Key Drivers in Hospitality’s Commercial Evolution

The State of Distribution 2025 report highlights the evolving landscape of the hotel industry’s commercial functions, emphasizing the integration of technology and the need for investment in human capital to drive efficiency and performance.

The NYU School of Professional Studies (NYU SPS) Jonathan M. Tisch Center of Hospitality, in collaboration with RateGain Travel Technologies Limited and HEDNA, has released the second edition of its industry benchmark report, “The State of Distribution 2025.” This comprehensive report provides insights from over 700 hotel brands and 21,000 properties across 310 cities, offering a detailed view of how commercial teams in the hospitality industry are navigating transformation.

Key Findings

The 2025 edition of the report builds on the previous year’s insights, focusing on integrating revenue management, marketing, and distribution. It highlights a significant shift in how these functions evolve and how their collaboration reshapes team priorities and core capabilities. The report identifies a growing gap between technological potential and operational readiness, with many hotel teams still in the early stages of leveraging AI’s full value. Despite the availability of technology, consistent training, streamlined systems, and integrated workflows are still developing.

AI Adoption and Commercial Strategies

The report reveals that AI adoption in the hospitality industry is still in its early stages. While interest in AI is increasing, it ranks lower on investment priorities due to training, talent, and integration readiness gaps. The report also notes that commercial strategies vary by scale. Independent hotels are expanding teams and experimenting with new technologies, while larger chains focus on system consolidation and operational streamlining.

Distribution Functions and Reporting Practices

Distribution functions are becoming leaner, with team structures shifting as they become more integrated. Despite the growing complexity of managing parity, APIs, and content, distribution teams are evolving with limited resources and varying levels of investment in talent development and process automation. Reporting practices are still maturing, with 80% of hotels spending up to two days a week on manual reporting, highlighting opportunities for better tools tailored to distribution analytics.

System Integration and Industry Insights

System integration remains a key focus area for many hotels, regardless of size, as they work to improve data connectivity and break down silos for more effective cross-functional collaboration. Christopher Murdock, HEDNA President, emphasized the report’s importance in closing a critical blind spot in the industry by providing a central benchmarking resource. The findings offer a clear business case for expertise and technology investments in distribution.

Conclusion

The State of Distribution 2025 underscores the necessity of technology in the hospitality industry. However, without investment in readiness, its potential remains underutilized. For hotels aiming to scale, simplify, and stay competitive, success will depend on more than adoption. It will require integration, alignment, and action. The report serves as a blueprint for developing the next generation of hospitality leaders, highlighting the importance of investing in technology and human capital.

For further details or to request an early preview of the report, interested parties can visit www.stateofdistribution.com.