Hotel Front Office Management, 3rd Edition

CHAPTER RECAP 355Solution to Opening DilemmaAlthough an advertising agency may be part of the answer to this hotel’s image problem,the real problem lies with the people who have been delivering hospitality. Determiningthe qualities required to provide hospitality in a hotel and screening job candidates forthose qualities are essential in order to present an image that reflects the enthusiasm andprofessionalism of individuals who truly want to deliver hospitality.Chapter RecapIf front office managers want to ensure that their employees deliver hospitality, they mustbegin by hiring people with character traits that they feel are necessary to handle frontoffice responsibilities on a daily basis. This chapter began with a review of those charactertraits—extrovertedness, maturity, patience, positive attitude toward constructive criticism,and an ability to sell. Finding these qualities in job candidates can be accomplishedby developing interview questions based on these traits. An orientation program is necessaryto begin the process of training hospitality employees. An orientation checklist thattracks completion of the explanation of such matters as the economic position of theproperty in the community; an overview of the hotel’s physical layout, services, and coworkers;and a tour of the property can be helpful. The orientation should also includea review of the employee handbook and policy and procedure manual. The new employee’sintroduction to the front office staff and general management staff would completethe orientation. Administering an orientation program provides a check on the continualplanning and delivery of this personnel function.Training practices were also discussed. The front office manager would start by identifyingtasks and job management skills that are required to perform an entry-level frontoffice job. Preparing step-by-step procedures is necessary to assist the trainer in developinga training session. The four-step training process—get ready, show me, let me do it, andcheck my progress—assists the trainer in working through the details of the trainingsession. A discussion of methods of presentation included skill demonstrations, on-thejobtraining, role-playing, videotaping of role-playing, commercially prepared video trainingfilms, and cable training television such as Hospitality Television. Administration ofthe training program is an essential element to allow the continual delivery of qualityhospitality.Cross-training of employees assists the front office manager in handling the daily formationof a front office team. Employees who are cross-trained in various tasks and jobsallow the front office manager to deliver service as required.Developing a trainer is an important part of training for hospitality. The selection ofa trainer should be based on this person’s knowledge of the tasks and jobs, ability toteach, and possession of a professional attitude that represents the hotel.TLFeBOOK