Paper 06: Hotel Housekeeping

Module 09: Supervision in Housekeeping

THE DEVELOPMENT TEAM

Principal Investigator Prof. S. P. Bansal,

Vice Chancellor, Indira Gandhi University, Rewari

Co-Principal Investigator Dr. Prashant K. Gautam,

Director, UIHTM, Panjab University, Chandigarh

Paper Coordinator Prof. Ashish Dahiya

Director, IHTM
Maharshi Dayananad University, Rohtak, Haryana

Content Writer Mr. Shashank Anand

School of Hospitality Management
RIMT University, Mandi Gobindgarh, Punjab

Content Reviewer Prof. S.C. Bagri

Director, Centre for Mountain Tourism & Hospitality Studies
HNB Garhwal University, Uttarakhand
 ITEMS DESCRIPTION OF MODULE

Subject Name Tourism & Hospitality

Paper Name Hotel Housekeeping

Module Title
Supervision in Housekeeping

Module Id Module no – 09

Pre- Requisites Organizational Structure of Housekeeping Department

Objectives
To understand the purpose of supervision in housekeeping operations

Keywords Supervisors, role, duties & responsibilities

QUADRANT-I

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1) Learning Outcomes
2) Introduction
3) Role Of Housekeeping Supervisors
4) Supervisory Positions In Housekeeping
5) Specific Functions Of Supervisor
6) Sample Job Description Of Housekeeping Supervisor
7) Guest Complaint Handling
8) Summary
9) Learning Outcomes

QUADRANT-I

LEARNING OUTCOMES

After completing this module students will be able to:

I. Understand the role of supervisors in housekeeping operations.
II. Learn about various supervisory posts in housekeeping.
III. Understand the functions of supervisors.
IV. Learn the art of complaint handling.
 SUPERVISION IN HOUSEKEEPING

Introduction

The Executive Housekeeper relies heavily on his/her supervisors in the daily tasks of the
housekeeping department. Supervisors are largely responsible for training the semi-skilled
and unskilled workforce. Good supervision leads to efficient housekeeping using the correct
cleaning agents, equipment and procedures. Supervisors are expected to possess thorough,
up-to-date and practical knowledge of cleaning methods, equipment and agents to guide the
junior staff members.

Housekeeping supervisor works one-on-one with team members to ensure guest rooms,
lobbies and all public areas constantly receive rigorous and thorough cleaning. The
supervisor knows his/her employees and
encourages them to step up their work ethic
when it lags, voice an opinion or observation
about other employees and departments.
While the supervisor may help with cleaning,
recruitment and training of employees, the
supervisor's significant role comes in
maintaining a professional, helpful and
content housekeeping. The supervisory level
in the housekeeping department includes the
assistant housekeeper, floor supervisor, public area supervisor, linen room supervisor and so
on.

Role of Housekeeping Supervisors

Role of housekeeping supervisors is not just restricted to overseeing the routine operations. In
this section we look at the various roles a supervisor plays in the day-to-day running of
housekeeping department.

1. Link between managerial and lower level: Although all the meetings, various
briefings are called on by the managers for the staff, the actual link between upper and
 lower levels of organizational structure are the supervisors. They get the work done as
per the requirements of the upper management and also apprise the upper
management of the standards or/and procedures being followed by the department. At
the end of the day, supervisors have the responsibility of getting the work done by the
lower management, for the upper management in the most efficient way.

(ImageSource: http://www.wisegeek.org/what-does-an-executive-housekeeper-do.htm)

2. Compliance with the budget: Supervisors come in the aide of the executive
housekeeper while managing money/budget allocated to the housekeeping
department. The budget is usually prepared by the executive housekeeper, with
assistance of managers and supervisors. However, the enormous task of implementing
the budget in the routine affairs of the department lies on the shoulders of the
supervisors. They have to ensure cleaning agents are being used with proper dilution,
used only on the surfaces they are meant to be used and are not wasted. They train the
staff on how to operate the cleaning equipment in a correct manner so as to avoid
damaging the expensive equipment. They constantly develop and monitor the
cleaning procedures to keep housekeeping performance at the highest level yet being
cost-efficient.

3. Establishment of Standards: Supervisors are responsible for the training of the

cleaning staff in a manner that establishes the standards desired and set by the
management. They also maintain records for the housekeeping department and ensure
that the staff under their supervision follows the established code of conduct, work
ethics and discipline. Supervisors are directly liable for any shortcomings or failures
in meeting the standards set by the executive housekeeper.

