•

• .
❑Introduction to HK Department
▪ Role of Housekeeping Department
▪ The Executive Housekeeper
▪ Housekeeping Department

❑Operations in Housekeeping
▪ Procedure Manual
▪ Performance Standard
▪ Productivity Standard
▪ Order of Servicing Guestrooms
❑Laundry
▪ OPL vs Outsourcing
▪ Linen

❑Decoration
❑Public areas
❑Communications
❑Butler Operations
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▪

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▪
▪

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▪
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▪
➢Ensure cleanliness, maintenance and aesthetic appeal of lodging
properties.

➢Prepare and clean rooms as well as all the public areas in the hotel.
Why guests return to hotels?
63% Due to:

CLEANLINESS & APPEARANCE

 Area of Responsibility
Area Dpt responsible

Guestroom, including hallways, vending areas, elevators, stairwells, and floor closets

Public areas, including lobbies, front desk, main entrance, corridors, restrooms, game and exercise rooms, and shops

Offices

Employee areas, including locker rooms, cafeterias, and restrooms

Laundry room

Linen room

Housekeeping storage areas

Recreation areas, including pools, tennis courts, volleyball courts, etc.

Grounds, including parking lot, parking garages, trees, landscaping, and sidewalks

Maintenance shop

F&B service, including restaurants, coffee shops, bars, and cocktail lounges

Kitchens
 Area of Responsibility
Area Dpt responsible

Guestroom, including hallways, vending areas, elevators, stairwells, and floor closets
HK

Public areas, including lobbies, front desk, main entrance, corridors, restrooms, game and exercise rooms, and shops
HK

Offices HK

Employee areas, including locker rooms, cafeterias, and restrooms HK

Laundry room HK

Linen room HK

Housekeeping storage areas HK

Recreation areas, including pools, tennis courts, volleyball courts, etc. ENGINEERING

Grounds, including parking lot, parking garages, trees, landscaping, and sidewalks ENGINEERING

Maintenance shop ENGINEERING

F&B service, including restaurants, coffee shops, bars, and cocktail lounges
F&B

Kitchens F&B
 Executive Housekeeper
Role and Responsibilities

• Responsibility of a manager is to create and maintain an environment in which

people can work towards the goals of the company.

• HK= most complicated and largest department in the lodging property and maybe
the most important
Executive Housekeeper
• Head Housekeeper
• Housekeeping Manager
• Director of Service
• Director of Internal Services
• Director of HK Operations
Executive Housekeeper
Functions

• Planning
• Organizing
• Staffing
• Directing
• Controlling operations
• Cost controls
• Purchasing
• Decorating
• Renovations
• Leadership
HK Department
Roles I
❑ Executive Housekeeper
▪ Controls the cleaning and maintains front and back of the house areas:
o Specifying procedures. E.g. uniforms, storage
o Purchasing. E.g. amenities, cleaning materials
o Administrating.
o Advising. E.g. decoration, refurbishment

❑ Guest Room Attendant (GRA)

▪ These attendants perform routine duties in the cleaning and servicing of guestrooms and baths
under the supervision of a floor supervisor.

❑ Houseperson
▪ A person employed for cleaning, maintenance and other general work in a hotel.

❑ Linen & Uniform Attendant

▪ Responsible for the storage and issuing uniforms, bed linen, bath linen and table linen. They take
inventories and maintain linen room supplies.
HK Department
Roles II

❑Assistant Executive Housekeeper

❑Laundry Supervisor
❑Floor Supervisor
❑Project Supervisor
❑Deep Cleaning Attendants
❑Turn Down Attendants
 Organizational Chart: Large Hotel
EXECUTIVE
HOUSEKEEPER
ASSISTANT EXECUTIVE
HOUSEKEEPER

UNIFORM
PROJECTS LINEN & SUPPLY ROOM FLOOR ON-PREMISE ROOM
SUPERVISOR SUPERVISOR SUPERVISORS LAUNDRY SUPERVISOR
DEEP-CLEANING (LOST & FOUND) PUBLIC AREAS
SUPERVISOR SEAMSTRESS
ATTENDANTS ATTENDANTS
HOUSE- LAUNDRY
FLOOR
PERSONS ATTENDANTS
TECHNICIANS
ROOM
NIGHT ATTENDANTS
CLEANERS
TURN-DOWN
ATTENDANTS
 Organizational Chart

HEAD
HOUSEKEEPER

GUEST ROOM LAUNDRY

HOUSE-PERSON
ATTENDANTS ATTENDANT
 Human Capital
Job • Increase productivity
Unglamorous • Reduce staff turnover
Repetitive • Reduce absenteeism
Low paid • Reduce insubordination
Employee • Empowered employees
Poor image
Cultural diversity
Local languages
Social problems
Guest contact
 Housekeeping Operations

Cleaning Methodology

❑Procedure Manual

❑Performance Standard

❑Productivity Standard

❑Order of Servicing Guestrooms

Cleaning Methodology
TOP

CLOCK
WISE

INSIDE
OUTSIDE BOTTOM
How to Clean a Room
Making The Bed
It is the first thing to do in Stayover rooms.

