| Your guests may never meet your housekeepers, but the impression they form of your property will depend on the attention to detail and the commitment to a job well done that your housekeepers bring to your property. A fresh, clean and well-maintained room is the cornerstone for enthusiastic word-of-mouth and repeat business. That's why it is critical for owners and general managers to encourage their housekeeping team and to provide the products and the training they need to do their jobs well. Certainly, a highly motivated housekeeping team is a significant reason for the success that the Comfort Inn & Suites hotel in Rapid City, S.D., now enjoys. The hotel was named an Inn of the Year winner for 2007 and a Platinum Award winner for 2006. A look at the data shows that the hotel has consistently ranked at the top of its brand's cleanliness percentile ranking. The hotel's management gets this level of performance by making it clear how much it values its housekeepers. “We're a family-owned business, so we treat our housekeepers like family,” says Diane Huber, the hotel's general manager. “After all, they're the ones who make the hotel. When people say, 'Oh my gosh, these rooms are so clean,' we let our housekeepers know their work has made a difference. That just keeps them going.” The Comfort Inn hotel has 97 rooms, and its housekeeping department is made up of about 15 employees. Huber says she allots about 25 minutes for a housekeeper to clean a room, slightly more if it is a suite. “We trust them to work at their own pace; we don't have them racing through these rooms. If you make people rush, they're not going to do a quality job.” Huber also makes a point of providing the cleaning products that her housekeeping team needs to get the job done-and she actively solicits their input on new products. “We get samples all the time, but before we make a purchasing decision, we try the samples out and give the housekeepers a chance to evaluate them,” she explains. “The housekeepers choose products that make it easier for them to do their job effectively. If they say they like it, that's what we get.” Huber also makes sure that guests like the products her housekeepers use. “There's a professional Mr. Clean product by Procter & Gamble that we're using right now,” says Huber. “We get good feedback from the guests saying it has a nice, fresh smell.” Ann Stovall, executive housekeeper for the Comfort Suites Merry Acres hotel in Albany, Ga., also credits her department's success to the commitment of her employees. Like the Rapid City property, her hotel has ranked No. 1 in its brand's cleanliness percentile ranking. “When your employees have pride in the job they do, it's going to show,” says Stovall, who's been with the hotel for 15 years. “It's really about employees who take pride in their work, who are well trained and are willing to give 110 percent.” | To secure this kind of commitment, Stovall makes a point of treating her staff members as professionals and letting them know how much their efforts matter. “You have to have a good working relationship with your staff,” she says. “You shouldn't ask them to do anything you wouldn't do yourself.” Stovall's staff consists of six to seven housekeepers, in addition to a supervisor, a relief supervisor and a laundry technician. She says the housekeepers have about 30 minutes to clean a stay-over room and 45 minutes for checkout. Part of treating her staff members like professionals is making sure they have the products to do their job well. Stovall has recently adopted Ecolab&v=cb">Ecolab cleaning products, and housekeepers have been very pleased with them. Stovall notes that the switch reflects the philosophy of the property's new owner, Ameet Patel, who is committed to giving the housekeeping team the products it needs. Both Huber and Stovall agree that training has also been critical to maintaining the high standard of housekeeping that their properties have achieved. This training should include guest etiquette as well as cleaning procedures, because when guests do encounter your housekeepers, it is critical for the workers to make a favorable impression. 
ChoiceCentral.com is a great resource for cleaning and etiquette tips, giving detailed suggestions about how to respond to guests in specific situations. Should a guest be disturbed at all if a “do not disturb” pin is hanging from the door? Does a guest who walks in on a working housekeeper require a particular response to the intrusion? ChoiceCentral.com has answers your housekeepers can use. |
