Hotel and Restaurant Management
(Rooms Division- Front Desk Department)
A hotel or
resort’s main purpose is to be able to accommodate a person or group of persons
in a property or facility, whether it is privately owned or franchised. Accommodating a person whom we call “guest,”
needs to go through certain process in order to stay in a hotel or resort. The
process when departmentalized depending on the size of the hotel/resort will
have departments like: Front Office, Housekeeping, Laundry, Food &
Beverage, Outside Catering, Kitchen, Bakery, Finance, Purchasing, Receiving,
Security, Engineering, Sales & Marketing Department and other services the
hotel has to offer. Hotel’s sub-department like, Front Desk, Housekeeping and
Laundry when combined together is called Rooms Division. Food & Beverage
such as Restaurant, Ballroom, Pool Bar, Outside Catering Unit, Kitchen and
Bakery are all under the Food & Beverage Department. Purchasing, Receiving, and Security usually
falls under the Finance Department. Engineering such as carpentry, plumbing,
painting, electrical, technician, landscaping, gardening and upholstery will
all be under the Engineering Department. Artists work under Sales &
Marketing. Therefore the five major departments in the hotel will be Rooms
Division, Food & Beverage, Finance, Sales & Marketing and Engineering.
As mentioned previously, the creation of departments in a hotel depends
entirely on the size and services the hotel or resort has to offer.
Rooms Division
Rooms Division is normally managed by the Rooms
Division Manager. As mentioned earlier, the departments under Rooms Division
are Front Desk, Housekeeping and Laundry. In other hotel Housekeeping and
Laundry are combined in one department which is Housekeeping Department.
Front Desk Department
Front Office
in a larger scale hotel has sections in the department such as; Reception,
Cashier, Reservation, PABX, Concierge and Guest Relation Officer. Positions
held at the Front Office are Front Office Manager, Assistant Front Office
Manager, Guest Relation Officer, Duty Manager, Reservation Supervisor,
Reservation Agent, Telephone Operator, Guest Service Agent or Front Desk Receptionist,
Cashier, Bell Service Supervisor, Bellman, Doorman and other positions that
have been created based on the service the hotel can offer.
Front Desk Manager’s primary responsibility is to make
sure that guest’s stay is satisfactory and with good impression of the hotel.
He or She is responsible for the administration and operation of the department
as well as hiring, coaching, training and evaluating of employees in the
department. Customer service should come naturally with the Front Desk Manager.
The important attributes that the FDM should possess and carried throughout all
the Front Desk employees for training and implementation are greeting guests
with warm welcome, sweet smile, eye contact and a hospitality attitude. In
addition to that is the ability to deal with guest complaints or issues,
courteous handling of phone calls, knowledge of services available in other
departments for proper billing and discounts, close coordination with other
department for possible guest requests for special service, ability to market
the hotel, knowledge of related revenue issues, collection and reconciliation
of receipts on a daily basis, compilation of reports, knowledge of accounts
payable and receivables, sorting and processing of guest mails, knowledge of
payroll preparation( usually being handled by FDM & AFDM), should be
organized, familiar with booking, computer systems operation and other matters
that maybe related in the smooth operation and administration of Front Desk
Department. Front Desk Manager should be
personable and dressed professionally as one of the key representative of the
hotel.
Assistant Front Desk Manager assists the FOM in the operation of
the Front Desk, Cashier, Reservation & PABX, Bell Service/ Concierge, Guest
Service Agent and other positions created for the smooth operation of Front
Office Department.
Reception usually has employees called Guest
Service Agent or Front Desk Receptionist.
GSA/ FDR are the equivalent of customer service in a company. Their main
responsibility is to meet the needs of all guests staying in the hotel,
greeting guests upon entry to the hotel, does the registration of guest check
in as well as handling of guest check out, handling of guest folio reflecting
the charges made during guest stay. Listens, answers questions, handles and re-direct
guest request accordingly without delay to ensure guest satisfaction. Job
functions and atmosphere may vary in many ways depending on the hotel brand,
size and location.