4. Representative of the staff: Supervisors, in their supervisory roles, automatically

become representatives of the staff members working under them. Efficient
supervisors recognize the team members individually as unique human beings,
empathize with them, motivate and train them to perform better, and ensure the safety
of their team while performing the tedious tasks of operations. An effective supervisor
properly delegates responsibilities to his/her team members without overloading some
members. He/ she also communicate the feelings of the staff with the upper
management whenever necessary.
 5. Anticipate guests’ needs: A supervisor also strives to constantly anticipate the needs
and expectations of the hotel guests. He/she looks things from the guests’ perspective
to provide proactive service. Only a highly motivated staff can provide proactive
service to their guests, which is again the responsibility of the supervisor.

Supervisory Positions in Housekeeping

The housekeeping department usually has seven supervisory posts allocated at different areas
for smooth operations. This section elaborates the various positions and their specific duties

SUPERVISOR
Y POSTS

FLOOR PUBLIC NIGHT SHIFT LINEN ROOM UNIFORM CONTROL LAUNDRY

SUPERVISOR AREA SUPERVISOR SUPERVISOR ROOM DESK SUPERVISOR
SUPERVISOR SUPERVISOR SUPERVISOR

and responsibilities.

1. Floor Supervisor: The floor supervisor reports to the assistant housekeeper or the
executive housekeeper depending upon the organizational structure being followed.
They are responsible for the final condition of the guestrooms on the floors allocated
to them. Usually, a floor supervisor handles three or more floors. His/her assigns the
rooms to guest room attendants along with a floor master key, which is to be returned
at the end of shift.

Duties and Responsibilities:

i. Issue floor keys to guest room attendants.

ii. Supervise cleaning procedures on allotted floors and areas- which includes
guestrooms, room corridors, staircases and floor pantries.
 iii. Inspection of rooms cleaned by the attendants.

iv. Supervise handling of soiled linen to laundry and requisitioning fresh linen.

v. Report maintenance work on the floor.

vi. Supervise spring cleaning activities.

vii. Coordinate with F&B department (room service) for tray clearance from
rooms and corridors.

viii. Keep par stock levels maintained on respective floors.

ix. Facilitate provision of extra services to guests such as baby sitters, hot water
bottles, and other special guest requests.

x. Report any safety or potential security hazard to the security department.

xi. Check for guests with scanty baggage.

xii. Prepare housekeeping reports.

xiii. Co-ordinate with front office department to update room status(Dirty to

Inspected, Dirty to Clean and so on)

xiv. Ensure services provided to the VIPs are of the highest standards.

2. Public Area Supervisor: The public area supervisor reports to the assistant
housekeeper or the executive housekeeper depending upon the organizational
structure being followed. He/ she is responsible for cleaning and inspection of the
front of the house areas such as the Hotel entrance, Lobby, Restaurants and so on.
Most of public area cleaning happens during the night. Hence, there needs to be
proper coordination between public area supervisor and the night shift supervisor.
Hotels nowadays outsource contract staff for managing the public areas, although the
supervisor might be a hotel employee

Duties and Responsibilities:

i. Ensure that all public spaces and other functional areas are kept sparkling at
all times.
 ii. Coordinate with the maintenance department for all maintenance activity
required in the public areas.

iii. Schedule special cleaning tasks for public areas.

iv. Ensure proper placement of all flower arrangements in public areas.

v. Make sure the banquet halls, conference halls and meeting rooms are kept
ready for show rounds, functions, conferences etc.

3. Night Shift Supervisor: The night supervisor reports to the assistant housekeeper or
the executive housekeeper depending upon the organizational structure being
followed. He supervises all night staff appointed in the cleaning of public areas in
hotel. The night shift staff may be outsourced.

Duties and Responsibilities:

i. Ensure thorough cleaning of public areas during the night since the traffic is
low.

ii. A proper plan of work order and appoint staff accordingly.

iii. Ensure proper submission and filing of room attendants’ reports and room
status reports.

iv. Attend to guest requests (water bottles, extra beds, towels etc.) in the night and
provide guest supplies.

v. Check and report all safety and security hazards.

4. Linen Room Supervisor/Linen Keeper: The linen room supervisor reports to the
Laundry Manager or the executive housekeeper depending upon the organizational
structure being followed. He / She supervise the operations of linen room and usually
has many linen attendants to assist in providing clean and presentable linen to all the
areas of hotel. Linen room attendants work under the linen room supervisor.

Duties and Responsibilities:

i. Responsible for the entire linen of the hotel.

ii. Check each piece of dirty linen before sending them to the laundry.

iii. Check the laundered linen for quality before giving it for pressing / ironing.
 iv. Provide neat, clean and ironed linen to the various departments.

v. Maintain linen register for, tracking the movements of linen in and out of the
linen room on, a regular basis.

vi. Supervise ironing and laundering operations.

vii. Supervise linen repair and mending work done by tailors.

viii. Make appropriate suggestions relating to the replacement purchases and give
requirements of linen to executive housekeepers.

ix. Keep a track of all guest laundry.

