Expertise Hotel Operations The Departments

Knowledge · Operations

Every department on one page.

Sixteen departments. For each: what it exists to do, three standards that matter, the numbers to watch, and one question for the owner to ask.

Front office

Receive the guest, keep the promise made at booking, and settle the account without error.

Recognition by name
Check-in under five minutes
Every request closed and confirmed

Watch
Check-in time, upsell revenue, guest score at arrival and departure

The owner asks
How many guests were recognised before they gave their name?

Housekeeping

Deliver a room that is clean, complete and quiet, every time.

Supervisor inspection before release
Rooms ready by the promised hour
Lost property logged the same day

Watch
Rooms per attendant, cost per occupied room, inspection pass rate

The owner asks
How many rooms were released late, and why?

Laundry

Return linen and guest clothes clean, on time and undamaged.

Soiled and clean kept apart
Guest laundry returned the same day
Linen rejected at the folding table, not on the bed

Watch
Kilograms per occupied room, cost per kilogram, rewash rate

The owner asks
What does a kilogram cost us, against buying the service in?

Restaurants and bars

Serve the guest at the pace the guest wants, and earn from every seat-hour.

Greeting within 30 seconds
Allergies asked for at every order
The bill within three minutes of the request

Watch
RevPASH, average check, seat occupancy in hot hours

The owner asks
Which hours are full, and which are an empty room with a payroll?

Kitchen

Produce the same plate every time, safely, at the cost the recipe states.

A costed recipe for every dish
Temperatures logged twice a day
One-way flow of food

Watch
Food cost against theoretical cost, waste, covers per labour hour

The owner asks
What is the gap between what the food should have cost and what it did?

Stewarding

Keep the kitchen and its equipment clean and the tableware in service.

Final rinse at 82 °C
Breakage counted monthly
Chemicals stored apart and labelled

Watch
Breakage as a share of F&B revenue, chemical cost per cover

The owner asks
How much china and glass did we replace this quarter?

Banquets and events

Sell space by the session, and deliver the event as it was sold.

A signed event order for every function
Room set an hour before the guests
One named host for the organiser

Watch
Contribution per square foot per session, session occupancy, conversion of enquiries

The owner asks
Which enquiry did we decline for this date, and what was it worth?

Spa and recreation

Restore the guest, and sell the treatment hours that are free.

Consultation before every treatment
Rooms reset between guests
Pool water tested and logged

Watch
Treatment-room occupancy by hour, revenue per treatment hour, retail share

The owner asks
How many treatment hours went unsold last week, and when?

Engineering

Keep the building safe, working and efficient, and protect its value.

Planned maintenance completed on schedule
Guest faults fixed within the hour or the guest moved
Fire systems tested as the law requires

Watch
Energy and water per occupied room, rooms out of order, maintenance completed against plan

The owner asks
What will fail next, and is it in the capital plan?

Sales and marketing

Fill the hotel with the guests worth most to it.

Every quote above the displacement floor
Accounts reviewed on contribution
One calendar for all campaigns

Watch
Contribution by segment, conversion of leads, cost of acquisition

The owner asks
Which accounts would we not renew at today’s rate?

Revenue and reservations

Decide what to sell, to whom, at what price, and when.

Forecast updated twice a week
Rates and restrictions reviewed daily
Every call answered within three rings

Watch
RevPAR index, Net RevPAR, forecast error and bias

The owner asks
How wrong was the forecast at 14 days, and in which direction?

Finance

Report the truth on time, and keep the cash safe.

Accounts in USALI format
Month closed within the agreed days
Every reconciliation signed

Watch
Flow-through, days to close, debtor days

The owner asks
What changed in classification since last month?

People and training

Hire for character, train for skill, and keep those who are good.

Induction before the first shift
A training plan for every role
Exit interviews read by the general manager

Watch
Staff turnover, training hours per colleague, payroll as a share of revenue

The owner asks
Why did the last five people leave?

Security

Protect guests, colleagues and the asset, without being felt.

Access controlled at the staff entrance and the dock
Incidents logged and reviewed daily
Drills held as the law requires

Watch
Incidents, losses, drill results

The owner asks
What did the last drill show that we did not expect?

Purchasing and stores

Buy to the specification at the right price, and issue only against a requisition.

Three quotations above an agreed value
Goods received against the order and the specification
Stock counted monthly, with variances explained

Watch
Price variance, stock days, write-offs

The owner asks
Which prices rose faster than the market?

Information technology

Keep the systems running and the data clean, and keep both safe.

Back-ups tested, not only taken
One source of rates and inventory
Guest data held as the law requires

Watch
System uptime, tickets closed, security incidents

The owner asks
If the main system fails tonight, how long until we can check a guest in?

Audits and checklists Rooms F&B knowledge base