•

Cl
c:
speaking 1 Work in pairs. What makes a good hotel manager? Put these
characteristics into order of importance and discuss your ideas with your
partner.
likes
A good people
hotel manager: can think like a child

D D
likes variety can entertain like a clown

D D
is charming understands body language

D D
2 What other skills and qualities do you expect a good hotel manager
to possess?
has good financial skills pays attention to routine
detail
D perfect hotelier
reading The D
3D Read the article on the opposite Dpossesses
needs good computer skills a sense of
page. Which of the characteristics
humour
are mentioned?

4 Read the article again and complete these sentences with one of the
options below.
1 Successful hoteliers a) cannot concentrate on their work.
2 Second rate b) want to be involved in many activities.
hoteliers c) are polite but don't mean what they
3 Child-clowns say.
40
d) identify with their guests.
 - C:} D_e_a_u_n_g
_w_it_h_g_u_e_s
_ts

C loni ng t h e perfect

hotelier
In a recent study Dr David Young, a leading psycholog ist,
was hired to devise a personality test to reveal the
characterist ics that make hoteliers not just good but
excellent.

The study showed - unsurprisingly - that the most

successful owners and managers have two key qualities: the
first, a genuine liking for people; the second, the ability to
motivate others. These are the factors that put the X in
excellence, but liking people is more than skin-deep. It has
nothing to do with the 'have a nice day' attitude found
among second­raters .

It means being good at dealing wit h all kinds of people,

being able to share other people's feelings and imagine
what it is like to be in t heir situation . They understand body
language and can detect non-verbal messages in order to
gain a better understanding of a guest's needs.

According to the psychologist, enthusiastic and motivating

hoteliers are 'child-clowns' . Like a child they must be filled
with energy and enthusiasm and, like a clown, must be able
to excite ot hers so that they find t heir work more
pleasurable and fulfilling. Another aspect of t he child-clown
personal ity is a love of variety and an equal ly strong dislike
of routine.

A
d
vocabulary Describing people a
p
5 Complete the table below.
-ed I -ing adjectives noun
t
adject ive e verb
- ed adjectives describe 1 d j/ . m
mpt.iX Ji.D.l .... motivate
how motivatio tlYqt. f .
Ia feel
person feels: n
r
tired.
- ing adjectives say what 2 charm o
m
makes the person feel 3 excellen
ce
that Nay:
4 enthusi T
t was a tiring journey.
asm e
l
85 fulfilme e
variety
nt g
speaking 6 r
What skills and qualities are required
6 pleasur a
for the following jobs?
e p
accountant housekeeperh head receptionist sales
7 success
manage r
T
r
a
v
e 4
l
1
 Read the extract from t he text on p a g e 41 a n d u nde rline a ll t he uses
of
a a nd the a n d all the nou ns that d o not have a n article in f ront of
them.
In a recent study Dr David Young, a leading psychologist ,
was hired to devise a personality test to reveal the
characteristics that make hoteliers not j ust good but
excellent.

The study showed - unsurprisingly - that the most

successful owne rs and managers have tw o key qualit ies:

Read the rules a n d comp lete the inform a tion below wit h exam p les from
the text o n p a g e 41 .
• We normally use no article bef o re the names of p eo ple a n d their titles .
..1?r9fe; f>.Qr. . i\ RrL .Pr..P.?1 i.4.XR ng............................................... .
• We use a befo re professions
.... ..r i:.P.ti9.t!i ............................................................................. .
• We use the before a noun that has b e e n previously mentioned or is
c lear.
.I. .b 4..q . P. f>. pmi.. .n4. n .i4?:ntit'{..(-. r .R!0t..th?: .p.. wort..Y{
.f]..iD .\.i4.

• We use the before a noun identified by a phrase or clause that follows .

.!ff]. rw:t. .t . .h9:t. ..th?.t..I.. t .i?:..i.tJ..\?1f>.t. .
r.................................... .

• We use no article when countable, plural nouns are used in a general

• We use the in superlative
m.
sense .
k n?-. .Qr.Q gh ..if?Jh ..mRf>.t. r,p.t(.tJ.f ] [ ..hRt?:\
expressions.
. .11?:f]t.. t .iDC} .!r!..t.P, .IJ. i ?:.DRt \ . }.p,t( t..\?. tt?:r. .f
..(-.i.\.iti.t(f?;.........
iD..kR!1 QrL .......... .
.,.. For more information turn to p a g e
126.

listening 7 Listen to the stressed syllables in these words and mark the stress
pattern
olloon the f wing words .

5 excellent

•
1
excellence

va •
2 enthusiasm
r
varied

enthusiastic
6
energy
energet
ic

•
3 psychologist pyschologica 7 excitement exciting
l
ie ty
4 motivation motivated 8 personal
personality

42
 Dealing with guests
l - -
0 Dealing with guests
.

8 Donald McCoy is a hotel consultant who maintains a website where

he answers questions put to him by hotel managers. Read the questions
and fill in the blanks using a, the or no article.

