54 Fresh fruits - - 5 Yogurt - - 5 Mini Bar: Soft drinks - - 10 Alcohol - - 5 Different sorts of Snacks - - 5
SUB TOTAL 65 0 5 STARS ITEMS Available Not available 1 2 Score Rate Remarks Safe-Box in room - - 15 Flowers in room - - 5
55 Brochure on hotel services & tourist attractions - - 5 SUB TOTAL 25 0 395 0 Comments:
Hotel Organisation Chart of a Medium Sized Hotel
56
57 Hotel Departments There are two approaches to classify departments in Hotels/Resorts: First approach: 1. Revenue Generating and Cost Centers: If a department generates revenue to the hotel, it is called a revenue generator: Rooms Division Food and Beverage etc If a department incurs costs without directly contributing to hotel profitability, it is called a cost or support center: Accounting Security etc Second approach: 2. Front of the House and Back of House: If communication between staff and guest is frequent then the department is said to be a front of the house department: Front Office Food and Beverage If the communication between department staff and guests in non-existent or on occasions, then the department is said to be back of the house department: Engineering Purchase
58 V- DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS: 1. Rooms Division: Most of the cases majority of hotels revenues (around 60 percent of total Revenue) is generated by Rooms Division Department under the form of room sales. This department provides the services guests expect during their stay in the Hotel. Rooms Division Department is composed of the following departments: a) Front Office b) Housekeeping Sometimes Engineering/Maintenance too is part of Rooms Division. But it again varies from one Hotel to other. Front Office: Front Office Department is further sub divided in to: Reservations Telephones/Switch board Uniformed Services Reception/Guest Services Business Center a) Reception/Guest Services: • Sell guestrooms; register guests and assign guestrooms • Coordinate guest services • Provide information • Maintain accurate room statistics, and room key inventories • Maintain guest account statements and complete proper financial settlements b) Reservation:
59 • Receive and process reservation requests for future overnight accommodations. • With technology development, the Reservation Department can, on real time, access the number and types of rooms available, various room rates, and furnishings, along with the various facilities existing in the hotel • There should be close relation-ships with Sales and Marketing Division concerning Large Group Reservations c) Uniformed Services: • Bell Attendants: Ensure baggage service between the lobby area and guestrooms • Door Attendants: Ensure baggage service and traffic control at hotel entrance(s) • Valet Parking Attendants: Ensure parking services for guest’s automobiles • Transportation Personnel: Ensure transportation services for guests from and to the hotel • Concierge: Assists guests by making restaurant reservations, arranging for transportation, and getting tickets for theater, sporting, or any other special events d) Telephone Department: • Answers and distributes calls to the appropriate extensions, whether guest, employee, or management extensions • Places wake-up calls • Monitors automated systems • Coordinates emergency communications Housekeeping: Housekeeping is further sub divided in to: Laundry Linen/Uniform Room Floor Cleaning Public Area
60 Flower room Desk/Control Center • Inspects rooms before they are available for sale • Cleans occupied and vacant rooms • Communicates the status of guestrooms to the Front Office Department • Cleans and presses the property’s linens, towels, and guest clothing (if equipped to do so, free of charge or for a pre-determined fee) • Maintains recycled and non-recycled inventory items Food & Beverage Department: F&B Department constitutes the second largest revenue generator of a typical hotel with an average of 23.1 for Food sales, and 8.6 % for Beverage sales. In a five-star hotel, Food and Beverage outlets might have the following forms: • Restaurants • Bars • In Room Dining • Conferences • Weddings • Lounges • Butler Service • Banquets Kitchen Kitchen is responsible for cooking food and providing it to Restaurants, Bars, Room Service and Banquets for Service. Sales & Marketing Sales & Marketing Division is composed of the following sections: a) Sales Team b) Marketing Team : Advertising, Public Relations
61 c) Banquet Sales also forms part of this team Accounting The Accounting Division monitors the financial activities of the property. Some of the activities that are undertaken in the Accounting Division are listed below: a) Pays outstanding invoices(Bills) b) Distributes unpaid statements c) Collects amounts owed d) Processes payroll(Salaries) e) Accumulates operating data f) Compiles financial reports g) Makes bank deposits h) Secures cash loans i) Performs other control and processing functions Engineering and Maintenance This very department maintains the property's structure and grounds as well as electrical and mechanical equipment. Some hotels might have this very division under different names, such as maintenance division, property operation and maintenance department Security Division Security division personnel are usually screened from in-house personnel, security officers or retired police officers, across certain physical skills, and prior experience. Some of the functions of the security division are listed below: a) Patrols the property b) Monitors supervision equipment c) Ensures safety and security of guests, visitors, and employees Human Resources Division Some of the duties of the human resources division are listed below:
62 a) Responsible for external & internal recruitment b) Calculates employees' salaries, compensation, and tax withholding… c) Administrates employees' paperwork, monitors attendance… d) Maintains good relations with Labor Unions e) Ensures employees' safety and working conditions Other Divisions Training Division: For providing Internal and External Training to Staff IT Division: For providing information Technology services to Hotel Purchase Division: For Purchasing commodities for hotel Stores: For storing and issuing things to different departments in a hotel Spa: For providing message and treatments Retail Outlets: (i.e.: Shops rented to outsiders or managed by the hotel) Recreation Facilities: (ex: Fitness Center, Tennis Courts, and Cinema Saloons…) Casinos: For providing Gambling and Gaming services to Guests
63 Front Office The major functions conducted by the Front Office Department are: a) Reservation, Guest Registration, Room & Rate assignment b) Fulfills Guest Services and updates Room Status c) Maintains & settles Guest Accounts d) Creates Guest History Records e) Develops & maintains a comprehensive database of guest information f) Coordinates Guest Services Front Office Staff Front Office Manager Duties and Responsibilities : ¾ Weekly forecast ¾ Recording & distribution of forecast ¾ Weekly schedule ¾ Daily and weekly payroll ¾ Programming door locks ¾ Set-up rates in CRO system ¾ Set-up rates in Citadel system ¾ Frequent Stay/Days Inn promo reporting ¾ Attendance at weekly sales meetings ¾ Attendance at weekly department head meetings ¾ Organizing/running monthly Front Office meeting ¾ Training of new employees ¾ Maintaining/improving training of present employees ¾ Hiring of new staff ¾ Quarterly job reviews of staff ¾ Managing e-mail reservations ¾ Managing employee reservations ¾ Achievement of Budgeted Occupancy ¾ Achievement of Budgeted Annual Rate ¾ Achievement of Budgeted Room Revenues ¾ Budgeted Hotel Profitability Achieved ¾ Budgeted Labour Cost Percentage Achieved ¾ Control of departmental Expenses in relation to Budget