Cashier collects money from guest in payment
of their accommodation and any fee that they may have incurred while staying in
the hotel. Fees like car parking, computer usage, room service, laundry
service, facsimile and many other services offered in the hotel. Cashier has to
ensure that guest inquiries on fees and hotel services are answered accurately
and promptly. Handles and records all guest financial transactions during their
stay. A hotel cashier should be able to accurately calculate room rates,
discounts and add up room and auxiliary charges with the use of adding machine
or any equipment for accuracy. Hotel cashier is responsible for the processing
of cash, debit card and credit card transactions for guest and may also be
responsible for preparing and submitting daily bank deposits. Hotel cashier
should be competent in answering guest questions or concerns regarding charges
on their bills. Hotel cashier guarantees security of contents of safety deposit
boxes. He should have good skills in customer service and good relationship
with the hotel staff.
Concierge is responsible for the transport of
guest luggage to the assigned room. Extends hospitality gestures, opens door
for the guest upon check in and hand over the room key to the guest. Assists
guest in loading and unloading of guest items or luggage and ensures guest’s easy
access to handcuff accessories or wheel chair. Delivers guest daily newspaper,
letter/ or mail to the room and even run errands for guest. Arrange
sightseeing, travel, tours, dining and others. Make reservation for patron and
obtain tickets for them. Receive and store guest luggage if necessary. He also
performs other duties in the office as requested. Provide information about
events, recreational facilities in the hotel or outside, shopping malls or
other locations.
Reservation and PABX receives and records guest/s booking
of specific dates of arrival and departure. He responds to e-mails and
electronic reservation. Keep track of
guest’s reservation to make sure that guest’s specific requests are
communicated properly to the concerned department. Requests such as type of
room, type of bed, either smoking or non-smoking, available sofa bed or
reclining chair, refrigerator, microwave, iron & ironing board etc. and
most especially available room with handicap accessibility. PABX is an acronym for private automatic branch exchange which
is the telephone switching system within an enterprise. This is the switchboard
system at the Front Office where all calls especially from outside the hotel
passes through and re-connected to other extensions of the hotel. Telephone
operators are responsible in the answering and monitoring of the calls received
and calls made.
Guest Relation Officer should have excellent interpersonal
skills in order to be able to interact with hotel guests, visitors and
employees of the hotel. He should be friendly, approachable and with good
communication skills.GRO extends warm welcome to the guests and ensures that
guest receives personal attention upon arrival. GRO should also be present in
the hotel lobby to bid farewell to the guest on their departure. He/She is
involved in the hotels promotion, sales and marketing strategies. As hotel
representative, he should project a presentable image, positive attitude and
good manners to the guests. GRO should be knowledgeable on Front Desk operation
as a whole which includes reservation, cashiering, concierge, reception and
most especially acts as Duty Manager in the absence of the Front Office Manager
or her/his assistant.
Duty Manager acts as Manager of the hotel in the
absence of the General Manager or Assistant General Manager. He usually starts his shift after or before
the GM or AGM shifts finishes. Duty Manager should know the hotel as well as
other department’s policies and procedures. It is of utmost importance that he
knows the emergency contact numbers like police department, fire department,
hospitals, General Manager’s contact number and other department heads that may
be needed in certain situations or circumstances. He should be able to contact
employee’s in-charge of each department in case of guest needs of certain
service or keys to unlock doors especially for unavailable items that needs to
be taken out from the main storage. Duty Manager should act and make decisions
for the welfare of the guests, employees and the hotel. He should be
responsible and able to lead employees towards the success of the hotel
operation. Duty Manager usually has forms or reports to fill-up regarding
special events or comments that occurred during his/her shift. A copy of the
report is usually given to concerned department that he had decisions made in
particular that requires follow-up or awareness.
