MA. SHUGAR KIECESS G.

MARTIN
BSHM – 2B
FUNDAMENTALS OF LODGING OPERATION
CASE STUDY NO. 4
“What a mess!” exclaimed Angie. “No wonder issuance of materials has been slow” he
added.
It is Angie’s, the newly hired property custodian, first day at work. He saw the storage area
in shambles. He found 3 big boxes full of guest amenities. First box contains the following: bath
rug, pillowcase, toothbrush, teaspoon, tissue roll, bath soap, slippers, Bible, disinfectant,
housekeeping uniforms, magazines, ice packs, pens, and notepads. The second box contains
ashtrays, DND signs, postcards, mops, blanket, toothpaste, shower cap, cup and saucer, and
hangers. The third box contains rubber gloves, bed pad, cotton buds, drinking glass, laundry
bags, brooms, bath towels, facial tissue, and matches.
“This is going to be a long day after all,” said Angie.

QUESTIONS:
1. What is the best title for this case?
“UN-ORGANIZED HOTEL SUPPLIES IN STORAGE ROOM”
2. Why do you think the guest amenities are not stored properly?
For me, the reasons why the guest amenities are not stored properly are due to lack of
supervision and lack of training of the previous property custodian who is in-charge in
handling and keeping the storage area clean, organized, stored and secured properly.
3. If you are Angie, would you still stay and work or just march out of the storage area
and quit?
If I’m Angie I’ll stay and work because as a property custodian it is my job to ensure that
all things are stored and secured properly. Yes, being a property custodian is a hard job to
does people who doesn’t take their job seriously but I choose this job so I should take full
responsibility in handling and safekeeping of storage to ensure that the things inside of it
is in the right place and that the safety measures are in place.
4. How would you help Angie arrange the storage area?
In helping Angie arrange the storage area, first thing that I will do is ask if I could help
her with anything because we don’t know if she wants a help or she wants to work by
herself to keep everything properly organized without confusion where I put stuff that she
didn’t know that I cleaned. If she wants my help, I will ask what do I need to do first so
she knows what I will do and also because as far as I know one of the duties of a property
custodian is to record all the items in the storage area to monitor. I don’t want to cause
more problem to her so I will just do where she needed help.
MA. SHUGAR KIECESS G. MARTIN
BSHM – 2B
HOUSEKEEPING PROCEDURES
CASE STUDY NO. 5
THE GRANDEUR HOTEL
Maya and Richard have purchased the lease of the Grandeur Hotel in Ilocos Sur. Both in
their mead 30” s, they have had several years’ experience in the hospitality industry – Maya as a
restaurant manager of their family-owned business and Richard as the catering manager of an
exclusive yacht club. They also have worked in a variety of resorts and city hotels.
They bought into the business because of its potential. The Grandeur Hotel is located on
the main highway, servicing the local rural area. Built in the late 1900’s, the Grandeur Hotel is
the only pub for miles and is a local point for the local community. Maya and Richard are both
newcomers to Ilocos Sur but most of the staff are from the local district.
There are four main parts of the business – the bar, the dining room, the sundry shop, and
the lodging. Maya and Richard aim to increase business in the bar and dining room by attracting
the passing international tourist trade. They have installed an espresso machine, changed the
menu to reflect local produce ‘with an international taste’, and all bar and waiting staff have been
issued with modern new uniforms. The dining room now is called ‘naimas’. They also want the
sundry shop to increase sales, as they included other items. The Grandeur Hotel has a relaxed
family atmosphere amongst the employee (indeed, some are related to each other). There are 12
full time employees, and extra casual staff are used for busier Friday and Saturday nights. As
owners, Maya, and Richard work between the split shifts whenever and wherever they are
needed.
Last month there was a serious problem. The business lost potential customers, causing
bad tension and bad feelings between the owners and the staff. Employee morale is affecting
productivity. There were several incidents which contributed to the Friday crisis.
Accommodation at the hotel is bulging at the seams due to the Ilocos Sur High School Reunion,
and three bedrooms had been inadvertently double booked – the receptionist had stepped out of
the office for a break and John the barman had taken the booking manually over the phone. Also,
some of the guest complained that their rooms had not been serviced properly. The Zamboanga
Fishermen’s Club was having its annual Curacha banquet in Naimas. In addition, Maya had
arranged for a bus of Japanese tourist to stop in for an early dinner on their way to see the
Heritage Houses in Vigan. It was going to be a busy night in the dining room.
