OVERVIEW
Marriott’s chat tool originally worked only on the website and couldn’t support guests across their full journey. I assembled and led a cross-functional team to turn it into a unified chat platform for both web and mobile. Our goal was to give guests and associates fast, accurate answers through AI-assisted support—before booking, during their stay, and after checkout. By connecting chat to key Marriott systems and improving speed, relevance, and consistency, we created a scalable solution that reduced friction, strengthened guest satisfaction, and delivered a reliable support channel across the brand.
THE CHALLENGE
Marriott’s existing chat system was functional but inefficient. It relied heavily on associates manually responding to high volumes of routine guest questions—everything from check-in details to pool hours to local events. Slow response times meant guests often learned about amenities or upsell opportunities too late to act on them, leading to missed revenue and a frustrating service experience. With no unified platform across web and app, the system couldn’t scale or deliver the proactive, real-time support guests now expect.
THE SOLUTION
I led a cross-functional initiative to transform the chat tool into an AI-assisted, enterprisewide platform that served both web and mobile. We automated high-volume questions, improved intent recognition, and surfaced relevant amenities, offers, and on-property experiences at the right moment. Associates remained in the loop for complex inquiries, but their workload dropped significantly. By unifying the system, speeding up responses, and proactively highlighting activities and upgrades, we created a faster, more consistent guest support channel that increased satisfaction and enabled meaningful upsell opportunities throughout the stay.
Pain Points
"I just want one place to talk to Marriott—no more waiting, dead ends, or unanswered messages."
This moment was repeated across thousands of interactions — small frustrations, massive impact.
Inconsistent and Slow Guest Response Times
Bonvoy chat response times vary widely across properties, creating inconsistent service levels that frustrate guests and erode trust in the brand.
Disconnected Communication Channels
Guests can’t reply directly to transactional emails or “Room Ready” texts, causing messages to go unanswered and breaking the natural flow of communication with hotel staff.
Limited Automation for Common Requests
Associates spend valuable time manually answering repetitive guest questions due to the lack of AI or template support for common, high-volume inquiries.
Poor Associate Experience and Tool Optimization
The current messaging platform isn’t optimized for chat workflows or multitasking, leaving understaffed teams struggling to manage high message volumes without streamlined tools or AI support.
Strategy & Approach
Enterprise Chat Transformation: From Human Messaging to AI-Powered Guest Experiences
1. Discover & Align
Partnered with global operations, digital product, and front-desk teams to uncover pain points in guest-to-staff chat interactions and define a unified communication vision.
2. Define the North Star
Established a north star experience centered on effortless, intelligent conversations that anticipate guest needs across every Marriott property and digital touchpoint.
3. Shape the Vision
Envisioned a system that evolves from a basic two-way messaging tool into an enterprise-wide AI assistant capable of handling personalized requests, bookings, and service recovery.
4. Build Scalable Systems
Designed a modular conversational framework and component library aligned with Marriott’s Global Design System to ensure consistency, security, and rapid deployment.
5. Collaborate & Integrate
Partnered with engineering, data science, and brand teams to embed AI, automation, and human hand-off flows across mobile, web, and property systems.
6. Scale & Evolve
Defined a continuous learning loop using behavioral data and guest feedback to refine AI accuracy, expand multilingual support, and scale globally across brands and markets.
Key Design Decisions
My approach blends creativity with systems thinking — connecting strategy, data, and design craft to create experiences that move both people and the business forward.
