced analytics to drive sustainable growth.
3. Why is customer-centricity becoming a critical growth strategy for travel and hospitality companies?
Modern travelers expect personalized, seamless and connected experiences across every stage of their journey. True customer-centricity requires organizations to align front-office, middle-office and back-office functions around customer needs rather than internal processes. WNS helps enterprises operationalize customer-centricity through data-driven insights, intelligent automation and customer experience transformation strategies.
4. How can ecosystem partnerships and emerging technologies unlock new value for travel businesses?
The future of travel and hospitality increasingly depends on collaboration across suppliers, technology providers and service partners. AI, cloud platforms, automation and ecosystem-driven business models can help organizations improve agility, innovation and operational performance. WNS enables travel enterprises to leverage strategic partnerships and emerging technologies to create new revenue opportunities and competitive differentiation.
5. Why should travel and hospitality organizations partner with WNS to navigate industry transformation?
WNS combines deep travel and hospitality expertise with advanced analytics, AI, automation and intelligent operations capabilities. From customer experience transformation and digital modernization to finance, procurement and shared services optimization, WNS helps organizations build resilient, innovation-driven enterprises. This enables travel businesses to improve profitability, accelerate digital maturity and create sustainable competitive advantage in a rapidly evolving market.