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front office basic
The document discusses various aspects of front office management in a hotel, including responsibilities of different front office roles and departments, revenue and reservations management, guest services, accounting for guests, and data management. It provides details on key front office functions like forecasting demand, yield management, managing reservations and occupancy, the guest registration process, privacy policies, billing to guest folios, night audits, and credit card processing.
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front office basic
- 1. DESINGED BY, MR. SUNILKUMAR, LECTURER
- 2. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Front Office Manager (FOM) Revenue Management Reservations Guest Services Night Audit Desk Staff Concierge Bell Staff
- 3. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Front Office Manager Revenue manager Establishing room ratesReservation manager Managing the reservation processDesk staff Guest registration Concierge Guest information Bell staff Guest assistance Night auditor Managing the Front Office related accounting and data collection process
- 4. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Responsibilities of Front Office Functional areas PMS & its management Revenue & reservation management Management of guest Services Accounting for guests Data management
- 5. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Front Office: The PMS & Its Management PMS: Computerized system Room rates, reservations, and room assignments Guest histories Reservations Other selected guest services Management information functions Accounting information
- 6. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 To maximize hotel’s revenue per available room (RevPar) Front Office : Revenue & Reservations Management Occupancy % & Average Daily Rate (ADR) Increase Occupancy % x ADR = RevPar To improve RevPar: Estimate (forecast) guest demand for rooms Practice yield management Control occupancy
- 7. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Revenue & Reservations Management: Forecasting Guest Demand For Rooms When demand for rooms is high, drive ADR (e.g., college football game: sell-out at a high ADR) When demand for rooms is low, drive occupancy (e.g., night before Thanksgiving: offer lower rate) Knowing demand for rooms is key ! keep accurate historical records to understand past demand know of special events or circumstances that impact future room demand For forecasting demand, Front Office should:
- 8. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Revenue & Reservations Management: Practicing Yield Management Forecasted room demand Rate strategy 90-100% occupancy Offer no discounts 70-90% occupancy Offer discounts up to 10% 50 - 70% occupancy Offer discounts up to 20% Less than 50% occupancy Offer discounts up to 30% Yield Management A strategy using demand forecasts to maximize RevPar. A strategy using demand forecasts to maximize RevPar. Demand for rooms > supply, sell at “rack rate” Demand for rooms < supply, offer at discounts Yield Management strategy based on room demand
- 9. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Revenue & Reservations Management: Managing Occupancy Friday Saturday Sunday Rooms left to sell 120 25 250 Example: Forecasted room demand (Hotel with 300 rooms) “Closed to Arrival” (CTA) : Hotel declines reservation for guests attempting to arrive on this specific date. “Minimum Length of Stay” (MLOS) : Hotel declines reservations for guests seeking to stay for fewer days than the minimum established by the hotel. Identifying Saturday as day that is CTA & MLOS of two days to maximize total weekend occupancy Room availability strategies
- 10. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Managing Guest Reservations: By Types & Delivery Methods Transient sales: rooms and services sold primarily via Front Office & its staff Group sales: rooms and services sold primarily via Sales & Marketing department, and given to the Front Office for recording and servicing. Global distribution system: great use by travel agents worldwide. Hotel direct: effectiveness of the telephone sales effort is important. Walk in: “curb appeal” is important. Internet: accuracy of current info on web-site is important. Franchise 800 numbers: significant source of transient room reservations. By reservation type By delivery method
- 11. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Travel agents, or Third-party sites GDS Users GDSes Switches Hotels Worldspan, Amadeus, Sabre, or Galileo Pegasus or WizCom Hotel’s Reserv.system to to to To Make Reservations: Hotels Hotel’s Reserv.system Switches Pegasus or WizCom GDSes Worldspan, Amadeus, Sabre, or Galileo Travel agents, or Third-party sites GDS Users tototo To Confirm Reservations: Information Flow of the GDS
- 12. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Managing Guest Services Airport transportation Parking cars Handling luggage Providing directions to local attractions Making restaurant reservations Taking guest messages Routing mail Newspaper delivery Management of safety deposit boxes Supplying directions for areas within the hotel Setting wake-up calls Providing guest security via careful dissemination of guest- related information Handling guest concerns and disputes Variety Of Guest Services
- 13. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Assisting guests in getting baggage into hotel and their rooms Explaining hotel services and guest room features to guests Printing “ reg card” for guests scheduled to arrive next day Reg card: legal contract existing between hotel and guest (guest name / guest address / guest telephone number / arrival date / departure date / # of adults in the room / rate to be paid / room type / form of payment) Managing Guest Services: Front Desk - Arrival Pre-arrival Bell station Bell staff should be friendly, well groomed, properly uniformed, and respectful of guest property Valet
- 14. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Managing Guest Services: Front Desk - Arrival (continued…) Five-step registration process Minimize wait / make guests feel welcome Greeting guests Reg card serves as the record of guest’s stay Authorize (validate) the card at time of registration Accommodate guest preference for room types (location, view, bed type & amenities) Issuance of keys Control issue of guestroom keys for guest safety Confirming the info on reg card Securing a form of payment Room assignment
- 15. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Without a guest’s permission, never reveal his or her room number to any third party. Never perform registration tasks in ways allowing guest room info to be overheard by others’. Never write room numbers directly onto keys. Never issue a duplicate room key to anyone except a registered guests. Without a guest’s permission, never confirm or deny that he or she is in fact registered. Without a guest’s permission, never release info related to his or her stay. Always be vigilant in informing guests of any third-party info requests regarding their stay. Managing Guest Service: Front Desk- Guest Privacy Guest information Room information