64 ¾ Accuracy of Departments Cashiering ¾ Reconciliation of Group accounts and packages ¾ Consistent balancing of Department float ¾ Management of "Due Outs" to maximize Day Rates ¾ To assist Housekeeping with resolving Room discrepancies ¾ Completion and accuracy of Duty Manager Reports ¾ Accuracy of Computer input...rate codes etc ¾ Completion of weekly reports, forecast; reservations on the books ¾ Completion of Schedules ¾ Completion of Payroll input ¾ Central Reservations information up to date ¾ Groups are properly blocked in advance ¾ Completion of Daily Shift Check list and log ¾ Attendance and participation at Department Head meeting ¾ Record keeping and organization of filing ¾ Development and maintenance of Department Manual ¾ Implementation and Maintenance of daily statistics reports for the purpose of yield management ¾ Participation in Manager on Duty shifts as required. ¾ Providing of efficient guest service (check-out) ¾ Staff is properly trained ¾ Attitude and appearance ¾ Handling of Customer complaints ¾ Number of customer complaints ¾ Proper handling of switchboard ¾ Staffing levels adequate to handle business volume ¾ Reservation service is efficient ¾ Proper handling of special requests, VIP'S and Guest requirements ¾ Teamwork-Relations with Co-workers and Management ¾ Wake-up calls recorded and completed to guest specifications ¾ Participation towards overall Hotel Maintenance and Cleanliness ¾ Cleanliness and Organization of Work Area and Offices ¾ Cleanliness and maintenance of Front Entrance and Lobby ¾ Effective communication skills ¾ Staff training and development ¾ Personnel selection ¾ Proper hiring procedures followed ¾ Department Meetings being held monthly ¾ Personnel turnover ¾ Personnel development and growth ¾ Personnel ready for management position ¾ Discipline of Personnel when required ¾ Timely Completion of employee evaluations
65 Guest Service Representative Duties and Responsibilities: ¾ Prompt and accurate service ¾ High Standards ¾ Promote good will by being courteous, friendly and helpful to our guest ¾ Respect ¾ Able to analyze and apply sound judgement ¾ Product knowledge in regards to work area and Guest requirements ¾ Consistency and willing to assist ¾ Good telephone manners/handling of switchboard ¾ Utilize our listening skills ¾ Handling of Guest complaints ¾ Proper handling of special request VIP etc. ¾ Be organized at all times ¾ Completion and consistency and accuracy of cashing ¾ Taking messages accurately ¾ Proper record keeping of wake-up calls ¾ Correspondence file, codes ¾ Guest history to be done daily ¾ Accuracy of reservation and in-put ¾ Knowledge of the Property Management System and Brand Reservation System ¾ Ability to up-sell ¾ Utilization of Flexibility in regard to Rates when necessary to occupancy ¾ Clean and organize work area
66 NIGHT AUDITOR Duties and Responsibilities: 1. Rooms division Audit 2. Security Procedures Followed 3. Emergency Procedures followed 4. Communicate with all fellow co-workers 5. Completion of Daily reports, revenue, discrepancy etc 6. House count ready for Housekeeper 7. Overages and shortages monitored 8. Providing of necessary computer reports 9. Credit Card input monitored 10. VIP'S, Walkovers, Special Requests monitored 11. Rebates and Complimentary requests monitored 12. Check out with Balance monitored 13. Completion and consistency and accuracy of cashing 14. Taking messages accurately 15. Proper record keeping of wake-up calls 16. Correspondence file, codes 17. Guest history to be done daily 18. Accuracy of reservation and in-put 19. Knowledge of the Citadel System and the DAYS INN Reservation System 20. Ability to up-sell 21. Utilization of Flexibility in regard to Rates when necessary to occupancy 22. Clean and organize work area 23. Ability to be promoted
Front Office Department Organisation Chart DUTY MANAGER FRONT OFFICE MANAGER
67 GSO SUPERVISOR RESERVATION SUPERVISOR AIRPORT REP. BELL CAPTAIN GUEST SERVICE OFFICER BELL STAFF. TELPHONE OPERATOR
68 Front Office Day Shift Checklist Prepared By: Date: ¾ Arrive early for your shift. Go through the pre-shift meeting check list. ¾ Prepare your Daily Log Report. Read Previous reports and initial. ¾ Check Current Status. ¾ Check out the expected arrival on screen and print. ¾ Check for Pre-Registration. ¾ Check for discrepancies in Guest Registration. ¾ Check for expected departures. ¾ Check the interfaces for the telephones and movies to see that they are operational. Do a printout of charges and put in check-out drawer. ¾ Record all wake-up calls on the master sheet at the front desk. ¾ Call the guest after the system has printed the message. Be polite. ¾ Count your cash ($000.00). Shortages are the clerks responsibility. ¾ Turn the outside lights off. ¾ Check incidental deposit to see which rooms have left an incidental deposit. ¾ Review Group Files for arrivals and departures and block any special requests. ¾ Do any specials, Credit Check Reports or V.I.P. requests. ¾ Provide guest with all promotional information on check-out. ¾ The Movie System is to be blocked when the guest has paid cash, Group Arrivals and Special Request. Check-in procedure: The Registration Card must be filled out in its entirety (including vehicle information). If a cash customer, Drivers License or other major I.D. must be on the Registration Card. If the customer is paying by credit card, be sure to put the date, room number, your initials, authorization number and amount you have authorized on the credit card form. The guest must be clear on their room rate. The Registration Card must be signed. ¾ Post all charges to the Guests Folio. Leave the charges with the folio. ¾ Upon check-out, have the guest sign the folio and keep one copy. ¾ Ask that the keys be returned to the front desk upon check-out.
69 ¾ Complete the Housekeeper's Log of changes for any supplies leaving the desk. ¾ Be sure that Housekeeping is aware of which rooms have cots in them. ¾ Be sure that Housekeeping is aware of any rooms which have Day Rate check-ins. ¾ Be sure that Housekeeping is aware of late departures or new check-ins. ¾ Check all due out rooms and room discrepancies and process any charges. ¾ Do your deposit and put it in the safe (include all cash, credit cards, direct bills). ¾ Count the float in back safe if you have made a change during your shift. Leave tape with Date, Initials & shift. ¾ Complete the Daily Log listing all exceptional occurrences that happened during the shift. Notes: Front Office Evening Shift Checklist Prepared By : Date: ¾ Arrive early for your shift. Go through the Pre-Shift Meeting check list. ¾ Prepare your Daily Log Report. Read previous reports and initial. ¾ Check Current Status. ¾ Check out expected arrival on screen and print. ¾ Check for pre-registration. ¾ Check expected departures. Verify if guests still in the hotel are stay-over. ¾ Prepare Discrepancy Report by comparing the Housekeeping report to computer. Charge an additional day rate unless permission has been granted for late check-out. ¾ Check the interfaces for Telephone and Movies to see that they are operational. Do a printout of charges and put in check-out drawer. ¾ Count your cash ($150.00). Shortages are the clerks responsibility. ¾ Provide guest with all promotional information on check-out. ¾ Verify completion of V.I.P. Form and Special Request. ¾ Check-in Group Master Accounts. ¾ Check incidental deposit to see which rooms have left an incidental deposit.