‘Neat Appearance’

Very Important!!!
How to Clean a Room
Final Check
• Look from guest’s perspective
• Circular fashion
• Check smell
• Close door, Lock!!
• Note room status in assignment sheet
CLEANING
METHODOLOGY Check room
Work list
Position trolley

Enter room
Vacuum room

Clean
Ready the
bathroom
room
floor & door

ORDER
Replenish bath EXAMPLE Clear bed

Make bed
Clean WC

Clear mirror & Wipe dust

sink

Clean tub & Replenish

shower room
Ready bath
How to Clean a Room
Guest possessions

• Try not to touch, unless strictly necessary.

• In Stayover rooms throw away only what it is in the wastebasket.
• Valuable Items → Report!!!
How to Clean a Room
Turndown Service

• Refreshing room for the evening

• Done by evening G.R.A
 How to Clean a Room
Turndown Service Tasks

• Cleaning the bathroom and restocking it with fresh bath linen and
toiletries.
• Tidying the guestroom.
• Emptying wastebaskets.
• Folding back the bedspread, blanket and top sheet, fluffing the
pillow.
• Drawing the curtains.
• Leaving a goodnight chocolate/ mint / card.
 Performance Standard
• EHK develops Performance Standards:

• ‘What must be done in order to clean or maintain the major items within this
area?’

• Performance standards state what must be done, and how the job must be
done.

• EHK should review the department’s Performance Standards at least once a

year and make appropriate revision as new work methods are implemented.
 Procedure Manuals
booklet pictures videos
• How we inform staff about the different tasks and how they should be done.
• Communicate through ongoing training programs.
• Tells employee exactly how to perform each step of his/ her job: ‘Step by
Step.’
• It must have easy language to understand.
• Ideally would include photos / illustrations.
• There is one manual per job position.
• Continuously revised with the standards performance.
Procedure Manuals
Examples

video

picture
 Productivity Standard
• Determines the acceptable quantity of work to be
done by each employee.

• How much an employee can do?

• How long will take for an employee doing a

certain task?
 Productivity Standard
Examples
• An example for a 5* first class hotel could be…

Stayover Departure
20-30 40-50
minutes minutes
• An example for a 4*-3* hotel could be…
Stayover Departure
10-15 20-30
minutes minutes
 Productivity Standard
Calculation
In a particular hotel it takes on average 15 minutes to get ready and arrive to the first room;
and 10 minutes to leave everything ready since a GRA finishes cleaning the last room.

▪ If it takes 19 minutes cleaning one room, how ▪ How many GRA do we need to clean a hotel
many rooms can clean one GRA in 8 hours shift? with 400 rooms with 90% occupancy?

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 Productivity Standard
Calculation
In a particular hotel it takes on average 15 minutes to get ready and arrive to the first room;
and 10 minutes to leave everything ready since a GRA finishes cleaning the last room.

▪ If it takes 19 minutes cleaning one room, how ▪ How many GRA do we need to clean a hotel
many rooms can clean one GRA in 8 hours shift? with 400 rooms with 90% occupancy?
8 hours = 480 minutes → Available time for cleaning 90% of 400 rooms = 360 rooms
480 – 15 – 10 = 455 minutes
1 GRA ---- 24 rooms
1 room ---- 19 minutes
X GRA ---- 360 rooms
X rooms ---- 455 minutes
X= 360 / 24 = 15 GRA
X= 455 / 19 = 23, 947 rooms
We need 15 GRA to clean the 360 rooms that
We can say that 1 GRA can clean 24 rooms we have occupied.
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 Servicing Guestrooms
1. Vacant Rooms
2. Occupied rooms (stay-over) requesting “early make-up” service
(ASAP).
3. Check-out rooms that are allocated for an arrival (BACK TO BACK).
4. Check-out rooms.
5. Occupied (stay-over) rooms.
6. Due-out (if no other room to clean).
7. Double check “DO NOT DISTURB”.
 Decorations
❑Corridors
❑Rooms
❑Bathroom
❑Front Desk
❑Lobby
❑Housekeeping Manager’s Role in Decoration
Decorations
Corridors
• Colour
• Surfaces
• Lighting
Decorations
5* Rooms
Decoration
3*- 4* Rooms
 Decoration
Rooms
• Flooring
• Walls
• Lamp set up and color
• Sofa or chaise long color
• Furniture color
• Curtains
• Bed sheets and set ups
Decoration
Bathroom
Decoration
Front Desk
Decoration
Lobby
Decoration
Lobby
 Decoration
Housekeeping Manager’s Role in Decoration