5. Uniform Room Supervisor: The uniform room supervisor reports to the assistant
housekeeper or the executive housekeeper depending upon the organizational
structure being followed. He/ she is responsible for maintaining hotel staff uniforms.

Duties and Responsibilities:

i. Responsible for providing clean, ironed and serviceable uniforms to the staff.

ii. Keep a check on the uniform inventory at various stages of use.

iii. Allocate budget for procurement of uniforms and related materials.

6. Housekeeping Control Desk Supervisor: The control desk supervisor reports to the
assistant housekeeper or the executive housekeeper depending upon the
organizational structure being followed. Control desk is the nerve-centre of
housekeeping operations and is managed 24 hours a day. It is a hub for information
distribution, inter and intra departmental communication and contingency
proceedings. The control desk supervisor is a critical position in housekeeping
operations.

Duties and Responsibilities:

i. Coordination with other departments, especially front office for information

on departure rooms and handing of clean rooms.

ii. Receive complaints on maintenance and housekeeping and ensure a quick

resolution.
 iii. Maintain documents and registers kept at control desk.

iv. Receive special guest requests.

v. Maintain updated reports on room occupancy, VIPs, status of rooms etc.

vi. Allocation of work to attendants and supervisors.

vii. Prompt answering of calls received at control desk

viii. Responsible for issuing guestroom keys and maintenance of key register.

7. Laundry Supervisor: A laundry supervisor reports to the Laundry Manager. He/she is

in charge of the laundry operations in the absence of laundry manager. He must
possess thorough knowledge of all aspects of laundry equipment, chemicals and
fabrics.

Specific Functions of Supervisor

This section elaborates on some of the more specific functions carried out by the
housekeeping supervisors in the housekeeping department.

1. Guest Room Inspection:

a. In a planned and systematic manner, guest rooms are checked for cleanliness
and maintenance and accordingly approved for occupancy by supervisors.

b. The supervisors inspect guestrooms considering their last look will be guest’s
first look.

c. The supervisors’ eye for detail helps to identify anything that is not as per the
established standards before the guest finds them amiss.

d. A supervisor follows systematic process to inspect guest rooms such that all
rooms are inspected timely.

e. The inspection of bedrooms and bathrooms is carried out in clockwise or anti-

clockwise direction, from high levels to low levels, staring with articles
on/against the wall.

f. The floor and ceiling are checked after this.

 g. Then a final look around the room is imperative to put things in their places.

2. Inspection Checklist:

a. It is an important tool in ensuring all cleaning areas are inspected and nothing
has been skipped.

b. Inspection checklist itemizes all surfaces, articles and lays down standards of
cleanliness to be achieved at various areas.

c. It allows supervisors to record any observation and indicate checks.

d. The more detailed the inspection checklist, the more in-depth is the inspection

3. Inspection of VIP rooms:

a. VIP rooms require special attention and mistakes caused, if any, can be very
costly.

b. Assistant housekeeper or the Executive Housekeeper bestow this

responsibility on the shoulders of supervisors and are also involved
themselves.

c. Along with regular check-ups, thorough inspections are conducted for

bedspreads, lamp shades, and pictures on the walls.

d. There should be no foul odor in the room and it should smell fresh.

e. White-ragging is conducted on different surfaces. White ragging is done to

check the cleanliness of surfaces by wiping a white rag across it to understand
the degree of soiling.

4. Inspection criteria for commonly neglected areas:

a. Certain areas get neglected during the regular day-to-day cleaning procedures.

b. Supervisors develop separate checklist to incorporate these areas in the routine

inspection checklists.

c. These areas are often referred to as the Dirty Dozen. It includes areas such as
air-conditioning vents, tops of picture frames, area behind toilet bowl, cisterns,
and pipes, faucet filters, surface below the lamps, accessories on the tables, so
on and so forth.
Sample Inspection Checklist. (Image Source: http://www.pinsdaddy.com/housekeeping-
checklist-printable_MfCe*ypLYEWipDamBRTF6Li9KZRGa3xT4iC0AHskYww/)
 Sample Job Description of Housekeeping Supervisor

JOB TITLE : Floor Supervisor

REPORTS TO : Assistant Housekeeper/ Executive Housekeeper

POSITION  Floor Supervisor will be responsible for maintaining

SUMMARY: guestrooms, public areas, and hotel premises in general in a
clean and orderly manner.