70 ¾ Check the service codes to see if any special items are required for our guests. ¾ Check-in procedure: • The Registration Card must be filled out in its entirety (including vehicle information). • If a cash customer, Drivers License or other major I.D. must be on the Registration Card. • If the customer is paying by credit card, be sure to put the date, room number, your initials, authorization number and amount you have authorized on the credit card form. • The guest must be clear on their room rate. The Registration Card must be signed. ¾ Post all charges to the Guests Folio. Leave the charges with the folio. ¾ Upon check-out, have the guest sign the folio and keep one copy. ¾ Record all wake-up calls on the master sheet at the front desk. ¾ Check that the outside lights are on at dusk. ¾ Complete the Housekeeper's Log of changes for any supplies leaving the desk. ¾ Be sure that Housekeeping is aware of which rooms have cots in them. ¾ Complete the Housekeeper's Report of the Room Status. Double check for blocked rooms. ¾ Do your deposit and put it in the safe (include all cash, credit cards, direct bills). ¾ Count the float in back safe if you have made a change during your shift. Leave tape with Date, Initials and shift. ¾ Complete the Daily Log listing all exceptional occurrences that happened during the shift. ¾ Smile!!!!! Notes:
71 Front Office Night Shift Checklist Prepared By: Date: ¾ Arrive early for your shift. Go through the Pre-Shift Meeting check list. ¾ Prepare your Daily Log Report. Read previous reports and initial. ¾ Check Current Status. ¾ Check out expected arrival on screen and print. ¾ Do a bucket check against your computer print out. Follow up any discrepancies. ¾ Check for pre-registration. ¾ Check expected departures. Should be 0 before continuing. ¾ Check the interfaces for the Telephone and Movies to see that they are operational. Do a printout of charges and put in check-out drawer. ¾ Count your cash ($050.00). Shortages are the clerks responsibility. ¾ Post incoming functions to the board in the lobby. Change the date. ¾ Check for incoming reservations. Allocate to rooms. ¾ Provide guest with all promotional information on check-out. ¾ Any rooms checking in after your audit will be recorded on the new day sheet. The computer must be adjusted to show NCI as occupied/dirty. Also record the room numbers and times on the Housekeepers Report. ¾ Prepare a wake call Sheet, a log of changes and a shag sheet for the new day. ¾ Check wake-up calls that have been entered onto the system against the telephone record sheet. Do a wake-up call audit from the telephone system. ¾ Leave the work area neat and organized. ¾ Do your deposit and put it in the safe. Date for the new day. ¾ Count the petty cash if you have made change during the shift. ¾ Key audit to be done every night. ¾ Complete the Daily Log listing all exceptional occurrences. Notes:
72 RESERVATIONS STANDARDS DATE AND TIME: TAKING A RESERVATION 1 Did the telephone answered within 3 rings or 10 seconds? 2 Did the employee answer the phone with the appropriate greeting (good morning/afternoon) and identify the department? 3 If caller is put on hold did it not exceed 30 seconds? 4 Was the background free of any noise or disturbances? 5 Did employee confirm date in and date out? 6 Did employee offer information on full range of room types within the category requested? 7 Did employee describe the difference between room types (i.e. location, size, in room facilities)? 8 Did employee offer information on full range of applicable rates? 9 Did employee immediately check availability? 10 If dates unavailable, did employee offer alternative dates? 11 Did employee obtain guest's name? 12 Did employee confirm the spelling of guest's name (if necessary)? 13 Did employee obtain guest's address? 14 Did employee obtain guest's telephone number? 15 Did employee obtain guest's fax number or e-mail address?
73 16 Did employee ascertain if it was a private or company booking (city hotels only)? 17 Did employee clearly state room rate and what it included (i.e. tax, service, meals etc)? 18 Did employee clarify guest's smoking preference for hotels in excess of 100 rooms and in the case of a non smoking hotel was this made clear during the reservation enquiry? 19 Did employee ascertain expected time of arrival? 20 Did employee explain check in times? 21 Did employee ascertain if the guest required any transport arrangements? 22 Did employee repeat and confirm all details of the reservation during or at the end of the call? 23 Did employee offer reservation number or booking reference/name? 24 Did employee thank the guest? EMPLOYEE 25 Was the employee's speech clear and audible? 26 Did the employee have a good working knowledge of the English language? 27 Was the employee polite, organized and helpful whilst ascertaining information with regards to the reservation? 28 Did employee ascertain guest's name and use it at least once during the conversation? 29 Did employee offer his/her name for any future assistance required at the end of the call? ACCOUNTING 30 Did employee request advance deposit/guarantee in order to secure the booking?
74 31 If a credit card was offered as a deposit, did the employee repeat back the number? 32 Did employee explain cancellation policy? CONFIRMATION 33 Did employee automatically offer to send a confirmation? 34 Was the confirmation received within 24 hours? 35 Were all details typed on company letterhead? 36 Was all information contained on confirmation correct? 37 Did confirmation promote in house food and beverage facilities? 38 Did confirmation explain cancellation charges? Guest Services Standards General Does the front desk have proper signage, so guests don’t wait in the wrong place? Are the procedures for guests waiting in lines for check-in/check-out frequently monitored and changed if necessary? Are procedures established for receiving and processing of guests who are members of special hotel guest programs or who are destined for "special guest (VIP, Club Concierge, etc.)" floors or sections? Are hotel guest service hours (restaurants, pool, etc.) known by front office
75 staff? Are procedures established for processing guest mail? Are special procedures in place for processing guest express/special delivery mail? Are guest safety deposit box procedures established and implemented? Are affiliate (chain) current hotel directories available to the guests? Do front office receptionists and cashiers have friendly, positive attitudes? Telephone (PBX) Are phones answered promptly and courteously? Do telephone operators have full knowledge of hotel services as well as local services, attractions, and points of interest? Is an information directory maintained and accessible? Does the department provide for proper handling of messages taken: for guests in the hotel? for guest with reservations? for meeting rooms? and for rooms requesting no calls? In manual systems, are time stamps used on messages, phone charges, mail, and folios? In manual systems, are message lights turned off promptly? In automated systems, are unretrieved guest messages followed up periodically? Are procedures in place for wake-up calls? Are telephones for the hearing impaired available (in compliance with ADA audit): guest rooms? house phone? public phone?
