ONDA's CEO and division leader attended the International Hotel Technology Forum in Madrid. They discovered that European hotel chains have been investing in tech partnerships for decades—and many want to enter Korea and Asia through ONDA.
Did you know there's a dedicated hotel technology conference every year?
This past April 27–28, Madrid hosted the INTERNATIONAL HOTEL TECHNOLOGY FORUM 2022 (IHTF). Industry leaders from around the globe gather there to discuss digital transformation, share wins, debate challenges — and hunt for business opportunities.
ONDA's CEO Oh Hyun-seok, Business Division Leader Lim Mi-hee, and Global Business Team Lead Lee Chan-min attended IHTF for the first time.
CEO Oh's takeaway? "The global market is full of opportunities. We'll absolutely be back next year." He was struck by the number of regional and national hotel chains from Europe and America eager to partner with ONDA to break into Korea and broader Asia.
So what did ONDA learn at IHTF? We sat down with CEO Oh and Division Leader Lim for the full story.
1. COVID recovery meets digital transformation — what did ONDA discover at IHTF?
CEO Oh: "I was amazed to learn how many hotel tech conferences exist globally — and that some have been running for 20 to 25 years. That means hotels abroad have been thinking about these problems since the late '90s."
Division Leader Lim: "It was my first international forum in two and a half years because of the pandemic. My heart was racing the entire time."
"In Korea, we're usually buried in immediate performance metrics, sales targets — day-to-day reality. At IHTF, I got to peek inside the minds of global hotel chains and tech companies. Hearing how market leaders think about the future — where they're headed and why — was a wake-up call."
What specific insights stood out?
CEO Oh was blown away by the CIO of Pestana Hotel:
"He proudly showed us this slide of their back-office architecture and said, 'This is how we've built our systems.' For anything critical to the guest experience that they couldn't do in-house, they actively sought out best-in-class partners to integrate."
"Then he mapped out what they plan to tackle next. You rarely see Korean hotels investing this aggressively in IT services."
"It was impressive. In Korea, hospitality is the dream industry if you studied hotel management — but it's not where top developers, product people, or young innovators want to work."
"Looking at what they're building? I thought, 'This is different. This is fast.' If I were a developer, I'd want to work there."
Division Leader Lim was struck by the emphasis on customer experience and data:
"One of the most repeated themes at IHTF was the importance of data."
"What global hotels are investing in isn't just tech for tech's sake — it's capturing customer experience data."
"They're using it to: 1) deliver exceptional service from booking through post-checkout — true customer satisfaction, 2) understand needs to enable customized & optimized recommendations, and 3) maximize revenue management while keeping guests happy."
"Think about everything that affects satisfaction from check-in to checkout and beyond: website content quality, booking ease, real-time updates, loyalty programs — these are all tech problems. Human service and property upkeep are table stakes, but tech is what scales experience."
"Hotels and tech companies have to grow together. There's no other way."
2. ONDA's view of the global market
At IHTF, ONDA's Global Business Lead Lee Chan-min presented on digital transformation across Asian hotels — and got a strong reception. Global hospitality leaders were impressed by ONDA's tech capabilities and scalability.
That said, plenty of Korean tech startups have tried going global and failed: poor market research, mismatched consumer expectations, communication breakdowns.
ONDA is expanding into Southeast Asia. Can we actually compete internationally?
CEO Oh: "There's a clear market leader in global hospitality tech. Most luxury hotels use them. I used to think they were unbeatable."
"But after IHTF, I realized: no one stays #1 forever."
"Hotels now have to think about the online experience as much as the offline one. And many hotel tech veterans told us on-site that legacy systems make them nervous."
"Sure, ONDA doesn't yet have feature parity with the incumbent. But because we obsess over customer needs, our OBS (Online Booking Solution) — currently being refined — and our online distribution solution (GDS) for international chains entering Korea are absolutely competitive."
Beyond global mega-chains, many renowned regional hotel groups in Europe and the U.S. want to enter Korea. For them, ONDA — with its deep local distribution network — is an ideal partner. We met with over 15 hotel chains, and almost all responded positively.
CEO Oh: "Korean travelers are hugely important to international hotels. We explained how ONDA can own the entire Korean customer relationship — our tech and unmatched online sales network."
"We may soon see hotels saying, 'Our Korean operations? We're outsourcing everything to ONDA.'"
Division Leader Lim: "Since ONDA operates both tech and online distribution, I'm excited to introduce our platform to global hotels."
"I also want to bring high-quality European hotels and travel content — still unfamiliar in Korea — to Korean travelers."
One UAE-based global hotel chain showed particular interest. Right after the event, Global Business Lead Lee Chan-min boarded an unplanned flight to Abu Dhabi. 😉
3. Can ONDA's technology — and Korean hotels — compete globally?
We asked Division Leader Lim: how does ONDA's tech stack up on the world stage?
"Most PMSs today focus on room management, with external integrations bolted on for everything else."
"People are so used to it, they don't feel the pain — or don't see a compelling reason to switch. But ONDA can build those features. With a bit of time and focused effort, we'll get there."
"What matters is whether new tech actually solves hotels' problems — and whether it gives guests a better online experience. That's where ONDA excels."
Are there lessons Korean hotels should learn from international peers? What does CEO Oh think?
"I was genuinely shocked. European hotel chains have already started investing in technology to improve guest experience. Korea feels like it's just beginning. Some people here still believe hospitality is only about human service."
"Of course human service matters in a service business. But you also need technology across the entire journey: guest acquisition, service delivery, post-checkout CRM. Investment in those areas is critical."
Finally, Division Leader Lim wanted to share something the IHTF moderator said in both the opening and closing remarks:
"He said: 'We (hotels) still make guests fill out paper forms at check-in. They still have to wait in the lobby while we process them.' Everyone in the auditorium laughed."
"As someone in the industry, I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. It hit me — sometimes reality can't keep up with technology, and sometimes technology doesn't reflect reality."
"It was just one example. But it made me think: ONDA's mission should be to build solutions that both lead and reflect reality."
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