4. Front Office Management.pptx

4. Front Office Front Office Manager Learning Outcome • Define and explain the importance Front Office management in international hotel organizations. • Assess and distinguish different staffing approaches • Analyze scheduling organizations. systems related to international hotel • Develop...

4. Front Office Front Office Manager Learning Outcome • Define and explain the importance Front Office management in international hotel organizations. • Assess and distinguish different staffing approaches • Analyze scheduling organizations. systems related to international hotel • Develop effective incentive programs for FO employees. 2 Front Office Manager Overview • Front Office Manager • Communications • Staffing and Scheduling • Incentive Programs 3 Front Office Manager Duties & Responsibilities Deal effectively with guests and employees / Communication Quality / Guest Service Training / supervise staff / lead by example Comply with hotel’s policies and procedures Solve problems, make decisions, take action Ensure that local registration law is respected Budgeting / Controlling Expenses/ Goals Organize / Prioritize 4 Front Office Manager Duties & Responsibilities Employees Equipment (PMS) Inventory (rooms) FOM Coordination Hotel’s Profit & Quality Goals Budget Sales Opportunities 5 Front Office Manager Duties & Responsibilities Front Office Manager • Manages the staff at the Front Desk & Guest Services Departments. • Directs all activities of the Asst. Front Office Managers and the Night Manager to ensure communications and follow-up on any problems, guest requests or special requirements. Interviews, trains and schedules the staff. Conducts Performance Evaluations and disciplines staff when needed. Resolves customer complaints from all areas of the hotel, handling all guest interactions with the highest level of hospitality and professionalism, accommodating special requests whenever possible; assists customers in all inquiries in connection with hotel services, hours of operations, key hotel personnel, in-house events, directions, etc. Responds to all guest requests in an accurate and timely manner. Interaction with guest will be in person and by phone. • • • Checks guest in and out in an efficient and friendly manner, using guest name whenever possible. Assures that guest is assigned type of room requested and the correct rate is charged. Arranges for luggage to be delivered to guest room. Issues correct keys to the guest. Checks out guest at end of stay. Ascertains guest satisfaction, collects keys, posts late charges and presents bill to guest. Settles bill accurately through credit card or cash transaction. • Coordinates arrivals, departures and billing requirements. Blocks rooms for arrivals and ensures any discrepancies are resolved. Reviews daily arrivals to ensure proper handling of Special Attention Guests, Return Guests, and Groups. • Reviews and monitors schedules of staff in other department of responsibility. Monitors their activities to assure that standards are being met, staff is being supported and guest needs are being met. 6 Communications 7 Front Office Manager Communications Front Office Communications • Communication involves more than memos, face to face conversations or emails. • The more guestrooms, the more public areas, the more complex the FO communication. Interdepartmental Communications • Many services requiere coordination between FO and the rest of the departments, HSK, ENG, S&M, EVENTS. 8 Front Office Manager Front Office Communication Guest communications • Appropriate language & Professional approach Business etiquette • Every FO member may be involved in events, decisions or incidents occurred. 9 Front Office Manager Interdepartmental Communication PUBLIC RELATIONS HOUSEKEEPING S&M ACCOUNTING FO ENGINERING SECURITY REVENUE CENTERS GUEST RELATIONS HUMAN RESOURCES 10 Staffing and Scheduling 11 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling No matter how well designed a staffing and scheduling system may be, it can only be as good as the people who run it. Payroll costs Staffing & Employee Scheduling Productivity Morals 12 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling The more cross-training occurs within FO, the fewer staff required to perform FO tasks. CI & CO Cashier Switchboar d PBX Reservation s Guest Service Night Audit Selecting and recruiting The right people Competent The right equipment available Induction Training Motivation 13 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling How many staff are required? What has to be done? When it has to be done by? Warm & Quick CI Room Assigment What determine s this? Service Support Guests needs!! Confort & Security CO Fast & Efficient 14 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling FOM manages the staff schedule to make sure this happens. How many FOAs required? Classic rule of thumb are 50/60 occupied rooms per FOA Rooms ≤ 250 60 rooms/FOA – Rooms > 250 50 rooms/FOA 15 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling SHIFTS   Cover 24h service 3 shifts (8 hours each) Early Shift (AM): Starting at 07:00 – 08:00 Late Shift (PM): Starting at 15:00 – 16:00 Night Shift (N): Starting at 23:00 – 00:00 Would you need the same number of FOAs for each shift? • Identify the main “peaks” during the day • Middle Shift or Split Shift 16 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling Exercise 1 1. What is the minimum number of FOAs that you would need for a week in any hotel covering 24 hours service with 1 FOA per shift? 