76 Do front desk office cashiers update local phone meters at check-out in semiautomatic systems? Are phone and operator service bills reviewed regularly for accuracy? Is credit received from telephone company for disputed calls? Are equipment rental charges checked periodically? Are local and long distance carriers reviewed regularly for quality, service, and pricing? In an automated system, is there a system for recording and reviewing phone charges for unoccupied or late check-out rooms? Co ordination of Front Office and House Keeping Department The main two important areas where collaboration is vital between the Housekeeping and Front Office Department are listed below: 1. Have always clean rooms for expected arrivals and stayovers 2. Satisfy special guest needs as far as amenities and facilities requested in their rooms are concerned 1. Cleaning and Inspection Process: The Room Status for each room determines how much effort, time, labor, and hence scheduled staff is needed by the Housekeeping Department on any shift. The Housekeeping Department shall first clean rooms for expected arrivals first, then stayover rooms and eventually vacant rooms! The reason is that rooms for new arrivals takes more time to be cleaned to hotel standards again and that guests might come any time to request their rooms even before the pre-determined beginning of check-in time! That’s why; the Housekeeping Department shall be communicated from the reservation department on a daily basis Expected Arrival, Stayover, and Departure Lists to be able to schedule the optimum number of room maids and inspectors for the expected business volume! Moreover, bearing in mind the cleaning procedure of guest rooms explained above, there should be a communication between the Front Office Department and Housekeeping Department to be able to communicate the recent room status of each room! This communication is vital because nobody would like to make a guest wait in the lobby because his/her room is not yet clean or due to the fact that
77 the Housekeeping Department did not communicate on real time the status to the Front Office! Lastly, the Housekeeping Department shall ensure that every room maid shall use efficiently most of his valuable time in cleaning not in going back and forth in the corridors! Yet, since some hotels might operate under the manual or Semi-automated systems, some delays and hence, problems might occur! To illustrate, let’s consider the guest room cleaning process along with the different operating modes under which a hotel might operate: a) Manual System: Under this very system, due to the fact that room maids shall first clean rooms for new arrival, then stayover rooms and at last vacant rooms, these very cleaning personnel have two ways to do it: • Post to cleaning each room, go to the Housekeeping Department, inform them about the status and then come back to clean the next room. This would solve the potential problem that a guest might be waiting for a clean room due to a communication of the housekeeping department not in real tome! However this would decrease the number of rooms cleaned and inspected by room maids and inspectors, which would mean higher housekeeping labor costs! • Post to cleaning certain category of rooms, and/or all rooms, room maids inform the Housekeeping Department, and then inspectors would inspect all rooms, at the same time, inform the department about the recent statuses!! This would increase maids’ and inspectors’ efficiency but would cause guests waiting in the lobby to be escorted to their rooms! b) Semi-automated System: Under this very system, room maids and inspectors might use either a phone machine situated at the center of each corridor, or pagers and beepers to communicate the recent room status. This proved to be efficient as to minimize labor cost and the time that a guest spends on the lobby waiting to be escorted to his/her room! However, this might create some problems: • Upon the usage of beepers, the Housekeeping Department doesn’t know exactly which room is cleaned or inspected, therefore will spend needless time to be certain which would
78 put more stress on Check-in personnel to convince a waiting guest in the lobby area! • Guests tend to be both not at ease and dissatisfied seeing hotel personnel in their rooms using beepers and might think that something wrong happened in their rooms! b) Fully Automated System This is the best system, which eliminates nearly all time losses spent by room maids and inspectors, to inform the Housekeeping Department and the time needed to be spent needlessly at the lobby area! Under this very system, each room maid and inspector, prior to the fulfillment of his or her duties in the room, can send a coded message from the guest’s room telephone to the Housekeeping Department. Later an electronic message can be send automatically to check-in personnel confirming that the room is cleaned to standards and waiting for the next arrival! The procedure of cleaning guest rooms by the housekeeping department can be summarized in the following way: 1. Checkout clerk (or cashier) contacts the Housekeeping Department that a room became vacant and needs cleaning! 2. Housekeeping Department updates the room status from occupied to onchange and sends a room maid to clean the room 3. Room maid cleans the room and contacts the housekeeping department back about the latest status and condition of the room (especially for outof-order and out-of-service!) 4. If the room is Out Of Order for any reason (i.e. Room is extensively dirty, or needs repair!), then the Housekeeping Department deducts that room from those available for sale, until either scheduled to be extensively cleaned or post to the confirmation from the Maintenance Department that the deficiency was repaired! 5. Housekeeping Department sends their inspectors to check whether the stated room has been cleaned to the hotel standards or not! 6. If the room is cleaned to hotel’s standards, the Housekeeping Department shall update the room status from On-Change to Clean and Available for Sale and communicate this to the Front Office Department! If the room is not cleaned to hotel standards, inspectors communicate to the Housekeeping Department that the room shall be cleaned again!
79 2. Room Status Report: The Front Office and the Housekeeping Department shall prepare at the same time, as frequent as needed by management, their room status reports, which lists, according to each department, the recent room status of each room in the hotel. Later, these two reports shall be cross-referenced and compared to detect room status discrepancies and correct them as soon as possible in order to maximize room revenue, detect skippers before it is too late… In the manual system, room status reports shall be reconciled at least each hour. This very frequency might increase as the business volume increases (i.e. in the high season)! In the semi-automated system, reconciliation shall be at least once per shift (preferably at the beginning of each shift)! Lastly under the fully automated system, since housekeeping and front office department’s communication is ensured electronically on real time, reconciliation needs to be done only at the night shift by the night auditor! 3. Room Guest Needs Satisfaction: If at the reservation or registration process, guests have communicated certain specific needs related to certain specific amenities and/or facilities that needed to be provided in the room, then the Front Office Department shall communicate this directly to the Housekeeping Department or indirectly to the Concierge who shall further communicate this to the Housekeeping Department and follow up to ensure the actual provision in a timely and accurate manner!
