Jean-Philippe Niedergang, Acting Group CEO / EMEA-PACIFIC-LATAM CEO, Castles Technology.
There was a time when the point of sale terminal had a clearly defined job. It sat on a counter, processed transactions and stayed out of the way. Hospitality operators chose them for reliability and price, replaced them when they reached the end of their life, and gave them very little further thought. The real investment went into the guest experience: the room design, the menu, the service culture and the loyalty programme.
That era is over but not because the terminal has disappeared, but because what it represents has changed entirely. Today, the POS increasingly sits at the centre of how a hospitality business operates. It supports ordering, payment, loyalty, inventory visibility, staff workflows and customer engagement. It connects physical and digital experiences while bridging front of house operations with the systems running behind the scenes. Increasingly, that also means connecting with a much broader ecosystem of applications, services and data, rather than operating as a standalone payment device. Operators who still think of the POS as simply a payment terminal are making infrastructure decisions based on a description that no longer fits.
The guest journey has already changed
Spend time in any modern hospitality environment and the shift is obvious. Guests increasingly expect ordering and payment to happen as part of the same seamless interaction. They scan a QR code and complete both within a single experience. They use a kiosk to customise an order, earn loyalty points and pay in one journey. They check into a hotel, charge meals to their room and leave the following morning without ever standing at a reception desk.
Digital wallets continue to gain ground. More than 70% of diners now prefer cashless payment options, while three in four travellers rely on digital wallets during their journeys. Customers increasingly expect payment to happen wherever and whenever it suits them. From the guest’s perspective, the distinction between ordering and paying is disappearing, and hospitality operators need infrastructure capable of supporting that reality across every touchpoint.
Why legacy systems are becoming a strategic constraint
Traditional POS systems were designed for a different era. They were built for fixed environments, predictable transaction flows and limited integration requirements. For many years, they did exactly what operators needed them to do. The challenge is that hospitality businesses now operate in a very different environment.
I have spoken to operators who know exactly what they want to deploy next, whether that is mobile ordering, enhanced loyalty functionality or self-service experiences, but find themselves constrained by technology decisions made years ago. For a single venue, that may be manageable. For a hospitality group operating across multiple sites and markets, it quickly becomes a strategic issue. The conversation is now about creating flexibility.
Self-service is changing the economics of hospitality
The growth of self-service technology across hospitality has been remarkable. Industry research shows that more than 75,000 self-ordering kiosks were delivered in 2025 alone, while multiple studies suggest customers spend up to 20% more when ordering through self-service interfaces.
Yet the industry sometimes focuses on the wrong part of this story. The real value of self-service is guest empowerment. A well-designed kiosk or mobile ordering experience allows customers to browse at their own pace, customise their choices and complete transactions without feeling rushed. That combination of convenience, control and confidence is what drives higher spend and stronger satisfaction.
What is also becoming clear is that the boundaries between traditional hospitality, self-service and unattended commerce are increasingly blurred. The payment infrastructure sitting behind those experiences must be flexible enough to support all of them.
The ecosystem is now the product
Increasingly, hospitality businesses are not investing in a terminal – rather, they are investing in an ecosystem. Payment acceptance now sits alongside loyalty programmes, analytics, inventory systems and customer engagement tools as part of a connected platform. Open, Android-based payment platforms make this possible. They allow operators to deploy new applications without replacing hardware, support over-the-air updates and give businesses greater freedom to choose the solutions that best fit their operations.
The data generated through these ecosystems is equally important. Every transaction provides insight into customer behaviour and operational performance. Hospitality businesses that can act on that information are making better decisions. Those that cannot are relying on instinct where they could be relying on evidence. The real question is whether the infrastructure you invest in today will support the business you want to run three, five or even ten years from now.
Hospitality has always succeeded by anticipating what guests want next. The technology supporting those experiences should be built with exactly the same mindset. The businesses investing in adaptable payment infrastructure today will be the ones best placed to meet tomorrow’s expectations.
About the author
Jean-Philippe Niedergang is a highly accomplished executive with over 30 years of leadership experience in the payments, IT, and telecommunications industries, including more than 20 years specializing in the payment sector. He has held pivotal leadership roles in renowned international organizations, such as Vice President of Southern Europe at Verifone, VP of Insurance Markets at Atos Origin, and VP Western Europe at American Express. In these roles, Jean-Philippe successfully managed large teams, delivered double-digit growth, and implemented global strategies, establishing a proven track record of driving growth, innovation, and operational excellence across diverse markets.
As Acting Group CEO / EMEA-PACIFIC-LATAM CEO, Jean-Philippe is responsible for driving strategic growth and strengthening Castles Technology’s presence across the Globe; he is also directly leading the teams from three critical regions of the Company. He plays a key role in expanding the company’s global footprint, developing omnichannel payment strategies, and ensuring operational efficiency to meet the evolving needs of customers and partners.
Jean-Philippe’s career highlights include:
- Successfully delivering double-digit growth in regional markets and managing P&L for multimillion-euro businesses.
- Spearheading mergers and acquisitions, as well as large-scale business restructurings, with a focus on sustainable growth.
- Establishing and growing Castles Technology’s reputation as a leading player in the payments ecosystem by leveraging his deep knowledge of banking, retail, and financial services sectors.
With a hands-on approach and a deep commitment to excellence, Jean-Philippe combines strategic vision with operational rigor, ensuring that Castles Technology remains at the forefront of innovation in the payments industry. His leadership is defined by a dedication to delivering value to customers, empowering his teams, and achieving long-term shareholder success.