The new staff uniforms had been delivered, and there were grumbles about looking like a
religious cult member. It was generally felt by the staff that only a person as thin as greyhound
and as tall as a giraffe would look any good with the cut of style (designed by Maya, without any
staff input or consultation)
The receptionist had overheard Richard talking on the phone to an employment agency,
saying that they are looking for someone young and energetic, who was good with money and
customer oriented, and who could handle food as well as bar work. She passed the information
on to her cousin John the barman. He told his wife one of the waiting staff, and is nephew, who
worked in the sundry shop. Staff members felt their jobs were under threat.
In the bar, a fight broke out between two groups of bikers. The brawl spilled out into the
car park, and in the general excitement someone cleaned out the cash register and took a case of
the local rice wines from the unattended sundry shop.
Dinner was a disaster. Competent in catering for 60 settings, the kitchen didn’t have the
correct ingredients available for the menu. The new menu had been designed by Richard who
dismissed any suggestions made by Chefs Anton as ‘too country bumpkin’. With the extra
number of diners, the overloaded oven took twice as long to heat the stuffed chicken breasts; the
kitchen hand Karen overcooked the Curacha; and there weren’t enough plates because Mon the
dishwasher had failed to turn up for work. The Japanese tourist guides complained that they
weren’t ‘greeted and seated’, that the staff member (Kaye) just talked to the bus driver; the menu
on blackboard was written only in Ilocano; the meal was late, and the waiting staff were rude.
Furthermore, the toilet facilities weren’t properly cleaned. Maya and Richard were angry at the
way things fell apart; people didn’t take responsibility for their jobs. When they first took over
the hotel, they had planned to get all the staff together for a meeting, but it would have cost them
too much in wages. Instead, they were going to speak to them individually, but what with all the
work they were doing they hadn’t got around to it. “It is just so hard to get good staff” they said,
in unison.
STAFF PROFILES
FRONT OF THE HOUSE, ACCOMMODATION AND CLEANING
OFFICE/RECEPTION: KAYE (30)
Kaye operates the switchboard, takes bookings, greets and registers guests and makes up
their accounts. Maya and Richard want her to Greet and Seat the bus tour groups, and to
computerize the office by using OPERA. Kaye knows how to type but hasn’t ever used a
computer – she is interested in the computer studies her kids are doing at school. She got this job
through her cousin the barman.
HOUSEMAID: SUSAN (25)
A Management student who has deferred from the course – Susan had to come back to
Ilocos to look after her invalid mother. This was the only job she could find in the area. She is a
people person, with an extraverted social manner. Susan likes talking to the guest and tends to
get behind with her work. Her job is to change all the linen, make beds, clean the bathrooms, ad
toilets, vacuum the carpet in the bedrooms and upstairs hallway, and dust and polish every
possible surface. She must do all the housework at home, and jokes that she might as well apply
for a degree in housework.
CLEANER: BRYAN (63)
Bryan works from 5:00 to 10:00 a.m. cleaning the bar, lounge, restaurant, and the toilets
on the ground floor. He vacuums and spot cleans the carpets, and – using a scrubbing machine –
washes then polish the hard floors. Bryan is meticulous, very careful and thorough, (unlike the
previous cleaner) and takes a lot of time to get through his workload. Sometimes he is still
cleaning when the customers arrive. It isn’t part of his job, but Bryan also picks up litter from the
car park and seems to be the only person who can get the old boiler working for the hot water
service. Bryan takes pride in his work.
HOTEL USEFUL: HENRY (AGE UNKNOWN)
Every country pub has a useful – Henry won’t reveal his age to anyone, but he does go on
about the World War II. He cleans the ashtrays, collects empty glasses, and takes them to the bar
and keeps the pool tidy for John, chalking the cues before racking them in height order. He sets
up the chairs and trestle tables for the big social nights and washes the guests’ cars. Lodging and
meals are deducted from his minimum wage, but his war service pension enables him to bet big
at the horse races. Sometimes he wins, and will disappear for exactly two weeks, before coming
back to The Grandeur. It is a mystery where he goes.
CHEF: ANTON (35)
A trade qualified chef, Anton has worked in Metro Manila at top restaurants, but
experienced an occupational burnout at The Bistro. He came to the country hotel for lifestyle
reasons, and to spend more time with his family. Anton and the kitchen staff have been
successfully catering for 60 guests at a time, and the hotel dining room is a popular eating place
for locals. Apart from supervising the kitchen staff, Anton organizes the food orders and controls
the storeroom with a practiced eye – a manual stock take a glance. He knows Maya and Richard
have industry experience but thinks that they don’t yet understand local tastes and expectations
and thinks the debacle with a new menu demonstrates this.