80 Guest Cycle The guest cycle describes the activities that each guest passes by from the moment he/she calls to communicate a reservation inquiry till he/she departs from the hotel. Pre-Arrival ⇒ Arrival ⇒ Occupancy ⇒ Departure Below is a description of the activities undertaken at each stage of the guest cycle 1. Pre-arrival: • At the pre-arrival stage, the hotel must create for every potential guest a reservation Record. Doing this initiates the hotel guest cycle. Moreover, reservation records help personalize guest services and appropriately schedule needed staff and facilities Baggage handling Transportation Bill Settlement Check-out Currency exchange Safe Deposits Maintaining Guest Accounts Mail and Information Telephone Calls Transportation Doormen and Porters Registration Room Assignment Issuing of Keys Baggage Handling Reservations Departure Pre-arrival Occupancy Arrival
81 • The reservation department should, then, complete all the pre-registration activities and prepare guest folios . Doing so will eventually maximize room sales by accurately monitoring room availability and forecasting room revenues 2. Arrival: • At the arrival stage, registration and rooming functions takes place and the hotel establishes a business relation-ship with the guest. • The check-in clerk should determine the guest’s reservation status (i.e. preregistered guests versus walk-ins). Later, he/she shall prepare a registration record or make the guest sign the already-printed pre-registration record . • The registration records shall include the following personal and financial items: a) Personal information: 1. Name and Surname of the guest along with billing address, telephone number, and any other coordinates 2. Passport number, birth certificate, and/or driving license number (whatever applicable) 3. Any special needs or requests 4. Guest Signature b) Financial information: 1. Date of arrival 2. Expected date of departure or length of stay depending on how the system in the hotel is designed 3. Assigned room number 4. Assigned room rate 5. Guest's intended method of payment Registration records can be used for various purposes: a) Satisfy guest needs b) Forecast room occupancies c) Settle properly guest accounts d) Establish guest history records at check-out [personal & financial information] e) Assign a room type and a room rate for each guest f) Determine long-run availability [i.e. reservation information] versus short-run availability [i.e. room status] g) Satisfy special categories of guests such as disabled people through barrier-free designs
82 3. Occupancy: • At the occupancy stage, the front office department shall coordinate guest services in a timely and accurate manner. Moreover, front office clerks should encourage repeat guests by paying a great attention to guest complaints. This is ensured by placing complaint and/or suggestion cards in every public place and revenue centers in the hotel. Moreover, the hotel shall, at least on a daily basis, collect comment cards, proceed with their analysis, and provide positive feedback to guest as soon as possible. • In addition, shall design effective procedures in order to protect the funds and valuables of guests. This might be ensured through guest key control, property surveillance, safe deposit boxes, and well designed emergency panels and exits. Guest arrives Prepare for guest arrival Check: Room status and availability, expected arrivals and departures, special requests, important guests Check reservation status Has the guest made a reservation? Are rooms available? No No Deny request Complete registration form Yes Assign room and room rate Check method of payment Suggest alternative rooms or hotels Escort guest to room Issue room key Yes
83 • Another activity at occupancy is to process posting of guest charges [i.e. post room rates, F&B charges, additional expenses, and taxes…] to various guest folios, master Folios… While doing so, front office clerks shall continuously check for deviations from the house limit, and take corrective measures as to change the status of the guest to Paid-in-advance. Finally, front office clerks shall periodically review Account Balances in coordination with the night auditor. 4. Departure: • At the departure stage, the guest shall be walked out of the hotel. Moreover, front office clerks shall create guest history record. Finally, cashiers shall settle guest account outstanding balances [i.e.: balance the Guest account to 0] • In general, a proper checkout occurs when the guest: a) Vacates the room b) Receives an accurate settlement of the guest account c) Returns room keys d) Leaves the hotel • At departure, checkout personnel should encourage guests to consider returning to the hotel on any future date. That's why cashiers should act like a true sales person, and might eventually accept guest future reservations. That way, the stages of the guest cycle become really a cycle (i.e. start from where it ends). • If at departure, the guest account is not fully settled, then late charges accumulates. In such an undesired case, the responsibility of collection lies within the accounting department, however the front office department shall provide all necessary types of information to make this collection easier, quicker, and feasible. Front Office Systems: Nowadays, almost all hotels operate under the fully automated system. 1. Fully automated [computer based] systems: That's the best system ever used in the hotel industry. In fact, it is characterized by the excessive use of departmental software package programs integrated and connected to a main frame or terminal situated at the front office department. Pre-arrival activities: • Under this stage, the reservation department is equipped with a software package, which is interfaced and connected with one or more central reservation office(s). Moreover, the reservation department can automatically generate letters
84 of confirmation, produce requests for guest deposits and handle pre-registration activities for all types of guests and generate daily expected arrival lists, occupancy and revenue forecast lists. Arrival activities: • At this stage, various reservation records can be transferred to front office department. Moreover, hotels might be equipped with an on-line credit authorization terminals for timely Credit Card Approval, self check-in / check-out terminals. Lastly, all guest charges and payments are saved in electronic guest folios. • As far as walk-ins are concerned, all registration activities should be initiated from the very beginning. Occupancy activities: • Under this very stage, guest purchases at different revenue outlets are electronically transferred and posted to appropriate guest accounts. Moreover, the front office department can run and process continuous trial balances and, therefore, eliminate the tedious work for the Night Auditor. Departure activities: • At this very stage, cashiers can automatically produce bills to be sent to various guests with direct billing privileges and create electronic guest history records. Front Office Functional Organization: • Whatsoever system and setting the hotel might use, it should reflect easy access to the equipment, forms, and supplies necessary. Moreover, the setting shall reflect position flexibility. Moreover, nowadays trend shows that traditional mail, message, and key racks are unnecessary at the Front Desk. Rather, they shall be stored in drawers or slots located under or away from the Front Desk. For, this would ensure security and safety of guests. 1. Front Desk designed alternatives: a) Circular or semi-circular structure: this very structure provides an effective service to more guests and appears more modern and innovative but since guests will approach the Front Desk from all angles, more staff is needed.
85 b) Traditional straight desk: Under this very design, fewer staff is needed, but fewer guests can be served at the same time. c) Deskless environment: Under this design, there is no Front Desk at all. This is usually replaced by a Front Desk Agent, welcoming the guest, seating him or her on a chair/sofa, and conduct registration activities there while, for example, having a cocktail or a drink. RESERVATION The main function of the reservation process is to match room requests with room availability. Below is the detailed process of reservation: ¾ Conduct the reservation inquiry ¾ Determine room and rate availability ¾ Create the reservation record ¾ Confirm the reservation record ¾ Maintain the reservation record ¾ Produce reservation reports Types of Reservations 1. Guaranteed Reservation: Ensures that the hotel will hold a room for the guest until a specific time following the guest’s scheduled arrival date [i.e. Check-out time or start of the hotel’s day Shift or any time the lodging property chooses]. On return, the guest shall guarantee his/her reservation of room unless reservation is properly canceled. In order to guarantee a reservation, guests might opt for one of the following methods: ¾ Prepayment guaranteed reservation
86 ¾ Credit card guaranteed reservation ¾ Advance deposit or partial payment ¾ Travel agent guaranteed reservation ¾ Voucher or Miscellaneous Charge Order [MCO] ¾ Corporate guaranteed reservation 2. Non-guaranteed Reservation: Ensures that the hotel agrees to hold a room for the guest until a stated reservation cancellation hour (Usually 6 p.m.) on the day of arrival. Reservation agents shall make sure to encourage their guests to guarantee their reservations especially in the high season Reservation Inquiry Guests can communicate their reservation inquiries in person, over the telephone, via mail, through facsimile, e-mail… Moreover, reservation inquiries can be made through a Central Reservation System or an Intersell Agency. While getting a reservation inquiry, the reservation agent shall obtain the following guest-related information: a) Guest’s name, address and telephone number b) Company or travel agency name c) Date of arrival and departure d) Type and number of rooms requested e) Desired room rate f) Number of people in the group, if applicable g) Method of payment and/or guarantee h) Any other special requests Most of the above mentioned information is used to create a reservation record.