- 16. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Apologize to guest for any inconvenience. Clearly explain hotel’s walk policy to guest. Offer any reasonable assistance to minimize guest difficulties. When guests’ issues are handled professionally and their legitimate complaints are treated courteously, their experience is enhanced. Managing Guest Service: Front Desk - Stay & Departure Guest satisfaction issues The walked guests
- 17. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 The detailed list of a guest’s room charges as well as other charges authorized by the guest or legally imposed by the hotel. Appropriate guest charges incurred are posted to the appropriate guest’s folio. All independent supporting documentation should be thoroughly reviewed prior to posting. Accurately collect and post charges to the guest “folios” Maintain an accurate list, by room number, of guestroom occupants Verify accuracy of the room rates charged to guests Confirm the check-out dates Accounting For Guests Front office’s accounting related tasks Billing to Folio
- 18. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 verify and document identification of guest to whom room is rented. assign guests, whenever possible, to requested room type. assure that assigned room status is “clean & vacant”. confirm rate guest pays, prior to issuing room keys. confirm guest’s departure date, prior to issuing room keys. secure acceptable form of payment from guest. Guests present themselves to begin registration process Special check-in areas may be available, depending on level of service and priority of guests. Front Desk Agent confirms status of selected room prior to room assignment At front desk check-in At shelf check-in, system should allow staff to: Accounting For Guests: Room Management / Assignment
- 19. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Industry term for location of actual registration cards signed by guests at check-in Bucket Guest’s actual room assignment / rate to be paid / departure date / form of payment /any other accounting-related information Manual procedure for assuring accuracy of: Accounting For Guests: Bucket Check Physically verifies that info. on a guest’s registration card is complete and matches that in the PMS Cross referencing method Bucket check helps reduce errors related to billing guest’s folio.
- 20. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Night audit function: eight keys item Accounting For Guests: Night Audit Posting appropriate room tax and tax rates to guest folio Verification of accurate room status (in PMS) of all rooms Posting any necessary adjustments or allowances to guest folios Verification that all legitimate, non-room charges have been posted, throughout the day, to proper guest folio Monitoring guest account balances (e.g., guest’s credit limit) Balancing and reconciling Front Desk’s cash bank Updating and backing up electronic data maintained by Front Office Producing, duplicating and distributing all management mandated reports (e.g., ADR, occupancy %, business source, in-house guest lists)
- 21. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Accounting For Guests: Check Out Two essential tasks accomplished by desk agent Confirmation of guest’s identity Checking for late faxes / messages not yet delivered to guest Inquiring about and returning guest belongings in hotel’s safety deposit boxes Posting any final charges Producing copy of folio for guest’s inspection Processing guest’s payment Revising room’s status in PMS to designate room as vacant Settlement of guest’s bill Re-booking of guest for a future stay (selling opportunity)
- 22. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Confirmation that name on card matches that of individual presenting the card for payment Examination of card for any signs of alteration Confirmation that card has not expired Comparison of signature on card with signature by guest paying with that card Documentation (usually initialing) by employee processing the charge Balancing and reconciling credit card charges at conclusion of each Front Office shift Credit card acceptance & processing guidelines Data Management: Credit Cards Accuracy Commitment to security Processing guest credit cards
- 23. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Recodable locking system Data Management: Locking / Security Systems Increasingly utilized to ensure guest safety Installed cost is about $300 - $500 per guest room Independent & stand-alone (no wiring back to PMS is necessary) Managing a recodable lock system Be trained to issue duplicate keys only to confirmed registered guests Maintain an accurate data system that actually identifies registered guests and their assigned room numbers
- 24. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Private Branch Exchange (PBX) Hotel internal system to process incoming, internal, and outgoing telephone calls Data Management: Telephones Call accounting system Records time, length, and number called, of each telephone call made within each guestroom Posts phone charges directly to guest’s folio when interfaced with PMS Wake-up calls Voicemail Message on hold
- 25. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Any sales recording system not located at Front Desk (a location, excluding Front Desk, at which hotel goods & services are purchased) Mostly interfaced with the PMS Data Management: Point of Sale (POS) Point of Sale (POS) restaurants / room service / lounges / laundry / valet / shops / fitness centers / business centers Multiple POS systems in large hotel operations Ensure all legitimate purchases & charged purchases are posted to the correct guest or non-guest folio
- 26. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 In-room service Movies Pay-per-view movie system In-room mini-bars Interfaced with the PMS(automatically posted to guest’s folio) Games “video”games on television screen in guest room Safes In-room safes for guest use Internet connections Pay-to-connect basis in guest room
- 27. Hotel Operations Management,1/e ©2004 Pearson Education Hayes/Ninemeier Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Data Management: Back Office System Back office accounting system System used by the controller to prepare hotel’s financial documents such as Balance Sheet, Income Statement, etc. good underlying technology strong company behind the product, including good leadership compatibility with popular hardware products sizable customer base good customization capabilities expandability ease of use by non-technological staff excellent support via telephone excellent online support potential for PMS interface Back office accounting system should offer:
Editor's Notes
- #3 This Front Office organizational chart (hotel department responsible for guest reservations, registration, service and payment) is in a 350 room full-service hotel.