Microsoft Internet Explorer § § 0

E3
8.;ck Stop R fresh Home - AutoFill Print Mail

,..flillii ,. r.r.,.,_..,,_.,.,..
J
@ Live Home Page
http ://www.therea lmac c
oy.com
@ Apple Computer @
-------
@
Apple Support
-----------------------------
Apple Store @ Microsoft MacTop ia @ MSN @ Office for
I
1•1
, 1•

))

i41l
11i
L-- --------lmlMillllf
Macintosh

-
...,
Q
,
<
::i: IJJIJ- Dear Donald
I'll
Ill

,
, Hi! What can be done about reducing .................... 1 noise at ....................2 motels? Many
: guests will often shout through ....................3 open door to ....................4 family members in
0 other rooms while other people are trying to sleep.
gsim mons@kansas.tic. net
,lV'l

IJJIJ- Dear Donald

a Just as there are floors where ....................5 people aren't allowed to smoke , do you foresee
-
/
'tJ
........... ........ . 6 non-kids floors? Personally, I see this as ................... .7 great selling point,
,.
V

.,
.; 'l
Q blocking ....................8 families away from .................... 9 business traveler.
'C
- m.estevez@Miami.us.org
0
r:0

"O IJJIJ- Hi Donald

Q
.a last time we had .................... 11 famous person staying with us we were
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
l'tJ
:z: invaded by ....................12 autograph hunters , reporters and ....................13 paparazzi. Can you
0
5: give any advice on how to prevent such threats to .................... 1 4 privacy of any guest who is
I'll

1n ....................15 publ'1c eye?.

.
I
janicebrian@Bostonet.com

IJJIJ- Dear Donald

We have ....................16 number of guests who leave without paying. Some think
... ........ ........ . 17 account is going to be paid by someone else, others check in with
intention of paying on departure but 'forget ' to declare things that should be on
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
.... .. .......... .... 19 bill such as drinks from ....................20 minibar. Worst of all are tho se who check
in, usually for ....................2 1 short periods , with no intention of paying at all. What steps can
we take to deal with these people?
tony.bianchi@bsmontreal.can

1
0-
speaking 9 Work in small groups. What would be your responses to
these questions?

wr1t1ng 1 0 Reply to one of the emails offering a solution to the problem.

 reading Communication problems
11 In his book Running a Hotel on the Roof of the World, Alec Le Sueur tells
the story of his experience of working at a Holiday Inn hotel in Tibet. Before
you read the extract below think about these questions.

• What physical problems could guests experience staying at 12,000

ft?
• What could the hotel provide to prevent these problems?
1 2 Read the extract and answer these ns.
-+- _,.
questio / "tr y
1 What is meant by 'red carpet cc1,, Ll l
r--- (
'2treatment'?
('
Why was it important to give this visitor 'red carpet treatment'?
3 Why do you think it was 'the last straw'?
4 What mistake did the operator make?
5 As the manager of this hotel what would you do to improve the
situation?
6 Do you know any similar stories involving language problems?

'Why don't your staff speak English?' was a question which was asked
by guests throughout the day. I t became very annoying and
although it was extremely tempting to reply, 'Why don't you speak
Tibetan or next time stay at home?' this answer was not really
acceptable in an international hotel. Instead I answered with a
polite, 'Oh, I am terribly sorry, we are constantly looking for
ways to improve the service to our guests and thank you so much
for bringing this matter to our attention.'
T he last straw with the 'lack of English' complaints came from an
investment banker who had been invited to Tibet to discuss important
financial projects with the local government. We had special
instructions to provide red carpet treatment and the General
Manager escorted him and his wife to the best suite in the hotel. Th e
financier was concerned that his wife might suffer from altitude
sickness and he looked around the suite for the oxygen supply. He
found the bottle beneath the bedside table and followed the
instructions on how to release oxygen into the room. But nothing
happened and he called the operator to ask for someone to check the
oxygen. 'Yes,' the operator responded. He waited patiently for an
engineer to arrive. Fifteen minutes later no-one had appeared and his
wife was complaining of a headache. He called the operator again
to ask for the oxygen. 'Yes, wait a moment. I check for you,' was
the reply.
Another quarter of an hour passed, and still no- :me had arrived - his
wife's headache was worsening and he was beginning to lose his
temper. H e snatched the receiver, dialled 2222 and demanded to
know why there was no oxygen. The operator gave him an irritated
reply, he had been wasting her time. 'Yes, I checked for you, but there is
no Mr Oxygen staying in the hotel.'

Adapted from Running a Hotel 011 the Roof of the World, Summersdale Publishers Ltd.

speaking 13 What happened next? Role-play the situation. Student A is the guest
and student B the General Manager.