87 Sources of Reservations 1. Central Reservation Systems 2. Intersell Agencies 3. Property Direct Reservation System 1. Central reservation systems: The majority of Lodging Properties belongs to one or more Central Reservation Systems. A central reservation system is composed of a central reservation office, member hotels connected together via communication devices, and potential guests. Central Reservation Office [CRO] offers its services via a 24-hours toll free telephone number(s) Hotel members of the central reservation system shall provide and exchange accurate room availability data to central reservation offices. To illustrate, central reservation offices and member hotels shall communicate (on real time) any reservation transaction. This expertise shall be provided by central reservation offices to its member hotels. On return, central reservation offices charges a fee for the utilization of its services which might take the form of a flat fee and a variable fee, or a flat percentage of potential room revenue, actual room revenue, and/or Rooms Division gross profit. Central Reservation Offices are divided into two: A) Affiliate reservation network: This very network is referred to as the hotel chain’s reservation system. In fact, it is composed of a CRO, and hotels, which are members of the same chain. The main advantages of affiliate reservation network are: a) Streamline the process of reservation
88 b) Reduce overall system costs c) Attract business for or refer business to another chain property d) Affiliate reservation networks might serve, in addition to its main function, other duties like: ¾ Serve as an inter property communication network ¾ Serve as an accounting transfer tool ¾ Serve as a destination information center ¾ Serve as a connection with Global Distribution Systems [GDS]⇒ System including several Central Reservation Offices connected to each other B) Non-affiliate reservation network: A non-affiliate reservation network is composed of a central reservation office, potential guests, and member independent hotels. 2. Intersell Agencies: Intersell Agencies are special types of central reservation offices contracting to handle reservation for more than one Product Line [ex: Handle at the same time Airline Tickets, Car Rental, Hotel Reservation…] Â “ One Call Does it All Approach “! 3. Property Direct Reservation System: Even though many of the five-star hotels rely heavily on central reservation offices and intersell agencies, some potential guests might still find it convenient, and personal to call directly the hotel to communicate a reservation inquiry. Group Reservations Conducting a reservation request for a group shall be treated differently than accommodating a reservation of individual guests (i.e. Frequent Independent Traveler). The main reason, is that individual reservation requests are treated by the reservation department, while group reservations are initiated by the Sales & Marketing division, and finalized through a careful coordination of the reservation from one hand and the marketing from the other.
89 Below is a detailed procedure of how group reservation, in a typical hotel, is conducted: 1. A group representative, a member of the travel agency or the tour operator, not individuals, shall communicate group reservations' request to the hotel's marketing department 2. Upon availability, the hotel's reservation department shall block the requested number of rooms for this very group 3. The Hotel shall give a deadline for the group, in order to receive their final list. That deadline is called Cut-off Date 4. After receiving the final list, the reservation department shall change the desired number of rooms' status from blocked to booked (or reserved) rooms, and release the remaining rooms (if any left) as vacant 5. If the hotel did not receive the final list by the cut-off date, then the reservation department has all the right to cancel the group reservation and release all the initially booked rooms into vacant rooms. However, management shall use this right with precautions especially when it comes to groups reserving from travel agencies and tour operators of which the hotel is frequently operating. Reservation Availability After receiving a reservation request, the hotel might accept it, as it is, if there is room availability. If not, the reservation department should suggest alternative room types, dates, and/or rates, to the potential guest. If, however, the potential guest insists on his/her previous request, the hotel should suggest an alternative hotel. That's one of the main reasons why we need to maintain good relation-ships with nearby competing Hotels The reservation department should always compare historical reservation volumes against actual arrivals. The main reason is to cope with overbooking, which a situation occurring when the total number of rooms reserved for a certain period of time exceeds the total number of rooms available for sale, for the same period of time. In order to cope with the overbooking problem, some statistical and historical data should be stored and processed by the hotel and should be continuously updated. Such data should include: a) Number of rooms reserved for a specific date b) Number of rooms occupied by stayovers (for a certain specific date) c) Forecasted no-shows percentage
90 d) Forecasted understays percentage e) Forecasted overstays percentage f) Forecasted cancellation percentage g) Number of out of order rooms for a specific date Drawbacks of this problem: ¾ Even though Historical Forecasts are vital to solve this overbooking problem, they are only "Forecasts" and cannot "exactly" reflect the current situation. ¾ Number of out of order rooms data is obtained from the housekeeping department. However, no body can be 100 % sure whether eventually on the actual day of arrival, exactly 2 Rooms (i.e. no more no less) will be out of order. ¾ This very method is a simple method for solving the overbooking problem. In fact, this method only gets use of certain forecasts (i.e. no all of them), and ignores the possible interaction these forecasts might have on each other. Equipment Tracking Room Availability: In order to function properly, the reservation department shall maintain control books, wall charts, and/or a computerized system. Whatsoever system chosen, the reservation department shall maintain and update that system to include any reservation transaction (i.e. whether a reservation, cancellation, modification…). Below is a description of the three commonly used sets of equipment to track room availability under the manual, semi-automated and fully-automated systems: 1. Control books: Control books are standard three-ring, loose-leaf binders with a tally Page assigned to each day of the year. Under this very system, when a potential guest calls to have a reservation, the reservation clerk shall check the cells corresponding to rooms. If there is an empty cell for all the length of stay of the guest then the reservation clerk mark it as X (i.e. reserved). If the guest is expected to continue staying the next day, then the reservation clerk shall mark the next day's respective room cell as O (i.e. Stay over). Lastly, the reservation clerk is encouraged to use colors while updating information or the cells on the control book. 2. Wall charts:
91 These are charts stapled on the wall depicting days of the month versus hotel rooms. Moreover, upon need and convenience, these charts might be customized to track appropriate room Numbers, rates, and codes, hence, is advantageous to control books. Moreover, in this very system, different colors are used to differentiate between different reservation transactions, types of guest reserving…Lastly, wall charts eliminates the erasures and rewriting associated with control book, hence lees errors might occur. 3. Computerized systems: Computerized systems are by far the best systems that track room availability. In fact, these very systems control room availability data and automatically generate many reservation-related reports in an accurate manner. Moreover, computerized systems can itemize room availability for future periods by open dates, closed dates, versus special event dates. Lastly, this very system can forecast room availability for any reservation horizon needed in the future. In the case of non-availability of room type, the system can further suggest alternative room types, rates, or even other nearby hotels. Reservation Record Each reservation department shall prepare a reservation record, which depicts the various personal and financial data of guests, for each reservation transaction. The aim is to identify guests and their occupancy needs before guest’s arrival. Moreover, the hotel can personalize or customize guest services and better schedule staff accordingly In order to create a reservation record, the following items are needed: a) Guest name (and group name, if applicable) b) Guest’s home or billing address c) Guest’s telephone number, including area code d) Name, address, and telephone number of guest’s company, if appropriate e) Name of and pertinent information about the person making the reservation, if not the guest f) Number of people in the group, and perhaps ages of any children g) Arrival date and time h) Number of nights required or expected departure date, depending on how the system is programmed i) Reservation type [Guaranteed versus Non-guaranteed] j) Special requirements [i.e. infant, disabled guest, or no-smoking accommodation]
92 k) Additional information, if needed [i.e. late arrival, method of transportation, flight number, room preferences…] At the reservation process, reservation agents shall keep in mind that a rate quoted and confirmed must be honored. Moreover, reservation clerks should be aware of the following: a) Supplementary charges for extra services or amenities b) Minimum stay requirements in effect for dates requested c) Special promotions in effect for dates requested d) Applicable currency exchange rates, if quoting rates to an international tourist e) Applicable room tax percentages f) Applicable service charges or gratuities Reservation Confirmation The hotel should communicate guests by telephone, telex, mail, or e-mail a Letter of Confirmation, which confirms the important points of the reservation agreement. This very letter might be shown at the registration process in order to accelerate the pace of registration and prove that the guest has the right to have a room at the hotel. The Hotel shall send a confirmation letter to all reserved potential guests, whether their reservations are guaranteed or non-guaranteed. Below are the main points that should be communicated in a confirmation letter: a) Name and address of the guest b) Date and time of arrival c) Room type and rate d) Length of stay e) Number of persons in a group, if any f) Reservation type [guaranteed or not] g) Reservation confirmation number h) Special requests, if any 1. Confirmation numbers: Hotels shall communicate meaningful confirmation numbers to their potential guests. These numbers shall have statistical meanings, which might help the hotel in maintaining an efficient historical database. Here is an example: 32 02 G JC 63
93 a) 32: Guest’s scheduled arrival date on Julian dates calendar. b) 02: Group reservation. In this very system, 01 might mean Frequent Independent Traveler. c) G: means that the reservation is guaranteed. If N is written, it means nonguaranteed. d) JC: are the initials of the reservation agent who processed the reservation (ex: Jamel Chafra) e) 63: Consecutive numbering of all reservation confirmation numbers issued in the current year. Reservation Change or Cancellation Potential guests initially asking for an accommodation might make up their minds later (before arrival) and call back for a reservation modification. In fact, guests might change their arrival date, expected departure date, method of payment or call for any other item change previously confirmed in their confirmation letter or simply call to cancel their previous reservation. In such a case, if possible reservation clerks shall proceed as to satisfy guest needs. Below, are two possible examples of guest modification. The first one concerns modifying a reservation type from non-guaranteed to guaranteed. This might be because the guest's airplane schedule have changed in a way that the guest is no more certain to reach the hotel by the cancellation hour. On the other hand, the second example depicts a situation where the guest calls to cancel a reservation (both guaranteed and nonguaranteed cancellations will be discussed). 1. Modify a reservation type (from non-guaranteed to guaranteed): In this very case, the reservation clerk shall: a) Obtain the guest’s name, and access the correct non-guaranteed reservation b) Obtain the guest’s credit card type, number and expiration date, and the cardholder’s name, and verify the validity of the credit card (Here assuming that the guest would like to guarantee via a credit card) c) Assign the guest a new reservation confirmation number, if it is the hotel’s policy d) Complete the reservation type change from non-guaranteed to guaranteed reservation status according to additional property’s procedures, if any 2. Reservation Cancellation:
94 Reservation clerks accepting a reservation cancellation shall behave in a polite, courteous and effective manner even though that reservation might make the hotel faced with unsold room(s). The main reason is that guests are doing the hotel a favor, especially under the non-guaranteed type of reservation, to communicate the hotel their cancellation to let you adjust your room availability, and try to find alternative potential guests beforehand. When canceling a reservation, the reservation clerk shall issue and communicate a cancellation number to the guest. In accordance to confirmation numbers, cancellation numbers shall be meaningful as to be used for statistical purposes, and as to prove whether a reservation has been properly canceled according to hotel cancellation policies or not. A) Cancellation of a non-guaranteed reservation: In this very case the reservation clerk shall: a) Obtain guest’s name and address b) Obtain number of reserved room(s) c) Obtain scheduled arrival and departure dates d) Obtain the reservation confirmation number, if applicable e) Access the right account, and cancel it f) Assign a cancellation number g) Suggest an alternative reservation B) Cancellation of a guaranteed reservation: All the above mentioned procedure applies also for the cancellation of a guaranteed reservation. Moreover, the reservation clerk shall pay attention to the following: 1. In the case of a cancellation of a credit card guaranteed reservation, the cancellation number acts as a proof of whether a certain guarantee shall be refunded to the potential guest or not. 2. In the case of advance deposit guaranteed reservation, again the cancellation number acts as a proof of whether a certain guarantee shall be refunded to the potential guest or not. 3. In the case of any other guaranteed reservation, the reservation clerk shall obtain the representative’s coordinates and mail him/her a letter documenting the cancellation
95 Reservation Reports In the reservation department, the widely used management reservation reports include: a) Reservation transaction report b) Commission agent report c) Turn away report (sometimes called the refusal report) d) revenue forecast report Expected Arrival, Stay over, and Departure Lists: On a daily basis, the reservation department shall prepare the expected arrival, stay over, and departures lists and communicate them to the front office department. 1. Arrival list: List of the names, and surnames along with respective room number of the guests who are expected to arrive the next day. 2. Stay over list: List of the names, and surnames along with respective room number of the guests who are expected to continue occupy their rooms the next day. 3. Departure list: List of the names, and surnames along with respective room number of the guests who are expected to depart the next day. Processing Deposits: Guests who decide to guarantee their reservation by paying a certain deposit to the hotel shall be informed about the procedure of sending deposits (i.e. how, when to send the deposits?). Moreover, only employees who do not have access to reservation records shall process deposits (ex: General Manager secretary or hotel's general cashier). The reason is if reservation and monetary transaction overlap, than internal control over one of the most important assets of the hotel (i.e. cash) becomes very weak. When a hotel assigned agent receives deposit, he/she shall: a) Endorse deposit checks with the hotel stamp as soon as it is received b) Record in the deposits received log the check number, amount, date received, guest name, arrival date, and confirmation number, if known c) Only the log shall be sent to the reservation department
