The Hotel
Business
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Chapter 4
The Hotel Business
The Hotel Business
Types of Lodging Businesses
Hotel Operations
2
The Hotel Business
Chapter Objectives
Identify the types of hotel classifications.
Differentiate between business and leisure
guests.
Explain the importance of yield management.
Identify the front-office positions in the rooms
division of a hotel.
Describe the guest services in the hotel industry.
Identify the support-staff positions in the back
house of a hotel.
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The Hotel Business
Lodging Businesses
According to the American Hotel and Lodging
Association, the United States has more than
47,040 properties, generating 2 million jobs and
$102.6 billion in sales.
Section 4.1
4
The Hotel Business
Classification of Facility
Lodging classification is based on four factors:
Guest
type
Section 4.1
Price
Location
Style and
function
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Classification of Facility
Guest
Type
Price
Location
Style and
Function
Business
Budget
Resorts
All suite
Leisure
Midprice
Airport
Extended stay
Upscale
Highway
Bed-and-Breakfast
(B&Bs)
Downtown
Spas
Conference
centers
Boutique
Vacation
Properties
Retreat centers
Section 4.1
6
The Hotel Business
Classification of Facility
The four categories of guest
travel type or stay are:
Walk-in guest
Transient guest
Corporate guest
Group guest
Section 4.1
transient guest an
individual traveler with
a reservation, staying
in a hospitality property
for a maximum of 30
consecutive days
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The Hotel Business
Classification of Facility
The price of a room is based on a number
of factors:
Location of property
Location of room
Amenities
Length of stay
Section 4.1
Season
Types of guest
Meals
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The Hotel Business
Classification of Facility
Meal plan types include:
meal plan a room rate
that includes meals
European Plan (EP)
Continental Plan (CP)
Bermuda Plan (BP)
Modified American Plan
(MAP)
American Plan (AP)
Section 4.1
9
The Hotel Business
Classification of Facility
Hotels use yield
management to help
maximize revenue.
Section 4.1
yield management a
system of maximizing
revenue through adjusting
room rates according to
demand
10
The Hotel Business
Classification of Facility
Calculation tools used in
yield management are:
Average daily rate
(ADR)
Section 4.1
average daily rate (ADR)
a rate based on total
sales for the day divided
by the total number of
sold rooms
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The Hotel Business
Classification of Facility
Calculation tools used in
yield management are:
Occupancy percentage
(OCC%)
Section 4.1
occupancy percentage
(OCC%) a percentage
calculated daily and based
on the number of rooms
sold as a percentage of
the total number of rooms
available
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The Hotel Business
Classification of Facility
Calculation tools used in
yield management are:
Revenue per available
room (revPAR)
Section 4.1
revenue per available
room (revPAR) a rate
that reflects a hotel’s
revenue per available
room
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The Hotel Business
For All Types of Travelers
Lodging accommodations come in all types and
sizes to suit the needs of many kinds of guests.
Travelers consider price, location, and style of a
property when making reservations.
Section 4.1
14
The Hotel Business
4.1
1.
What are three different types of hotel
properties?
2.
What are the two categories of hotel guests?
3.
What are three factors that can determine the
price of a room?
Section 4.1
15
The Hotel Business
Hotel Organization
The general manager of a
hotel is responsible for
both front-of-the-house
and back-of-the-house
operations.
Section 4.2
front of the house
(lodging) the area in a
lodging facility that guests
view, such as the lobby
back of the house
(lodging) the area in a
lodging facility where
support services take
place that guests
usually do not view
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The Hotel Business
The Rooms Division
The largest revenue center of a lodging facility is
the rooms division.
The rooms division includes the front desk,
reservations, housekeeping, guest or uniformed
services, and communications.
Section 4.2
17
The Hotel Business
The Front Office
From a guest perspective, the front office is
considered the heart and soul of any property.
The primary functions of the front-desk staff are:
Selling
rooms
Section 4.2
Maintaining
accounts
Providing
guest services
18
The Hotel Business
The Front Office
The sales division or the reservations staff sells
rooms during the day.
In the evening the front-desk staff assumes this
responsibility.
Section 4.2
19
The Hotel Business
The Front Office
Many lodging facilities have property
management systems (PMS).
Sophisticated information technology allows the
front desk to provide better service while also
reducing costs for the property.
Section 4.2
20
The Hotel Business
The Front Office
The most important task of the front-desk staff is
providing exemplary guest service.
During check-in, guests contact the front desk
with questions, requests, and special needs.
Section 4.2
21
The Hotel Business
The Front Office
The night auditor is a
front-of-the-house
accounting position.
night auditor the hotel
staff member who does
the night audit and
balances the guests’
accounts each evening
Some properties may
employ a guest service
agent (GSA).
guest service agent
(GSA) a hotel staff
member who performs all
the functions of a desk
clerk/agent, concierge,
and valet
Section 4.2
22
The Hotel Business
The Front Office
Guests can often make reservations directly with
a property through a centralized reservation
system (CRS).
Section 4.2
23
The Hotel Business
The Front Office
The housekeeping department directly affects a
guest’s perception of cleanliness, safety, and
security at a property.
Section 4.2
24
The Hotel Business
The Front Office
Guest or uniformed
services staff members
wear the official uniform of
the hotel and are the first
people whom guests
approach upon arrival at
the property.
