13 GUEST SERVICES

S. Thilagamani

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Introduction

 

Perhaps no duty of the room division is more vital than of guest services. Guest satisfaction is crucial in maintaining loyalty of the hotel property. Guest loyalty ensures repeat business and enables the guest to use the hotel property again and again. With the lots of hotel choices in the market today, repeat business ensures a steady revenue stream. All rooms’ division employees, and other considered front of the house, must be trained well on their impact on guest satisfaction at all phases of guest cycle right from pre-arrival till departure of the guest.

 

Objectives:

 

This module will enable the learners to

 

1.      understand the services offered to the guest at various phases of guest cycle

2.      compile the necessary records of the guests and

3.      determine the prompt and quality service to the guests

 

Service standard

 

Hotel wishing to foster an atmosphere of quality guest service must establish parameters. Employees in any industry need to have expectations made clear to them. A hotel that clearly defines its guest service guidelines will be able to hold employee accountable. That accountability helps management guide and evaluate employees. An environment like this translates into superior levels of guest service.

 

Many hotels chains have developed and implemented their own guest service standards. The names for these programs differ, but the overriding theme is consistent amongst all of them: “Guest service is paramount to hotel success.”

 

Establishing guest service guidelines begins with a breakdown of guest interaction. Guest interaction can be verbal or it can be visual. Rooms division employees use those two methods of conveying a message to guests. Guest service is accomplished when the employee conveys the message using both visual and verbal means.

 

Verbal means

 

Speaking, as a method of communication, can reveal much about a person. Verbal communication allows for gaining insight into a guest. Often overlooked by rooms division employee deeply involved in other tasks, the basic rules for effective verbal communications are:

 

  • Use an appropriate greeting
  • Personalize the conversation (use the customer’s name)
  •  Thank the guest
  •  Listen
  • Avoid jargon

Whether communicating in person or over the phone, employee should greet every guest appropriately. Identify the time of the day by saying “good morning” or “good evening.” The employee who greets guest over the phone should also include his or her name and department and offer assistance in the greeting. Personalizing the conversation sets a relaxed tone in conversation. Using the appropriate title (i.e., Mr. or Ms.) is important. Thanking guests in a sincere manner is also very important.

 

Listening is the only way a receiver can hear the message the transmitter is sending. Employee can listen for subtle hints and signals a guest gives out during communication. The employee creates a comfort level when they listen. Letting the guest initiate the tone of the conversation also puts him/ her at ease. Failure to listen correctly can cause problems. The seven common listening errors are:

  •  Failure to concentrate
  • Listening too hard
  • “Jumping the gun”
  • Lagging behind the conversation
  • Focusing too much on the appearance
  • Omitting
  • Adding

 

Let the guest know that you are giving him/her your undivided attention. Keeping the mind clear of other duties or concern helps focus attention. Employees who think they know what the guest is going to say are often embarrassed to find out they were wrong. Employee should always keep an open mind when listening. They should be prepared to hear things they may not want to hear. Asking questions helps the feel that the employee is actually listening.

 

Hotel employees should avoid using industry jargon when they communicate with guests. Using hotel terms in conversation may not convey the intended message. For example, “Don’t worry, Mr. Smith, I blocked you into a double/double.”

 

Visual means

 

Communicating visually is an important as communicating verbally. Visual communication can reinforce what is being said verbally. The complete delivery of guest service can be accomplished by incorporating both means. The rules for effective visual communications are:

  • Communication with a smile.
  • Be cognizant of body language.
  • Observe appropriate grooming standards.

The smile is an underappreciated method of conveying hospitality. A genuine smile that accompanies a greeting or thank you reinforces the message.

 

Body language can be an important visual marker for rooms’ division employees. Observing guest body language is like listening with eyes. Observation of guest body language can give the employee clues on how to communicate with the guest. Common body language signals include the following:

 

  • Crossed arms may indicate a defensive posture.
  • A guest who leans across the front desk during conversation may be aggressive.
  • Strong and consistent eye contact may indicate confidence.
  • eyes may indicate fatigue.

 

Another often overlooked aspect of visual communication is guest perception. Hotel employees are viewed as an extension of the hotel itself. How a guest perceives an employee often contributes to the guest’s overall perception of a hotel. The first and often most lasting perception a guest makes on an employee is the employee’s appearance. It is for that reason most hotels have instituted employee grooming standards.

 

All rooms’ division employees, whether front of the house or back of the house, should take pride in their appearance. Those in uniform should ensure that the uniform is clean and properly pressed. Footwear should match the uniform and be appropriate for the job. Another part of employee’s attire is the name tags. The employee name tag usually includes name, title, and/or department the employee work in. for department not regularly in physical contact with guest, their clothes should be comfortable but still presentable.