KITCHEN HAND: KAREN (19)
Has been working part time for the past year and wants experience in the kitchen so she
can do a cooking apprenticeship. Now working full time, Karen has been responsible for doing
all the salads and entrees
She always arrives early to set up the kitchen and get the ingredients ready for the next
meal service and is very reliable. Karen usually covers for Mon on paydays.
KITCHEN HAND: MON (50)
Has been with the hotel for several years and is like part of the furniture. Mon is a quiet
character who just would like to be left alone to do his work, but he has a habit of swearing and
talking to himself, which some people find disconcerting. He operates the dishwashing machine,
empties the bins, clean the kitchen equipment and floor, and keeps the yard tidy. Because of his
alcohol problem, on paydays Mon doesn’t turn up for work
WAITING STAFF
All waiting staff work split shift, 11:00am – 3:00pm and 6:00pm -10:30pm. They fold
napkins and set tables, prepare lemon garnishes, fill salt, and pepper shakers and write up the
menu specials blackboard. During service they take food and drink orders from customers, call
the orders to the kitchen and bar, pick the items up and serve the customers. They also clear
tables, scrape, and stack the plates for the dishwasher and make the coffees.
TINA (40)
Is married to Bryan the cleaner. Tina has been working at the hotel for nearly 10 years and
knows every local customer by name. She is cheerful and efficient but has never done any formal
training in food service. A little on the plump side, Tina is very unhappy with the uniform that
has been foisted on the waiting staff.
GRETCHEN (25)
Related to John the barman, Gretchen worked in an office in the city then moved to the
town when she married Mike, the sundry shop attendant. Although pleasant natured, Gretchen is
very shy and doesn’t converse easily with the customers, she just does her job and leaves them
alone as much as possible. Gretchen thinks the new uniform emphasizes her height and makes
her look professional
SUSAN (32)
Has had experience working in several country pubs. Susan enjoys working with people
but can be a bit bossy and isn’t very popular with the other staff. She is currently having family
problems which is draining her energy and affecting her work – she has always been punctual
and reliable, but recently has started coming in late and leaving early. Susan thinks the uniforms
are pretentious and out of place in a country hotel.
BAR AND LIQUOR SALES
BAR STAFF:
There is one permanent bar attendant, and he works a split shift from 10:00am – 3:00pm
and 5:30pm – 10:30 pm. The rest are casuals who come in on Friday and Saturday nights when
the hotel is busy. All casuals serve beers, wines, and cocktails (not often), operate the cash
register and the glass washer machine.
Now they are supposed to be serving cappuccino and latte coffees, but no one knows how
the machine works – yet. The old cash register has recently been replaced. Again, no one is
really confident using the new cash register – sure, they can ring up the sales, but apparently it is
very smart computer which can give a lot of information if you can work it out.
BAR ATTENDANT: JOHN (57)
John is the longest serving employee at the hotel and was instrumental in obtaining work
for his nephew Mike who works in the sundry shop. Apart from general bar service, John looks
after the cellar – hooking up kegs, cleaning the lines, and making sure the gas is working. He
manually checks that stock and stores are up to level, cleans the bar and prepares for service.
John knows everyone in the district. He runs the footy tipping contest, sets up the Sky Channel
TV, looks after the pool table – making sure it is clean and the cues are racked – and liaises with
the local darts and footy clubs who buy kegs for their club nights. John’s health is not as good as
it was, his knees are stiffening up and causing him a lot of pain. The cold cellar aggravates the
pain, and he does a lot of walking in a day’s work as the cash register is at the end of the long
bar. He has refused to wear the new uniform.
SUNDRY SHOP ATTENDANT: MIKE (25)
Mike works full time in sundry shop, from 10:00am to 6:00pm. Monday to Friday. He got
his job through his uncle John the barman. The previous owners were very sympathetic when he
broke his ankle at training, and he was able to sit at the cash register while extra casual staff did
the rest of the heavy work. Mike opens the sundry shop, checks his money float for the till, fills
the shelves and refrigerators and sells items to customer. Mike worked out the sundry shop’s new
cash register very quickly; he has a knack with computers.