Section 4.2
guests or uniformed
services staff members
in uniforms, including the
bell staff, valet, security
officers, concierge, and
door or garage attendants
25
The Hotel Business
The Front Office
The concierge position is
found at larger properties,
often in city or resort
locations.
Section 4.2
concierge a hotel staff
member who helps guests
make arrangements for
transportation, restaurant
reservations, event
reservations, and
entertainment tickets, and
advises guests about
activities in the area
26
The Hotel Business
The Front Office
The communications department of a hotel is
another revenue center.
In-house communications can include voice
mail, fax service, e-mail, message centers, and
pagers.
Section 4.2
27
The Hotel Business
Systemwide Departments
Larger hotels maintain centralized systems for
groups of units.
Employees are classified as line employees and
staff employees.
Line employees are in daily
contact with guests.
Section 4.2
Staff employees support the
front of the house; they do not
interact much with guests.
28
The Hotel Business
Support Staff
Support staff in the back of the house include:
Engineers
Groundskeepers
Attendants
Sales and marketing staff
Human resources staff
Section 4.2
29
Support Staff
Engineers
Oversee the hotel’s physical plant, buildings, and
grounds
Groundskeepers
Maintain and upgrades the exterior of the facility by
landscaping the property
Attendants
Oversee recreational facilities such as pools, tennis
courts, and golf courses
Sales and
Marketing
Persuades guests to stay at a particular property or
chain
Human
Resources
Oversees recruiting, selecting, training, and
compensating hotel employees
Section 4.2
30
The Hotel Business
Support Staff
The sales force of a lodging business may
include different types of sales personnel:
Sales representatives
Technical-support staff
Sales assistants
Telemarketers
Section 4.2
31
Hotel Staffing
Food & Beverage
General
Manager
Food & Beverage
Restaurant
Section 4.2
Lounge
Banquet
Room
Service
Kitchen
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Hotel Staffing
Front Office
General
Manager
Front Office
Uniformed
Staff
Reservations
Front Desk
Housekeeping
Concierge
Reservations
Manager
FD Manager
Executive
Housekeeper
Door Attendants
Asst. FD Mgr.
Bell Captain
FD Clerk
Security
Guest Service
Agent
Security
Inspectors
Room
Attendants
Laundry
PBX Operator
Night Auditor
Section 4.2
33
Hotel Staffing
General
Manager
Support Staff
Support Staff
Marketing
Accounting
Human
Resources
Engineering
Sales
Marketing
Section 4.2
34
The Hotel Business
Hotels Online
Operatingbooks
an e-tail
business
an electronic
channel—the
Hotels.com
rooms
at overon4,500
hotels throughout
the
Web—can
costly,
due to
design,have
delivery,
and
world.
Similar be
hotel
booking
services
madereturns,
it easier
and
operating
expenses.
cheaper
for travelers
to find accommodations. These Web
sites feature photos and descriptions of rooms and amenities.
Though Many larger dot-com companies crashed in the
Rating systems help guests know the level of quality they can
1990’s, small stores like Harris Cyclery of West Newton,
expect
in a particular
destination.
Massachusetts,
actually
increase sales using a basic Web
site. reservation
Today, a third
of Harris’s
businessthe
rides
in on
Online
services
alsobicycle
save travelers
hassle
of
the Web
to get hard-to-find
parts and
personallanguages
service.
calling
and booking
overseas rooms
in different
and time zones.
Describe an e-business’s home page to your class after
viewing one through marketingseries.glencoe.com.
For more information, go to marketingseries.glencoe.com.
Section 4.2
35
The Hotel Business
4.2
1. What are three functions of the front office?
2. What are examples of three uniformed
services positions?
3. What is the difference between line and staff
employees?
Section 4.2
36
The Hotel Business
Checking Concepts
1. Name the factors used to
classify lodging facilities.
2. List the categories used
to describe types of
guests by type of stay.
1. Categories
2.
3.
Business
The
factors
guests
used
used to
to
categorize
describe
are
thoseguests
traveling
lodging
by
facilities
type
for
business
of stay
are are
guest
type, price,
business
purposes.
and
location,guests.
leisure
and style
of service, and
function.
3. Describe a business
guest.
continued
37
The Hotel Business
Checking Concepts
4. Identify three rates
hotels use for yield
management.
5. Identify properties by
type of style and function.
6. List three positions in the
rooms division.
continued
Rates
used forin
yield
4. Properties
5.
6.
The
positions
the
management
are
identified
rooms
division
by style
are
average
daily
rate
and function
front-office
jobs
are
at
(ADR),
all-suite
the
frontoccupancy
facilities,
desk, in
percentage
extended-stay
reservations,
(OCC%),
and
facilities, bed-andhousekeeping,
revenue
per spas,
breakfasts,
guest
and
available
boutique room
uniformed
hotels,
(RevPAR).
vacation properties,
services,
and
and retreat centers.
communications.
38
The Hotel Business
Checking Concepts
7. Name the staff in
uniformed services.
Critical Thinking
8. Discuss the importance
of the sales and
marketing staff in the
back-of-the-house
lodging operations.
The importance
of
7. Staff
8.
in uniformed
the
sales includes
and
services
marketing
staff is
bell staff, valet
that
persuade
staff,they
concierge,
guests
to staystaff.
at a
and security
particular property
or chain. Accept all
reasonable answers
that demonstrate an
understanding of
sales and
marketing.
39
End of
The Hotel
Business
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The Hotel Business
41