 

Hair, length, jewellery, makeup, beards, and other grooming standards vary greatly from hotel to hotel. What may be acceptable in one hotel may not be in another.

 

Guest conflict resolution

 

Not every guest experience is problem-free. The hotel industry is a service industry that relies on people and infrastructure to deliver a product. Service received from employees one part. This resolution is best accomplished by adhering to the visual and verbal rules of guest service. Many hotel employees, in their sincere desire to correct a conflict, forget to make the time to listen first. They might also become defensive and inadvertently express that in body language. If it is assumed that the employee is fully trained, the followed to meet or exceed a guest’s expectations:

 

  • Listen first. Using the rules of visual communication, allow the guest to fully express the problem. Making eye contact and avoiding the crossing of arms at this point keeps the atmosphere open. Interruptions or excuses only make matters worse.
  • Summarize and restate the problem. The employee should next reply back to the guest what his/her understanding of the problem is. This summary should also include a restatement of the o the guest’s reaction to the problem. Without condescension, expressing back to the guest that anger or disappointment is an understood reaction validates those feelings. This also lets the guest know feelings. This also lets the guest know that the employee fully appreciates the scope and breadth of the conflict.
  • Make no excuse. A guest who is dissatisfied with the guest room shower temperature will be dissatisfied whether the hotel water heater was working or not. Employees should take this opportunity to sincerely apologize on behalf of the entire hotel. Being up-front and honest, without making excuses, again validates the guest’s feelings.
  • Resolve the problem. If the conflict is something that can be fixed, it should be done immediately. If it can’t, the guest should be compensated in some way. Methods of resolution are dictated by empowerment, which is covered next in this chapter.
  • Document the conflict. Hotels seeking to continually improve guest service seek to ensure that conflicts do not reoccur. Documenting the problems will create a record for future changes in training or policy. Hotel managers often use real-life scenarios as teaching tools.

Empowerment

 

Guest service is often a focal point of hotel management. Training, experience, personality, and other things contribute to an individual employee’s ability to satisfy a guest. Hotel management must support that effort. One way management supports an employee’s ability to satisfy a guest is by integrating empowerment in all duties.

 

A trend in many hotels today is to empower the employee to make guest service decision. Nowhere is that more vital the rooms division. Empowerment is defined as the ability and authority to satisfy guest complaints/requests within preset parameters. Whenever issues arise, an empowered employee is able to take whatever action is deemed appropriate to solve the problem. Guests are more satisfied when an employee takes care of the situation instead of saying “I have to ask my manager.” Employee gains a greater sense of self-worth as well.

 

Diversity awareness

 

Guest service goes beyond empowerment. Guest service also entails knowledge and understanding of people. The diversity of guests makes it vital that all hotel employees appreciate the difference in people. Most reputable hotels put all their employee through diversity training. Diversity training teaches employee that they must understand and appreciate the difference in people. The U.S. Department of Labour predict that minority groups will compromise nearly half of the U.S. population by 2050. Helping employees overcome stereotypes ensures that no guests perceive a difference in treatment. In the past, racism, sexism, ethnocentrism, and other stereotypes created uncomfortable environments for guests and employees to celebrate this difference. Hotel managers often lead by example of hiring a diverse front desk staff. A front office that is operated by people various races, gender, ages, and ethnic backgrounds reflect management understands of diversity. A diverse guest pool inevitably feels more welcome at a diverse front desk.

 

International guests

 

Customer service skills are valued across the globe. Many texts have been written on international business protocol and service. Protocol comes from the Greek meaning “the first glue.” Proper protocol can be seen as the glue that the cements a good business relationship. In the hotel industry, understanding the customer service skills needed in dealing with international guests can be very important. A hotel, by its nature, is the “home away from home” for international guests. Travelling in a foreign land can be intimating for some people. Using good customer service will help put these visitors at ease. These skills are important for all hotel types, but those hotel located in gateway cities will require those skills most often.

 

Even before an international reservation is ever made, a hotel must prepare for the guest’s arrival. If possible, hotels should share a list of multilingual staff with front office managers. This list should encompass the entire hotel. An engineer who is fluent in French or a chef who speaks Japanese should be documented on this list as well. Should translation assistance be needed, the front office staffs can call on other hotel employees. As was stated earlier, some hotels identify their multilingual staff by making each employee’s name tag with the flag of the country the language is spoken in. A guest can easily identify the employee who shares hi/her language.

 

The amount of accommodation a hotel should provide to international guests depend s greatly on the volume of visitors. An airport hotel in San Francisco might have steady stream of Japanese visitors. In that case, everything from welcome letters, itineraries, and travel information to menu selection and amenity descriptions should be translated into the guest’s native tongue. This hotel may even create special menu items to cater to the traditional cuisine of the country. A suburban hotel may not have the same international volume, so the expense of translating in-house collateral probably is not warranted. However, they too should have a plan of action in case an international visitor dose arrives.