2. Develop a week schedule. Every full-time employee is entitled to 2 days off. You need to cover the 3 shifts. 17 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling Exercise 1 - Solution Shifts required: 1 FOA – AM 1 FOA – PM 1 FOA – N 1. 3 shifts a day x 7 days a week= 21 shifts 2. 21 shifts / 5 working days = 4.2 FOAs • 4 full time FOAs 8h x 5 working days = 40h • 1 Part time.- 20% 0,2 x 40= 8h 18 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling 19 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling M T W Th F Sa Su FO1 N N N N N OFF OFF FO2 OFF OFF PM PM PM N N FO3 PM PM OFF OFF AM AM AM FO4 AM AM AM AM OFF OFF PM PT (8h) PM 20 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling Some factors to consider? • The occupancy percentage • The average length of stay • Patterns of activity • The amount of personal contact • Type of hotel (leisure, business, luxury,…) • Technology 21 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling Scheduling requirements • Full work week – 24/7 • Forecast – Occupancy%, Departures, Arrivals • Days off, holidays, licenses, days off requests • Labor regulations/Labor agreements • Posted time in advance • Needs to be reviewed daily (Occupancy) • Any changes need to be noted 22 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling Some tips on scheduling • Always a Manager on Duty (assistant manager/supervisor/shift leader) • Night Shift days off to be covered (days off covered by one person and off right after) • Entitled days off per employee (Weekends, requested days) • Keep a pattern in work shifts. Minimum requirement 12 hours (One week AM shift /next PM shift) 23 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling Alternative Scheduling Techniques • Part-Time Scheduling • Flextime Scheduling • Compressed Schedules • Job Sharing  FOM - better schedule according to hotel needs.  Some countries - difficulties to implement these techniques (unions, government work regulations). 24 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling Alternative Scheduling Techniques Part-Time Scheduling Flextime Scheduling Front Office extra flexibility in scheduling Flextime scheduling allows employees to vary the times they begin and end their shift. Examples of part timers: • Students • New or young parents • Retirees Flextime can enhance: • Staff Morale • Productivity • Job Satisfaction 25 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling Alternative Scheduling Techniques Compressed Schedules Job Sharing Compressed schedules offers employees to work the same number of hours in fewer weekdays. Job sharing - one employee finished the shift, another one knows the job, and may continue until the end of the official shift. Benefits of Compressed Schedules: • Enhanced employee morale • Reduced absenteeism Benefits of job sharing: • Lowers department turnover • Less absenteeism • Increases staff morale Some countries do not allow overtime with more than 8h workdays!!!! 26 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling Exercise 2 You have been appointed as a FOM at Les Roches Hotel (100 rooms). Please staff the department for the next week with the following forecasted occupancy: M T W Occupancy 50% 60% 80% Th 75% F 100 % Sa 100% Su 50% 27 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling 1FOA = 60 occ rooms Occup. AM PM N Total No. Shifts M Tu W Th F Sa Su 50% 0,83 FOA 1 1 1 60% 1 FOA 1 1 1 80% 1,3 FOA 1,3 1,3 1 75% 1,25 FOA 1,25 1,25 1 100% 1,66 FOA 1,66 1,66 1 100% 1,66 FOA 1,66 1,66 1 50% 0,83 FOA 1 1 1 3 3 3,6 3,5 4,32 4,32 3 24,74 shifts /5 working days= 4,9FOAs  4 full time FOAs  1 part time PT (90%) 0,9 x 40=36H 28 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling M T W Th F Sa Su FO1 N N N N N OFF OFF FO2 OFF OFF PM PM PM N N FO3 PM PM OFF OFF AM AM AM FO4 AM AM AM OFF OFF PM PM 10 - 14 AM 10 - 18 10 – 18 10 - 18 PT (8h) 29 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling What determine the FOA workload is: Number of C/Os (Departures) and C/Is (Arrivals) Rule of thumb to be applied to departures and arrivals AM FOAs= #Departures/Rule of thumb (50 or 60 FOAs per C/O) PM FOAs= #Arrivals /Rule of thumb (50 or 60 FOAs per C/I) 30 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling Exercise 3 – 600 Rooms Hotel M T W Th F Sa Su Occupancy 50% 60% 60% 75% 80% 90% 50% Rooms 300 360 360 450 480 540 300 Arrivals 160 150 0 190 180 260 0 Departures 100 150 0 100 150 200 240 Staff and Schedule the Front Desk for the week • CO Time: 12,00h • ETA: 14,00 until 23,00h • Thursday 90 arrivals are between 18,00h and 20,00h Spanish speaking countries • Only FOA2 and FOA3 speak Spanish fluently. • Employee requests: Night Shift FOA requests Wed and Thu OFF. Another FOA (FT) is requesting Fri and Sat OFF and you grant all the requests. 