96 Maintaining Reservation History Statistics: The reservation department shall maintain, and update various reservation history statistics to be used in the future whenever needed (ex. to integrate statistics in a model to solve overbooking, to come up with operational ratios, to help for Rooms Division budget preparation…). The following items are some of the data that might be stored in the reservation department system: a) Number and distribution of guests by market segment, age, income, and nationality… b) Number of expected occupied rooms c) Reservation volumes by sources of reservation d) Reservation volumes by types of reservation e) Number of turnaway guests with reasons of refusal Potential Reservation Problems: While processing reservations, reservation clerks might be faced with lot of problems. Below is a tentative categorization of 4 main common problems that might be encountered: a) Errors in a reservation record: 1. Record a wrong arrival or departure date 2. Misspell the guest’s name or reverse it 3. Reserve for the caller instead of the guest b) Misunderstandings due to industry jargon: 1. Confirmed versus guaranteed reservation 2. Double room versus 2 beds 3. Connecting rooms versus adjacent rooms c) Miscommunications with external reservation systems: 1. Book a guest in the wrong hotel 2. Book a guest in the wrong city [ex: Pasadena, California versus Pasadena, Texas] d) Central reservation system failures:
97 1. Fail to update central reservation system concerning room availability or to communicate rate changes in real time 2. Delays in communicating reservation requests 3. Equipment used may become technologically obsolete or inoperable REGISTRATION In the semi and fully automated systems, most of the registration activities are handled at the pre-arrival stage while in the manual system they are conducted at the arrival stage. Registration includes the following major activities: 1. Creating the registration record 2. Assigning the room & rate 3. Fulfilling special requests Pre-registration Activities: At the semi and fully automated systems, guests with reservations experience (i.e. expected arrivals) experience a more rapid check-in due to the information collected by reservation clerks during the reservation process. However, at the manual system, it is inconvenient to pre-register guests at the exception of VIP's and groups. For, VIP's, even under the manual system, need to feel different than other guests. Moreover, group reservations, even though time consuming, might create time benefits at the arrival stage. Lastly, whatsoever operating system the hotel opts for, all walk-ins shall be registered at the arrival stage of the guest cycle. The Registration Record: The registration record is a collection of important personal and financial guest information. A typical registration record includes: a) Guest name and surname b) Guest address and telephone number c) Company affiliation (if applicable) d) Expected arrival date e) Planned departure date or length of stay f) Required room rate g) Required room type h) Room number i) Method of payment
98 j) Special requests k) Signature Guest registration information items flow to different areas and functions of the hotel: Room and Rate Assignment The hotel shall identify and allocate an available room from a specific required room category (i.e. type & rate). That's why, under semi and fully automated systems, reservation and check-in clerks shall be sales minded while negotiating room and rate assignment with guests. This fact applies for registration clerks under the manual system. Moreover, while assigning rooms, check-in clerks shall keep an eye on hotel's future reservation commitments and not assign a room to a guest, while that very room is pre-assigned to some other guests at the same period of time. Room rates While pricing rooms, the hotel shall keep in mind that rate should be between a minimum (determined by cost structure) and a maximum (determined by competition structure) boundary as depicted below: Minimum (Hurdle Rate) < Room Rate < Maximum (Rack Rate) Cost Structure < Room Rate < Competition Structure Room Rack Slip Guest Folio Slip Information Rack Slip Registration POS Charge Status Housekeeping Schedule Guest History
99 Front office department shall finalize room rates with guests during the registration process. Moreover, rack rates shall only be applicable for walk-ins especially during the high season. Lastly, room rates might be affected by: a) Seasonality b) Variations in the number of guests assigned to rooms c) Service level d) Room location e) Type of Guest and / or usage (ex. commercial, corporate, complementary, group, family, day, and package-plan …) Room status At registration, check-in clerks shall contact the housekeeping department to be informed about the last status of hotel rooms so that they can assign only clean and available for sale rooms to their guests. That's why, the Front office, Housekeeping and Reservation department shall maintain a high degree of collaboration between them. The front office and housekeeping department shall continuously update the status of each single room. Below is the typical housekeeping room status flow of any single room: Occupied ⇒ On-change ⇒ Clean and Available for Sale The front office and housekeeping department shall frequently reconcile and compare their updated reports (especially under the manual system) for any possible room status Discrepancy. The aim is to detect these very discrepancies before it's financially and timely too late, and correct them. Room characteristics In order to be sales minded and convince potential guests to accept the highest priced rooms, the front office clerk shall be aware of the characteristics of each room type, the differences within the same room category (i.e. furnishings, amenities, and location…).
100 Method of Payment Guests, at the registration stage, shall communicate or confirm their intended method of payment. Below are the common methods of payments accepted by hotels: 1. Cash: Guests intending to settle their accounts by cash shall have no in-house charge privileges and, hence, all their purchases should be paid in advance (i.e. PIA status), which means that as guests purchase any kind of service or product, they shall pay for it immediately. In accordance to cash payment, registration clerks shall prepare lists of PIA guests and communicate them to all Point of Sales outlets. On the other hand, paying immediately might not suit some guests (even though intending to settle their accounts by cash), that's why hotels might give guest charge privileges, at the condition they provide an imprint of a valid card or an approved direct billing privilege at registration. While handling cash payments, all cashiers shall be aware of counter-feats and short cash change situations! Moreover, cashiers shall be trained as to accept so many cash equivalent tools that are legally accepted as cash payment such as cashier checks, traveler checks, money orders… 2. Personal checks: Nowadays, very few hotels still accept personal checks as a method of payment due to the high probability of fraud associated with this method. In fact, in order to accept personal checks, most hotels necessitates that these very checks be supported by a credit card with a check-cashing guarantee, that the amount to be cashed against checks shall be within the hotel’s established limit, and preferably accept personal checks only during standard business hours where banks are open. If personal checks are to be accepted, front office personnel shall imprint the credit card on the backside of the guest personal check and record the Guest ID card or driving license certificate along with the guest’s address and telephone number on the face of the check. 3. Credit cards: Credit cards, nowadays, become a preferable method of payment for guests and hotels. In accordance to this very method of payment, front office clerks should