Accommodation & Food Services

Tourism industries, inclusive of the accommodation and food services [AFS] sector, are considered one of the main drivers of economic growth in Australia. Tourism industries collectively contributed over $100 billion to Australia’s GDP and employed nearly one million people in 2019. One of the emergent issues associated with tourism industries is the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) and the impacts of transformative digital technologies. Globally, it has been rightfully pointed out that digital technologies have advanced rapidly in recent years and are now considered as game-changers for tourism industries. However, although the business-centric view of digital opportunities associated with the 4IR has received significant attention, the policy-centric examination of the 4IR and tourism industries nexus remain under the radar in Australia. This chapter responds to this gap and draws on the three pillars of the Automation Readiness Index (EIU 2018a, b) – innovation, education and employment policies landscapes – in order to explore the challenges and the potential way forward for the AFS sector within tourism industries.