Employability Skills in Housekeeping: A Travelodge Case Study Report

Desklib provides past papers and solved assignments. This report analyzes employability skills in Travelodge's housekeeping department.

Employability Skills
Written Assessment
DELL
Date Of Submission

Contents
Introduction....................................................................................................................................................2
TASK 1..........................................................................................................................................................3
Develop a set of own responsibilities and performance objectives...........................................................3
Evaluate own effectiveness against defined objectives.............................................................................4
Make recommendations for improvement.................................................................................................5
Review how motivational techniques can be used to improve quality of performance............................5
Task 2.............................................................................................................................................................6
2.1 Develop solutions to work-based problems.........................................................................................6
2.2 Communicate in a variety of styles and appropriate manner at various levels....................................7
2.3 Identify effective time-management strategies in relation to the work-based experience or in your
role as a manager at Travelodge................................................................................................................7
Task 3.............................................................................................................................................................8
3.1 Explain the roles people play in a team and how they can work together to achieve shared goals.
8
3.2 Analyse team dynamics.......................................................................................................................9
3.3 Suggest alternative ways to complete tasks and achieve team goals...................................................9
Task 4.............................................................................................................................................................9
4.1 Evaluate tools and methods for developing solutions to problems with reference to your chosen
organisation or Travelodge Hotel..............................................................................................................9

4.2 Develop an appropriate strategy for resolving a particular problem of labour turnover with
reference to your chosen organisation or Travelodge Hotel......................................................................9
4.3 Evaluate the potential impact on the business of implementing the strategy. You should consider
both financial and non-financial impacts on the business.........................................................................9
Reference.......................................................................................................................................................9
Introduction
The travel and Tourism sector demands employees that have skills and potentials that can help
the organization grow and develop to the fullest. Every job that is undertaken in the sector has its
own requirements. The roles determine the level of skills and also the responsibilities that a
person might need in order to be perfectly suitable for the job. (Armstrong M. 2012) The
employability skills are the skills that make a person worth being employed for a paid job at any
organization. In this report, we will discuss the employability skills that are needed for a person
who holds the position as the manager of housekeeping department in the Travelodge hotel. The
role of the manager depending on different situations will be discussed in the tasks given below.
Selected Organization- Travelodge
Travelodge is the second largest hotel brands and the third biggest hotel chains in United
Kingdom. It is one of the biggest hotel brands currently working in the travel and tourism sector.
Travelodge has numerous budget hotels around the country. They are famous for providing

superior services for smaller prices. The brand of hotel is especially famous amongst the
business professionals who usually travel for work.
TASK 1
The role of Manager of the housekeeping department has been selected. Housekeeping is one of
the most important parts of any hotel and providing a clean space for the clients is one of the top
priorities of Travelodge.
Develop a set of own responsibilities and performance objectives
Housekeeping department is one of the most important departments in any hotel. The department
is not just responsible for the maintenance of the rooms but it is also responsible for the overall
look and design of the hotel and for providing brilliant services to the customers. (Cottrell, S.
2015) As the Housekeeping Manager of the housekeeping department, the responsibilities and
performance objectives are as follows:
Own Responsibilities
1 Ensuring That The Team Meets The Cleanliness Standards
One of the biggest responsibilities of the manager is to make sure that all the members of the
team are following and meeting all the cleanliness standards of the hotel. These standards can be
for the hotel rooms as well as the other parts of the hotel. (Armstrong M. 2007)
2 Fulfilling Customer Requirements
Taking care of any customer complaint is another responsibility that the manager holds. If the
team is not able to solve the problem of the customer, manager needs to spring into action.

3 Keeping A Check On The Maintenance
Keeping a check on the things that might need maintenance and also informing the related
department regarding the repair is the responsibility of the manager.
4 Take Care Of The Safety and Security Regulations
Making sure that the safety and security regulations are followed in the rooms as well in other
parts of the hotel is also the duty of the housekeeping manager along with the security team.
5 Keeping The HR Informed About All The Matters Requiring Special Attention
It is the duty of the manager to report any matters that need special attention to the human
resource department and seek immediate action.
Performance Objectives
The performance objectives help the team as well as the organization reach their goals. As the
housekeeping manager these are some performance objectives that need to be kept in mind.
1 Create A Welcoming Environment
The objective is to make sure that the team makes a welcoming environment for the customers.
This includes taking care of the cleanliness and comfort and also being polite when the
customers are in need or have some problems. (Armstrong M. 2012)
2 Ensuring Positive Customer Experience
Positive customer experience is another objective that needs to be reached. Housekeeping plays a
big role in the kind of image the customer has of the hotel after they leave.

3 Ensuring the Attendance of Team
Another objective is to make sure that the team is always on call. Even if all the employees are
not available at the moment, it is the duty of the team manager to have enough members that can
handle any situation. So, having attendance is another objective to achieve.
Evaluate own effectiveness against defined objectives
In order to make sure that all the objectives are fulfilled, planning and training are two strategies
that have been applied. Training has been provided to each member of the team in regards to
treating the customer and keeping the standard of the tasks that are expected from them. During
the training session, the skills of completing the tasks have been developed. This has increased
the effectiveness against defined objectives. (Armstrong M. 2012)
As the manager, one of the major skills that one needs to have is communication. Treating the
customers in a proper manner and solving their queries and questions is one of the strengths that
I have. Over the course of my job, I have also spent some time learning different languages so
that I can communicate effectively with the foreign customers.
Another requirement as a housekeeping manager is to be able to take smart decisions at a fast
pace. I have always made sure to keep a checklist of all the information that I can gather from the
employees so that if any urgent situation arises, required steps can be taken to cope with it.
Discipline and good management are two other roles that each housekeeping manager needs to
understand. With the discipline that I have in my life, I make sure to keep my team also under
discipline. (Hunsanker P.L., 2011)