QUESTIONS:
1. What are the problems identified by Maya and Richard?
The problems that Maya and Richard identified is that their business lost potential
customers, that caused bad tension and bad feelings between the owners and the staff.
The employee’s morale is affecting the productivity and there were several incidents
which contributes to the crisis like the complaints about the double booked, rooms had
not been serviced properly, a fight, theft, the disaster dinner, the guest complained that
they didn’t received such a welcome, the menu, the meal was late and the waiting staff
were rude. But they didn’t notice that they are also part why some of the incidents
happened they didn’t properly hire their employees; they lack communication to their
staffs like the uniform part and the menu suggestions by Chef Anton. They only consider
what they want without consulting their staffs. Which is they should consider their staff if
their decisions will concern the staff.
2. Prior to the event, what would you have done if you were Chef Anton to avoid the
“kitchen disaster”?
If I’m Chef Anton the things that I would to avoid the kitchen disaster is before the
operation start inside the kitchen I should check all the things if all the ingredients is
complete, the equipment and appliances are working properly, overall monitoring all the
operations inside the kitchen and making sure that all is well. All the things I should
consider monitoring to keep the kitchen operate properly should be check and monitored
to avoid such incidents and delays in giving service to the customers.
3. If you are the owners, what would you do to the employees who did not perform
well?
I will talk to them and explain to them that they are not doing their job properly and think
of ways to improve their skills on their assign job like for example giving them enough
training to know the basic things they should know, and for those employees who is not
responsible enough to attend their job I would give them warning that if they keep doing
a bad performance in their duties I will terminate their contract with the hotel and find a
new employee who is responsible enough to do their job better. Let us give example
Henry the hotel useful who keeps disappearing for exactly two weeks because he wins in
the horse races this kind of employees should get fired because of lack of responsibility
as a employee in The Grandeur.
4. If you were Kaye, what would you feel if you overheard your boss calling the
employment agency looking for a more fit and suitable manpower to work in the
hotel?
 If I were Kaye I would feel upset if I overheard my boss calling the employment agency
looking for a more fit and suitable manpower to be working in the hotel. It is not only
that the boss is implying that the current staffs are not fit and not suitable in their work
but the boss should first talk to their employees that they are doing bad at their job and all
of the employees together with the owners should consider having a meeting to talk about
all the past and current issues and problems inside the hotel and what actions should do
next.
5. After what happened, to whom should the blame be put on? The staff or the
owners?
Based on my understanding, I would put blame on both the staff and the owners. The
staff are not responsible and knowledgeable enough on their assign duties in the hotel that
is why they give poor services to their customers. While the owners didn’t pay much
attention while hiring staffs in their hotel and not properly assigning them, they also
admit that they are afraid that they will cost them too much wages to get all the staff
together for a meeting and instead they try to speak to the staff individually but they are
busy enough to do it.
6. If you are the owners, what would you do to avoid recurrence of the incident?
If I’m the owner of the hotel, first thing that I would do is hiring excellent employees that
can do their job properly and assigning them to the area that they are better at. In that way
they know what they are doing. And also, the employees that I would hire should go
trough proper screening in order for me to know where area in hotel I should assign them
to avoid such incidents where customers complain for the kind of service given to them.
And after hiring I should have a good relationship to my employees to avoid having
tension and bad feeling between me and my employees that can affect the hotel
operations.
7. Is it necessary for Maya and Richard for their employees be changed?
It is necessary for Mata and Richard for them to change some of their employees because
they didn’t take full responsibility to their job and didn’t do their job properly that’s why
the hotel is suffering from incidents that can be avoided if hey have a properly trained
and duty oriented employees, while some of the employees I noticed is they just need to
be re-assigned to the area they are good at.
8. If you are the owners, do you allow employee relationships in your hotel? Are
relationship cause problems? Give examples from the case stated.
As an owner I don’t want conflict in my business but I don’t also want to restrict my
employees dating each other. About me allowing my employee have a relationship with
each other I should consider putting a policy in this matter that will not invade their
privacy but can maintain and improve their performance in the hotel and will not cause
distraction that can hinder their job. Based on the case stated relationship cause trouble or
problems in the hotel, first example is they manage to pass the information about the boss
finding a new employee, they have the time to pass that information to each other when
they should focus on their job. Second, the person who is already working in the hotel
wants to enter his/her relative in the hotel also when in fact they lack experience and
knowledge on the job they are being assigned to that can cause the inability to give
proper service to their customers or guest in the hotel.