Take into account:

• Hotel type-style-atmosphere
• Durability of materials
• Cost of purchase
• Color scheme (spots!!): warm atmosphere
• Ease of maintenance
• Cost of maintenance
• Convinience- comfort
• Guest and employee trafic
• Accoustics
Laundry
❑Types: OPL vs Outsourcing
❑Operation Flow Chart
❑Linen
 Laundry
Types: OPS vs Outsourcing

• On Premises Laundry – OPL (In-House Laundry)

Pros: faster, more controlled service
Cons: high maintenance, high investment in equipment
and linen, personnel cost.

• Outsourced Laundry (Outside Laundry)

Pros: no investment, no maintenance.
Cons: 24 or 48 service, no personalized service.
Laundry
Laundry Operation Flow Chart

USE OF COLLECTION OF TRANSPORT

LINEN SOILED LINEN

FOLDING DRYING SORTING &

WASHING
 Laundry
Linen

Why most hotels use white linen?

o Cleaning
o Replacement
o Always in fashion
 Laundry
Linen
• Materials used:
Cotton:
Quality, confort and appearance
Wrinkles and difficult to iron
Bathroom linen 100% cotton

Linen:
High standard quality
Wrinkles and very expensive

Polycotton:
Do not shrink, cheaper and long lasting (500 washings against 200).
Less ironing
Laundry
Linen

o
o
o
o
 Laundry
Linen
• Other Bed Items
o Blankets: o Mattress pad:
• Durability, nº of washings • Protection from liquids
• Non allergenic treatment • Synthetic blend with cotton or
• Light but warm 100% synthetic
• Resistant to mold / mildew o Bed spreads:

• Shrinking factor • Aesthetics

• Durable
• Washable and easy to position
on bed
Public Areas
❑Scope of public areas cleaning.
❑Importance of public areas.
❑Cleaning workflow.
 Public Areas
Scope of Public Areas Cleaning

Importance of Public Areas Cleaning

• Lobbies • Dining rooms FIRST IMPRESSION!!!
• Front desk • Banquet / meeting
rooms
• Corridors Same importance as room cleaning.
• Administration/ Sales
• Elevators
offices
• Public restrooms
• Employee areas Do we have specific attendants for
• Swimming pool public areas or different?
• Housekeeping areas
• Gym

Tendency to less standarization.

 Public Areas
Cleaning workflow
• Establish frequency according to traffic.
• Reinforce lobby cleaning in bad weather.
• Deep cleaning: night shift before 7 am and refreshments during the day.
• Check restrooms the whole day.
• Avoid cleaning Front Desk during peak hours.
• Do not move any papers.
• Corridors vacuuming at least once a day.
• Elevators at least twice a day.
• Dining / banquet rooms: FB staff during operation, HK staff after operation.
• Employees & Housekeeping areas should be as spotless as FOH.
 Front Office

Sales &
F&B
Marketing

Accounting
HK Maintenance

HR Security
Communication
HK & FO

• HK → FO: Rooms ready for sale, room status

• FO → HK: Special requests, VIP’s, occupancy etc…
• It is necessary ongoing communication

• ROOM STATUS DISCREPANCY: HK description of a room’s status differs

from the FO room status information.
 Class discussion
Discuss the following scenario:

A guest enquires about a missing item in his room, but the

Lost and Found Log book has no record of it.

How would you handle this situation if you were the Assistant Executive
Housekeeper?
References
Nitschke, & Frye, (2008), Managing Housekeeping Operations.
58
LEARNING OUTCOMES

59
Butler
•

60
Modern Butler
•

•
•
•
•
•
•

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Villas by Shangri-La, Abu Dhabi

• Six 600m² luxury villas

• Family or party
• With private pool, butler and chef services
Arabiantravelmarket.com, 2018
 Sheraton Hotel, Bangkok

Thai Theme Garden Suites

• Exquisite local aesthetic and design.
• Beautifully decorated with authentic Thai Teak
furniture and crafts.
• En-suite private Bathroom with a Jacuzzi.
• Private terrace with a tropical garden and/or
Jacuzzi.

Benefits:
• 24 hours personal butler service
• Complimentary wired and wireless high-speed
internet
• Complimentary evening drinks.
• DVD player
• Bathroom television

sheratongrandesukhumvit.com, 2018
Hotel Butler
Luxury Market Concept

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•

•
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Hotel Butler

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•
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•

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Coordination with other
departments
Front
Office

F&B
HK Butler Service

F&B
Kitchen 66
Class activity

67
END MODULE

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