Considering all the effective qualities, I am efficient enough to be able to take the position of the
Housekeeping Manager and fulfill all my responsibilities and take care of the performance
objectives.
Make recommendations for improvement
No person is perfect in their job and learning is a continuous process. There are a few things that
can be changed or improved in me so that I can be much better for the job that I currently have.
The number one improvement that is required is to learn more languages and to be fluent enough
in them so that I can serve our guests in a much better way.
Training my skills and learning new skills that are just being introduced is another improvement
recommendation that can be really helpful in reaching the performance objectives much faster.
A consultation with the line managers can give me a true evaluation of my skills and hence help
me in addressing the major as well as minor issues.
Learning the skills to keep the team motivated and to help them reach their goals is another
scope for improvement.
If these recommendations are taken into account, there is a definite scope for improvement.
Review how motivational techniques can be used to improve quality of performance
It has been found through many researches that the role of incentives and a good salary can act as
one of the biggest motivator for any employee. If the employee is paid well for the services they

provide, it can help with enhancement of the quality work of the employees and finally increase
the level of performance.
According to the Maslow’s Need Hierarchy Theory, fulfilling the basic needs of the staff acts as
a motivator for them to perform well. The motivational theory of Heisenberg shows that if the
quality of supervision is improved, the performance of an employee is also improved. A healthy
relation between the employee and the employer can also help in motivation. (Behera, M. 2016)
Appraisal of the team through various tactics such as verbal compliments or monitory gains can
act as a good motivational technique.
As a team manager for the housekeeping department, it is important that the employees are
praised for their work and more opportunities are provided them to grow and achieve their full
potential. Same thing goes for the people who are working above the team manager. His work
needs to be acknowledged and praised so that it acts as a motivator to do well for the sake of the
company and the other employees. (Behera, M. 2016)

Task 2
2.1 Develop solutions to work-based problems.
As the housekeeping manager at the Travelodge Hotel there were certain problems that came
across that can cause an issue at the workplace. The two major issues that were recognized were:
 Security

Security is one of the major factors that are being considered in the entire travel and tourism
sector with the increase in terrorism all around the world. Even though there are security
measures that have been created to keep the guests safe and secure, there is still need to train the
staff into identifying anything that is suspicious about the guest staying at one of the rooms or
the activities of the guests that are visiting the hotel. This training is what is lacking in the staff at
the Travelodge hotel. There is a perfect security system and a separate security team, but
considering the increase in terrorism and hotels being one of the major targets of these terrorist
organizations, security training is necessary for all the employees of the hotel.
The solution for this security problem is to hire a professional team to teach the entire
housekeeping department to take actions in the case of any threatening situation. Training of self
defense and client safety is also important and should be clubbed along with the basic training of
the employee.
 Communication
Another problem that was seen in the housekeeping department was communication with foreign
clients. Most of the staff in the housekeeping department is only fluent in English and there are
often times that people from other countries who cannot speak English well stay at the hotel.
This creates a communication gap amongst the employees and the clients and ultimately delays
the services to the client.
The solution to this is to provide the hotel staff with training in other languages. Even if the staff
is not fluent in the language, they should be able to communicate with simple sentences. Also
this language training will help the staff in at least understanding the demands of the clients so
that they can provide the services even if they are not able to communicate with them. The

training can be a part of the induction process or can be done separately as the part of company
policy. It will also be effective to hire housekeeping staff from different ethnicities and
backgrounds so that the clients will be able to relate to them the most and they can effectively
communicate with each other.
2.2 Communicate in a variety of styles and appropriate manner at various levels.
The communication process differs from person to person at different level in the organization.
Different communication techniques need to be adapted at different levels in order to send across
the message successfully. The authorities that are at a higher position can communicate with the
board of members through meetings. The managers can communicate with the higher authorities
through written letters. The letters have to be in a formal tone. Writing a mail can also be an
alternative to a letter when a senior is involved. Verbal communication can also be one of the
best techniques for the middle level manager such as housekeeping managers. When
communicating with the seniors, a formal letter with all the information has to be sent. In order
to arrange a meeting, permission has to be taken and the meeting has to be organized.
For dealing with the lover level staff such as the employees, a memo can be sent along in case
there is just a short message that needs to be delivered. In the case the information is common for
all the employees; setting up a notice board is another way. Direct communication is also a way
to communicate with the employee.
In this case, the communication style can be through written means such as letters or mails for
the seniors and mails and memos for the juniors. Verbal communication is also an option when
you have sufficient time in your hand.

2.3 Identify effective time-management strategies in relation to the work-based
experience or in your role as a manager at Travelodge.
As the manager at Travelodge, the experience that I have garnered has taught me that time
management is the key to successfully completing all the jobs that are necessary for the day.
Effective time management strategies can be of different types.
The first technique that is helpful in effective time management is diary keeping or management.
In these techniques, all the urgent and important tasks are noted down in the diary. Since these
tasks have been written in the diary on the basis of priority, it is impossible to forget the. In cases
when employees have busy schedules, effective diary management can be really helpful in
completing all the tasks on time.
One of the major factors that lead to delay in the tasks is procrastination. Procrastination should
be avoided at all costs so that no task is kept pending and the work is finished on time. This can
be done by teaching the employees to break their tasks into small parts and then complete one
part at a time.
Another way to make sure that all the tasks are done on time is managing the time table of every
employee. Employees that are overburdened with many tasks, often tend to forget some part of
their work. Hence this is the job of the manager to only assign the employee with tasks that they
can complete and give them enough time for each task.
These are some effective time management techniques that can lead to efficient work and no
delays from the manager as well as the employees.