They’re the driving force of a hotel’s cleanliness and their work (good or bad) is often the first thing that drives the guest experience.
Housekeeping teams are vital cogs in the hotel machine, but it’s all too easy for their processes to become outdated and the team members disillusioned.
With the pandemic having brought an increased focus on hygiene, hotels have stepped up their game in delivering the highest of cleaning standards.
Running a clean, efficient hotel will vastly improve the guest experience and help reduce the chances of receiving poor reviews on websites like TripAdvisor. No matter the size of your hotel, its location or the price of its rooms, cleanliness will be a top priority for every guest.
Here are five super-simple tips to improve the housekeeping operation in your hotel.
1. Embrace technology – let it do the leg work
We’re some way from having robotic housekeepers (and let’s hope it stays that way!), but there are some brilliant digital tools you can use to improve the efficiency of your housekeeping team.
For instance, your hospitality software should offer some form of built-in housekeeping tool that enables you to streamline the collaboration of the hotel’s teams and complete tasks more efficiently.
Housekeepers should have the ability to easily mark rooms as dirty or clean in your property management system, track their own movements and work from an attendants schedule. Can your PMS do that?
2. Think beyond standard, dated procedures
As previously noted, housekeeping teams sometimes fall into disrepair because their procedures are outdated.
To avoid this, start thinking outside of the box. How can you maximise the efficiency of your housekeeping team while staying in budget? For instance, it might make sense to wash the laundry at night when rates are lower.
You may also benefit from incentivising the housekeeping team. Rewards don’t have to be monetary, either; a surprise cinema ticket for the top performing housekeeper demonstrates to the team how much you value their proactive efforts.
3. Pay special attention to the restaurant
Read any other list of tips about the importance of hotel housekeeping, and they’ll probably miss out one of the most essential areas of them all – the F&B operation.
If there’s any area most likely to carry germs at a significant scale, it’s the restaurant and bar areas in your hotel.
This is another element of your operation that will set the tone for a guest’s opinion of the establishment as a whole. A dirty restaurant is unlikely to leave them wanting to stay for the night, after all.
Keeping a restaurant professionally clean will require your team to adhere to the latest EPA standards. Some hoteliers will choose at this point to use an outsourcing company, but there’s an awful lot you can do in-house to maintain a healthy F&B operation that wows guests rather than turning them off.
4. Keep tabs on your laundry equipment
Laundry equipment plays a pivotal role in the housekeeping operation of a hotel. If it becomes old and poorly maintained, it’ll cost more to run and result in poor cleanliness.
Make sure your hotel operates well cared-for laundry equipment. Follow manufacturer guidelines for servicing and ensure all team members feel empowered to make note of any defects they spot.
5. Invest copiously in staff training
Your staff can only get better at their jobs if you invest in their ongoing development.
Training is the best way to do this, and there are plenty of housekeeping courses and health and safety courses you can send them on. Check out what’s available in your area and make it at least a quarterly occurrence.
Wrapping up
Ready to take your housekeeping team onto the next level? Follow our tips above, and they’ll become more efficient and productive than you ever thought possible. Also be sure to take advantage of housekeeping tools available to you.
–
CMS Hospitality holds over 30 years of experience in delivering hospitality software solutions. CMS offers the most complete solution in hospitality software, whether you’re running a hotel, a resort or a hostel. Our highly experienced support and installations team holds a unique understanding of the hospitality industry and will aim to provide software that suits your property’s needs.
Call us today at (+61) 2 9440 9711, or email us at sales@cmshospitality.com. We will be happy to guide you to the CMS Hospitality solution that’s right for you.