44
vocabulary Misunderstanding
1 4 Complete the expressions with the words from the
box.
tail
cross crossed point
stick

2 They were talking at ................... purposes.

1 She completely missed the ................... .
3 She got t he wrong end of t he
I think we both got our lines .< .<"!:'.!
....·. ).'.J_..I..C...':I-.!.. .
=........
I couldn't
4 saying.
. make head nor ... t . ...... of what she was

5
listening A complaint
15 A guest checks in at a hotel and loses something of value. Read the
following list of events. Then listen and number the events in the order
in which they occur.
1 1
1
The porter shows Mrs Horton to room 212.
1
W Mrs Horton reports the missing necklace to reception.
Mrs Horton goes to her room.
Mrs Horton telephones her husband.
> [ ] Mrs Horton unpacks her clothes and uses the
bathroom.
[(:] The receptionist offers to ring the
housekeeper.
0 The receptionist misunderstands the name.
Listen to the conversations again and summarise the events so far.
1 6 words
the Use from the box.

first of all then after that because

so

1 7 Later that afternoon, M r Horton arrives at reception. Listen and

answer these questions.
1 What does he think has happened to the necklace?
2 What does Mr Horton want to know?
3 What explanation does the receptionist give him?
4 Why can't Mr Horton find his wife?
5 Why couldn't Mr Horton speak to his wife on the phone?
6 What would you do now?
wr1t1ng 1 8 Send a memo to the Duty Manager to tell her what has happened
and what action has been taken.

TO Memo
DATE

SUBJEC
T

45
 listening Dealing with complaints
1 9 Match the complaints with the responses below. The.n listen a n _ check
your
answers. ·' r
,"
/ -
1 It's disgusting, the sheet's stained
V - . t .·

2a The shower curtain is torn in the

4 The fluorescent light is making a funny noise.
bathroom.
3 I'm afraid the room is terribly dusty. (

-t-
5 The window's stuck.
C
6 The faucets are dripping, I can't turn them off .
., I did ask for a newspaper in y room. if.
7
8 The waste paper basket is full.
m \,
b
a I'm terribly sorry about that. I'll have a clean one brought to your
LANGUAGE room.
TIP b) I do apologise . I'll have it emptied for you.
When making an offer c) I 'II get it cleaned for you straightaway.
to help, make sure that d) Oh
e) If you tell I'll
dear. meget
which one you
someone read it.
to open I'll have it delivered.
·\
you pronounce the '//in f) I'll have it changed by the
I'll. electrician.
g) OK, I'll have them looked at by a
• I' 11 ask the porter to plumber.
show you another room. h) Is it? I'm sorry, I'll get a new one fitted.
• I'll call a taxi for
you.
Match the phrases in the box with the advice
below .
I'm (very I terribly) What seems to have happened is
There that ...
sorry. ' s been a misunderstanding. We ' ll look into the
matter and ... I suggest that we ... I'II see to it
straightaway.
I do apologise for the inconvenience.
Thank you for bringing the matter to my
attention. There seems to have been a problem I
a mix-up.

• if the guest is angry go somewhere private

• listen carefully to the complaint and don't
interrupt or argue
• thank the person for bringing the matter to your
attention
1 .1h n. Q. ..for.. rin9io9Jhtr ..m tt r.JQ..nw.
tt nt.i!?D. .............. .
• speak normally without raising your voice
• apologise for the inconvenience
2
3

• explain what happened

4

5
6

• explain what action will be taken and

. '"'
C»_ o_ea_l_in_g_w_i_th_g_u_e_s_ts

speaking 20 Work in pairs. Student A you are a guest at a hotel. Look at the
following problems and complain to reception. Student B you are
the receptionist. Turn to page 113.
• you lose your key and the replacement key is missing
• the service in the restaurant is very slow and the waiter doesn't
speak English very well and brought the wrong order
• there are no instructions on how to operate the TV set and the
remote control is not working

Offering compensation
2 1 Work in pairs. Hotels often give meal vouchers or room upgrades in
response to complaints. What other forms of compensation do hotels offer?

Overbooking
22 Work in pairs. Student A turn to page 115. Student B you are in charge
of room allocation. A group of guests has just arrived unexpectedly. Look
at the reservation chart and information below and deal with the situation.
• ask for proof and details of the booking
• apologise for the mistake
• explain what happened
• find out how many people are in the party and what rooms they need
• show sympathy and understanding of the guest's complaint
• allocate the cheapest available rooms - you are expecting a fax
confirming bookings for the superior rooms so you want to keep them
free

Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday

Twins (20) Twins (20) Twins (20) Twins (20)

0000000000 0000000000 0000000000 0000000000

0000000000 0000000000 0000000000 0000000000
DD DODD DODD DD DODD DD DD DODD

Doubles (13) Doubles (13) Doubles (13) Doubles (13)

0000000000 0000000000 0000000000 0000000000

000 DDDDD 000 DDDDD 000 DDDDD 000 DDDDD
DD DD DD DD

Singles ( 10) Singles ( 10) Singles (10) Singles (10)

0000000000 0000000000 0000000000 0000000000

..
DD DD DD DD .
28 28 28 28
Groups Groups Groups Groups

\"'1E '/.. u... .rou

2_.::;-\

l\iU.'r.t<;
47