American Campus Communities’ Chief Technology Officer Shares Vision for Student Housing Tech

Hoang Nguyen on His Service Career and ACC's Tech Roadmap

Warm and gregarious with a lifelong passion for customer service, ACC Chief Technology Officer Hoang Nguyen comes across as more of a "people person" than a "technology person." But Hoang is eager to dispel that type of either/or thinking, as technology is ultimately a tool to help people. He believes technology must be delivered with a service mindset in order to create positive outcomes and experiences.

This mindset is especially important in student housing, as we're here to serve people during one of the most formative periods of their lives. ACC communities are a home away from home for college students, and as in any home, technology has become a critical infrastructure for helping residents thrive. It is also critical to helping our team members do their complex jobs more efficiently and effectively, whether they're maintaining equipment or managing move-ins.

Hoang is leading the implementation of ACC's technology plan, which is designed to make our processes more efficient so we can continue to provide exceptional service as we scale our business. We talked to Hoang about the roadmap and his career in technology: He joined ACC in July 2023 from Bonotel Exclusive Travel and spent the previous two decades with Wyndham Hotels & Resorts and La Quinta.

How did you get into the hospitality field?

I studied hotel and restaurant management at Penn State and worked as a front desk clerk at Holiday Inn throughout college. Hospitality and service are my first loves because I like being of service to people. As a first-generation immigrant, I was pushed toward engineering careers which did not interest me at that time since my passion was around people and service. Ironically, my path has come full circle, and I now get the best of both worlds. My experience on the front lines has helped me become a better technologist.

How did you move into a technology role?

After I graduated in 1996, I joined La Quinta as a general manager. In 1998, I was asked to join a project replacing all of the company's property management systems before Y2K. I had an aptitude to learn new technology very quickly. I found I'm also good at translating technology for new users, so I eventually became a technology training manager. I then went on to manage various La Quinta systems, such as applications architecture, property systems and distribution systems, through a period of exponential growth. Every part of my journey has taught me how to deliver better solutions for the business.

Tell us about being a "passionate technologist."

I've been there in front of customers when technology doesn't work. It's a terrible feeling. Job No. 1 is that tech needs to work for people-it needs to be reliable, user-friendly and deliver a seamless experience. I love to lead and develop teams of great people who truly take ownership and pride in the technology solutions they deliver to customers and stakeholders.

How does working in student housing compare to working in hotels?

Both students and hotel guests need comfortable spaces and great service. However, for students, this is their home for the next nine to 10 months. Students need reliable technology, especially WiFi, which is as important as water these days.

Student housing brings unique complexities to satisfy the needs of our residents and university partners. Purpose-built student housing is an exciting market with tremendous potential, and as we scale to fulfill this demand, technology will be key to helping us optimize our products and processes while delivering great service.

What's on the horizon for ACC's use of technology?

For us, technology is all about strategically pursuing solutions that make our processes more efficient so we can continue to provide exceptional service as we scale our business. We're focused on enhancing our capabilities in major areas like customer experience, revenue management, operations and marketing. We are also focused on continuing to implement modern and secure integrations in our ecosystem to create greater efficiencies between applications and partner platforms.

What are ACC's plans for leveraging artificial intelligence?

We are extremely excited about AI's potential for business transformation. At the same time, we're studying the compliance and governance associated with it as this field of technology matures.

As you reflect on your first year with ACC, what are your impressions?

ACC has a great culture, which speaks highly of the leadership and people. There are many tenured team members here with a lot of passion for what they do to serve students. It's all very motivating! And coming in at the forefront to help lead transformation is an exciting time. I'm truly grateful to have this opportunity to be of service to ACC's people, students and university partners.

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