Guest Service Manager

A Day in YOUR Life as a Guest Service Manager

Every person that enters a hotel should be greeted and feel like a guest This is YOU on your first day of work and every work day after that. You walk in, professionally dressed and wearing a bright smile, say hello to passing guests and acknowledge your colleagues perhaps with a smile, nod or salutation. You already have a feel for how your day is going to unfold based on the reports you received from the previous evening’s team members and the events occurring in your city and within the hotel. You are excited to see what affect your rate strategies have had on the hotel’s occupancy and ADR You check in with your Guest Service team members to ensure they are looking equally impressive, there is nothing incredibly urgent that needs your attention and then make your way to the office.

Each day can be a little different and often full of surprises, but the fast paced and ever-changing environment is something you embrace. In the mornings you like to focus immediately on your rates for the day and week at hand, you will look further into the future later on in the day. You quickly look to ensure your rates are strategically set - They are competitive in your market, are representative of the demand you expect to see and any opportunities for promotions that might give you a slight advantage over your competition, are in place. You enjoy this aspect of the job and like to “win”

Next, you want to ensure your Guest Service team is focused on the guest experience while finding all opportunities to increase our revenues. This means checking in with your leaders - that might be a manager, supervisor or the lone Guest Service Agent working at the desk. You overhear a guest request a copy of their bill and to ensure their Brand Loyalty number is on file. Your team member informs them that, since they booked via a third party site, they cannot collect points and they will need to obtain their bill directly from the site. This is a perfect opportunity for us to convert this guest’s future stays to direct bookings and you make a mental note to follow up with this team member on the best way to address these requests, as soon as there is a quiet moment on the desk.

With everything running smoothly on the Front Desk, you decide to tackle some administrative work. These things take focus and attention to detail. You log into our HR Portal and look to approve your teams hours for the previous day, input their schedules, approve vacation requests and ensure everyone is up to date on their required training. You log into the Brand Portal and respond to recent reviews, being sure to thank those who have taken the time to review our property and apologize to those who may have had an issue with their stay. In the midst of this, one of your team members informs you that a guest would like to speak with you about a concern. You ensure your office is tidy and welcome the guest, provide empathy and ensure that they are leaving your office satisfied with the outcome of your conversation. As you say to all of your team members - we want every guest to walk out our door, happy

The day is flying by, but you know you want to take one last look at our rates and strategies before leaving. Perhaps there was a new event announced for 6 months from now. You jump forward to that date, increase your rate and close out any highly discounted promotions, knowing there will be a great deal of demand for this event and you don’t want to leave any money on the table Confident that your rates and promotions are in a good place for the future, you take one last look at the current day/week and make small adjustments if needed. You feel good and can’t wait to see the month end stats and how you ranked in the city
By the time you leave you are more than satisfied that your guests are all taken care of, ready to have the best stay possible and that you have done everything within your control to ensure the best financial outcome for the hotel.

Who you are and why is this important
- Enthusiastic, Attentive and Approachable

o. You lead by example and your enthusiasm for the business is contagious.
- Organized & Communicative

p. Clear, concise communication between team members and guests alike creates a smooth operation.
- Effective Multi-Tasker

What happens behind the scenes of all those interactions
- You follow company policies and meet any requested deadlines;
- Stay one step ahead of guest’s needs including and not limited to ensuring your team members are abiding to their training, engaging with our guests and effectively addressing concerns;
- Constant focus on revenue management, being competitive and knowing your market;
- Communicating with all your fellow department heads;
- Maintain a calm and welcoming demeanor while multitasking to juggle many tasks at once;
- Listen respectfully when guests have complaints. Empathize and work with the guest in an efficient manner