- #4 Concierge/s is/are the individual/s within a full-service hotel responsible for providing guests with detailed information regarding local dining and attractions, as well as assisting with related guest needs.
- #5 Re-engineering is re-organizing hotel departments or work sections within departments.
- #6 Figure 6.2 shows guest tracker PMS hotel management features. PMS requires its own care and maintenance; any installed back-up system (redundant hardware and/or software operated in parallel with the system it serves) hardware related to PMS should be inspected and tested on a regular basis.
- #7 Do several math exercises so that students understand the formula of RevPar; another way to express RevPar is actual room revenue / number of available rooms. .
- #8 Explain why forecasting demand is important to maximize RevPar with the examples of college football game, and night before Thanksgiving. Sell-out indicates 1) a situation in which all rooms are sold or over-sold. A hotel, area, or entire city may, if demand is strong enough, sell out, 2) a period of time in which management attempts to maximize ADR.
- #9 Yield Management is a strategy based on room supply and guest demand for rooms, that seeks to maximize RevPar by offering discounts on days when demand is weak, and eliminating discounts on days when demand is strong. Rack rate is the price at which a hotel sells its rooms when no discounts of any kind are offered to guests.
- #10 While Yield Management is a method to control room rates, “Closed to Arrival” (CTA) and “Minimum Length of Stay” (MLOS) strategies are a method of managing occupancy, depending on room occupancy. For all these methods, forecasting room demand is an important job of the Sales and Marketing manager. Use Figure 6.4 (Forecast Room Demand) to describe the concepts of “Closed to Arrival” (CTA) and “Minimum Length of Stay” (MLOS). To enhance students’ understanding of these two strategies, Question 3 in “Issues at Work” in Chapter 6 ask students: in which specific circumstances would it be best to employ CTA versus MLOS to maximize occupancy? The text also discusses the practice of “over-booking” (a situation in which the hotel has more guest reservations for rooms than it has rooms available to lodge those guests) as one method to manage occupancy; use second case study to facilitate discussion with students about ethical issues involved in over-booking, from the hotel’s and the guests’ perspectives.
- #13 Depending on the location, type, size and characteristics of hotel, levels of guest services vary greatly.
- #14 Registration (reg) card is a document that provides details such as guest’s name, arrival date, rate to be paid, departure and other information related to the guest’s stay. Valet is originally a term used to identify an individual who cared for the clothes of wealthy travelers; its most common usage now is in reference to those individuals responsible for parking guest vehicles.
- #15 Validation means 1) the card is being used legally, 2) the card has sufficient credit remaining to pay for the guest’s estimated charges 3) a “hold” for a dollar amount determined by Front Office policy has been placed on the card to ensure the hotel’s payment.
- #17 “ Walked” indicates a situation in which a guest with a reservation is re-located from the reserved hotel to another hotel because no room was available at the reserved hotel. Ask students whether they have experienced dealing with walked guests; determine the training aspects relating to this situation, the policy regarding walked guests at the organization(s) they worked at, and how they managed such a difficult situation without diminishing the reputation of the hotel.
- #20 Bucket check is a procedure used to verify, for each guest, the accuracy of that guest’s registration information.
- #21 Night author is the individual who performs daily review of guest transactions recorded by the Front Office; night audit is the process of reviewing for accuracy and completeness the accounting transactions from one day to conclude or “close” that day’s sales information in preparation for posting the transactions for the next day.
- #22 Hotels increasingly implement express or self-check in / out systems to meet guests’ needs and wants; Question 4 in “Issues at Work” in Chapter 6 asks who (business travelers versus leisure travelers) demand or prefer the speed of self-check in / out to human interaction of a front desk agent, and how this relates to consumer loyalty.
- #25 Call accounting is the hotel internal system to document and charge guests for their telephone use. Question 5 in “Issues at Work” (Chapter 6) addresses the issue of decreased revenue from telephone services in the hotel; ask students to list three specific methods they would employ to encourage in-room telephone use in a hotel.
- #27 Re-engineering is re-organizing hotel departments or work sections within departments.