31 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling 1FOA = 50 occ rooms Occup. AM PM N Total No. Shifts M Tu W Th F Sa Su 50% 60% 60% 75% 80% 90% 50% 2 (100 Dep) 3,2 (160 Arr) 1 3 (150) 1 (0) 2 (100) 3 (150) 4 (200) 4,8 (240) 3 (150) 1 1 (0) 1 3,8 (190) 1 3,6 (180) 1 5,2 (260) 1 1 (0) 1 6,2 7 3 6,8 7,6 10,2 6,8 47,6 shifts /5 working days= 9,52 FOAs  9 full time FOAs  1 part time PT (52%) 0,52 x 40=21H 32 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling FO1 FO2 FO3 FO4 FO5 FO6 FO7 FO8 FO9 PT (21h) M (6) N AM OFF PM OFF PM PM OFF AM T (7) N OFF AM PM OFF OFF PM PM AM AM W (4) Th (6,6) OFF ® PM PM F (8) N PM PM Sa (9) N PM PM OFF ® OFF AM N 12 - 20 OFF N AM AM OFF ® AM AM OFF ® AM AM OFF PM OFF PM OFF OFF 18 -23 AM PM PM AM PM 12-20 PM Su (7) N PM OFF AM AM AM AM OFF 8-16 33 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling Exercise 4 – 250 Rooms Hotel M Occupancy Rooms Arrivals Departures 50% 125 50 75 T W 100% 100% 250 250 185 125 60 125 Th F Sa Su 52% 130 50 170 80% 200 150 80 98% 245 120 75 58% 145 0 100 Staff and Schedule the Front Desk for the week • CO Time: 12,00h • ETA every day: 19,00h to 23,00h except Wednesday, when all arrivals will be between 11,00h and 14,00h. • Saturday all the departures are late COs leaving between 16,00h and 18,00h. • Employee requests: Night Shift FOA requests MO and TU OFF. Another FOA (FT) is requesting FRI and SAT OFF and FOA2 is requesting AM shift on Saturday. You grant all the requests. 34 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling 1FOA = 60 occ rooms M Tu W Th F Sa Su Occup. 50% 100% 100% 4,2 (125+125) 52% 80% 98% 58% 2,8 (170) 1,3 (80) 1,7 (100) 1 (0) 1 0,83=1 (50) 1 2,5 (150) 1 1 (0) 3,3 (120+75) 1 5,3 3,7 AM PM N Total No. Shifts 1,3 (75) 1 (60) 0,83=1 (50) 3,1 (185) 1 1 3,3 5,1 6,2 4,8 4,8 WATCH OUT! Wednesday, all arrivals will be between 11,00h and 14,00h. 33,2 shifts /5 working days= 6,64 FOAs  6 full time FOAs  1 part time PT (64%) 0,64 x 40= 25,6 (26 H) 1 (0) 1 WATCH OUT! Saturday, all departures will be between 16,00h and 18,00h. 35 Front Office Manager Staffing and Scheduling FO1 FO2 FO3 FO4 FO5 FO6 PT (26h) M (3) OFF ® T (5) OFF ® AM PM N AM PM N PM PM OFF OFF W (6) Th (5) F (5) Sa (5,2) Su (4) N AM 11 - 19 OFF N OFF N OFF OFF ® N AM ® OFF ® 11 - 19 PM AM PM PM AM PM PM PM N AM AM PM OFF PM OFF AM AM PM 16 – 18 AM OFF 36 Incentive Programs 37 Front Office Manager Incentive Programs What are the main objectives to be achieved by every hotel? GUEST SATISFACTION REVENUE & 38 Front Office Manager Incentive Programs • FO plays a key role in promoting sales and in having satisfied guests. • FOM must develop and implement a plan to optimize sales opportunities, assuring the best attitude and service possible. 39 Front Office Manager Incentive Programs This plan includes different actions such as: • Establishing objectives • Determining strategies • Training programs (procedures) • Budgets 40 Front Office Manager Incentive Programs The objective of the sales incentive program for front office employees is to encourage the FOA to promote products and services in various areas of the hotel. Rooms Food & Beverage Health Facilities 41 Front Office Manager Incentive Programs • Tools used to encourage staff to promoting sales and having satisfied guests. • Incentive programs - one of the most effective ways to acknowledge staff members, who excel in their work. 42 Front Office Manager Incentive Programs A well-designed incentive program should: • Recognize and reward exceptional staff performance. • Increase staff productivity. • Demonstrate commitment to guest satisfaction. • Promote staff participation in revenue and service, through suggestions. 43 Rewarding 44 Front Office Manager Rewarding • FOM must know what the employees want, and develop a way of meeting these needs, in return for the desired behavior. • FOM must work with RDM, GM and HR to develop effective programs that meet the employees’ needs. 45 Front Office Manager Rewarding Possible rewards for FOAs • Commendation letter / Honors letter • Certificates of appreciation • Public Photo display • Recognition dinners or events Gift certificates • Special parking privileges • Public recognition (social media, corporate magazines) • Financial rewards • Extra days off 46 Front Office Manager Other important responsibilities of a FOM • Budgeting for Operations • Forecasting Room Availability • Guest Relations • Control Expenses • City Ledger Supervision • Guest Ledger Supervision 47 Guest Relations Manager REFERENCE • Kasavana M., Brooks R. (2017) Managing Front Office Operations. 10th ed. Lansing (Michigan): American Hotel & Lodging Educational Institute. • Nitschke, A. & Frye, W. (2008). Chapter 6 Controlling Expenses. In Managing Housekeeping Operations. pp 211-241. Lansing, MI: American Hotel & Motel Association. 48 Thank you!!