 You are also responsible for supervising room attendants to

deliver an exceptional guest satisfaction and experience. On
time to time basis, you may also be required to assist the
Executive Housekeeping in various activities.

DUTIES &  Responsible for smooth operations on the designated floor.

RESPONSIBILITIES
 Supervise guest room attendants.

 Organize and facilitate the room cleaning process.

 Daily allocation of rooms and deep cleaning tasks to team

members.

 Responsible for the cleanliness of heart of the house area of

the floor.

 Check occupied and departure rooms, paying special

attention to guest needs.

 Ensure that the entire operation is performed as per the

established standards.

 To organize immediately the guest needs under intimation

to EHK/Executive.

 Manage guest requests, including VIP amenities and

communicating them to the relevant team members

 Routine inspection of guest bedrooms to ensure they meet

 standards.

 Aware of all room categories and amenities.

 Achieve positive outcomes from guest queries in a timely

and efficient manner

 Carry out lost and found procedures.

 Report maintenance issues to Maintenance/Engineering

Department.

 Assist Housekeeping Manager with training requirements.

 Represent the needs of the team to others in the hotel.

 Comply with hotel security, fire regulations and all health

and safety legislation.

 Assist other departments wherever necessary and maintain

good working relationships.

PREREQUISITES: To provide a friendly, courteous and professional service at all

times, Good communicative English skills, reading, writing and
speaking. Basic computer operating skills

EDUCATION: Graduate in Hotel Management.

EXPERIENCE: Two to three years of proven experience of working in a similar

role in an upscale organization.

Guest Complaint Handling

A guest often expresses dissatisfaction with certain situations or services at the hotel. There
are guests who are very considerate and have a subtle way of complaining, while there are
others who would simply go all out when displeased with something. Irrespective of the
reason of complaint, a complaint needs to be handled with proper care to safeguard the hotel
reputation and brand image. Hotels often associate jargons like “Handle with Care” with
guests who are frequent complainers.

 Types of guest complaints:

1. Technical Complaints:- Complaints occurring due to malfunctioning of certain hotel

equipment are termed as technical complaints. These include faults with the air-
conditioning, elevators, television sets and the likes.

2. Service-related Complaints:- Complaints arising due to lack of proper service or when

improper value of money. Examples include delay in service of food, food not cooked
as per guests’ preference, billing errors and the likes.

3. Attitudinal Complaints:- Complaints related to staff behavior towards the guest. These
include perceived staff rude behavior, guests overhearing employees’ conversation
and so on.

4. Unusual complaints: These are odd complaints that neither have a particular reason
nor a particular solution most of the times. These originate from the whims and
fancies of guests. For example, a guest complaining about the location of the hotel,
size of rooms, absence of swimming pool and so on.

 Handling Complaints

The housekeeping supervisor has to be very diplomatic and tactful while handling
various complaints of guests. The following guidelines can be adhered while dealing
with guest complaints.

1. Always listen to guests complaints attentively and show empathy towards the guest.

2. If possible, isolate the guest to avoid other guests getting involved or over hearing the
conversation.

3. Never try to win an argument with the guest. You might win the argument but lose a
regular guest.

4. Always stay calm and diplomatic. Avoid responding with hostility.

5. Never hurt the guests’ self-esteem. Use guests’ name to address him and give him
your undivided attention.
6. Never pass the blame on other team members. Own up to the mistake and offer a
quick solution.

7. Offer alternate choices to fix the problem. However, never promise something beyond
your authority or something impossible.

8. Set a time frame to fix the problem. Monitor the progress.

9. Follow up on the problem. Follow up with the guests to ensure that the guests is
satisfied.

10. Report the incident, the measures taken and the conclusion.
SUMMARY

The Executive Housekeeper relies heavily on his/her supervisors in the daily tasks of the
housekeeping department. Supervisors are largely responsible for training the semi-skilled
and unskilled workforce. Good supervision leads to efficient housekeeping using the correct
cleaning agents, equipment and procedures. The supervisory level in the housekeeping
department includes the assistant housekeeper, floor supervisor, public area supervisor,
linen room supervisor and so on.

Role of housekeeping supervisors is not just restricted to overseeing the routine operations.
In this section we look at the various roles a supervisor plays in the day-to-day running of
housekeeping department. It includes: Link between managerial and lower level,
Compliance with the budget, Establishment of Standards, Representative of the staff,
Anticipate guests’ needs.

Next, we discuss the duties and responsibilities of each supervisory post. The specific
functions of supervisors are also discussed. A sample job description chart is displayed
highlighting the duties, educational qualifications, experience criteria and more for the
position of housekeeping supervisor.

The module concludes discussing various types of guest complaints and how they should be
handled without causing harm to the hotel.