 

Management’s role in guest service

 

Communication is perhaps the most important function of any front desk or front office manager. Communication both with guests and staff is vital. In terms of guest communication, these managers should become involved in guest complaints only after an empowered desk agent attempted to resolve the issue first. Managers who involve themselves in any situation before the agent has had a chance to resolve it successfully on his/her own defeat the purpose behind empowerment. Managers need to be a resource for employees, giving advice only if asked. Of course, proper implementation of empowerment requires evaluations of any action taken by the employee after the fact, if the preset parameters were exceeded in some way.

 

Some guest may simply prefer to address complaints to a manager. Guest complaints must be viewed as opportunities to improve hotel services, not a “burden” of any kind. Manager must lead by example here. Reaction s to guest complaints must be done in a timely, positive and caring manner. Not every complaint may be valid in the mind of the management, but it is valid in the mind of the guest. All complaints should be investigated, evaluated, and responded to. If the front office manager is unable to resolve the situation, it should be passed along to more senior management. The escalation of an issue can and often should go all the way to the general manager.

 

Guest service training

 

Proper training of employees can minimize the role management must play in guest service. The guest service philosophy of a hotel should be communicated constantly and consistently. This communication should begin with the first day of new employee orientation. Hotels should begin the guest service training process immediately. During orientation, new employees (of all departments) should be given the hotel’s service philosophy. This message is often best delivered by a member of the executive committee. The impact of a senior manager stating the important of guest service can be memorable.

 

Service mission statement

 

A hotel’s guest service message can be summarized succinctly in the hotel’s service mission statement. A service mission statement severs as the rule and / or goal of the guest service philosophy. A sample mission statement might read:

 

“We, as the staff and management of them gold bay star hotel, pledge to consistently meet or exceed our guest’s expectations in order to ensure complete customer satisfaction.”

 

The mission statement should be posted in all employee break areas, in the cafeteria, and in the changing rooms. The management must continually reinforce this philosophy in both words and deeds. Guest service training continues beyond orientation and introduction of the service mission statement. Guest service training should be constant. New and experienced employees alike should continually refresh their skills. Smaller chains and independent hotels can take advantage of other resources, for example:

 

  • On-the-job training / reinforcement
  • Role-playing
  • Commercial videos
  • Guest speakers
  • Continuing education/distance learning

An excellent way to promote superior guest service is to share examples of actual employee successes.

 

Motivating for guest service

 

Keeping the “service fire alive” in the hearts of hotel employees is as important as effective training. Motivating employees to embody the service mission statement in their day-to-day duties helps ensure guest satisfaction motivation is difficult without some method of quantifying results. When an employee has a clearly define goal, the task of achieving it is much easier.

 

Quantifying customer service is best achieved from guest feedback. Most hotels have some version of a comment card in guest rooms. These cards encourage guest to rate and /or rank the services received during his/her stay. The completed cards are mailed by the guest in business reply envelopes to management.

 

Comment card

 

The comment cards are then tallied and the rankings / scores of each department are readily apparent. Hotel management should have in place guest service target goals based on these rankings / scores. Employees or departments that achieve these goals should be rewarded or recognized in some way. Some chain recognizes their employee by changing the look of their name tags. Employees named in a comment card, for example, can be awarded points. After a predetermined number of a point is achieved, the employee’s name tag receives a star or strip indicating they embody superior customer service skills. Hotel management can take pride in the number of employees achieving these ranks. The employees themselves are proud to wear a name tag that sets them apart. A healthy competition can ensure to see which employees can get the most stars/strips.

 

One motivators include bring the skilled employees into new hire orientation. Real-life testimonials are powerful learning tools, and setting the tone for new hire in the fashion helps establish good practices. In-kind rewards such as a free dinner for two or a complimentary stay at another hotel also serve as incentives.

 

Conclusion

 

“Customers don’t expect you to be perfect. They do expect to fix things when they go wrong” – Donald Porter

 

Guest service is often a focal point of hotel management. Following would help in enabling guest services with quality. Listen first to the guest, summarise and restate the Problem, make no excuses, Resolve the problem and Document the conflict. Hotel managers and administrators use such real life scenarios as teaching tools.

 

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Web references

 

 

Book References

 

  1. Aggarwal, R. Hotel Front office – Systems and Procedure, Sublime Publications, Jaipur, 2002.
  2. Bhatnagar, S.K. Front Office Management, Frank Bros, New Delhi, 2004.
  3. Andrew, S. Text book of Front Office Management and Operation, Tata McGraw Hill Publishing Company Ltd, New Delhi, 2008.
  4. Ismail, S.A. Front Office Operation and Management, Thomson Asia Pvt Ltd, 2004