Accommodation Services: Roles and Responsibilities

This presentation provides a comprehensive overview of accommodation services within the hospitality industry, with a specific focus on the role of the front office department. It begins with an introduction to the industry, defining accommodation services and their significance, including an overview of The Connaught Hotel as a case study. The presentation then explores different types of accommodation, classification systems (star ratings), and ownership models. A significant portion is dedicated to the front office functions, such as reservations, reception, guest services, and night audit, and the key roles within the department, including front office manager, reservation manager, and guest services manager. The presentation concludes by emphasizing the importance of front office services in relation to the overall mission and objectives of a hotel business, highlighting the need for efficient operations and coordination. References to relevant academic literature are also provided.

Managing accommodation
services

Table of Content
• Introduction
• Overview of the organization
• Scale and size of accommodation services
• Different forms of ownership
• Role played by grading and classification systems
• Front office functions
• Key roles in front office department
• Conclusion
• References

Accommodation services are provided to guests in
lieu of a payment received from them. This
presentation will cover explanation of services of
accommodation in hospitality industry and will
discuss the role of front office department in a
hotel.
Introduction

Overview of the organisation
The Connaught Hotel is a luxury five star hotel which is owned by Maybourne Hotel Group.
It provides a wide range of services in accommodation ranging from executive rooms,
premium suites etc.

Introduction to the hospitality industry
It is a broad industry which provides different services ranging from lodging, food and drink
service, event planning etc.

Contribution of accommodation to the hospitality
industry
Accommodation services mean providing guests facilities for stay by charging a fee for it.
These services contribute around 19% to the national income of the country.

Different types of accommodation
services
• Hotels
• Resorts
• Motels
• Guest House
• B & B
• Airbnb
• Serviced and non-serviced accommodation

Classification of hotels on the basis of ownership

The accommodation services are available for guests in different scale and sizes and
according to their budget. The explanation of scale and size in the context of The
Connaught Hotel is as follows-
Types of hotels-
• Budget- Hotels in this category have the lowest room rates. They provide limited
facilities to their guests.
• Mid-range- They offer more facilities than budget hotel but keep their prices lower than
luxury hotels.
Scale and size of accommodation services

• Luxury- They have higher price tag and offer excellent services and facilities to their
guests. Their target market is premium customers.
Facilities provided by hotels-
• Restaurants- This is one of the most common facility provided by hotels. The
Connaught Hotel has an in-house restaurant.
• Valet- Most big hotels provide valet parking services to their guests. The Connaught
Hotel also provides this facility.
Continue….

• Concierge- This facility facilitates guests to deposit their luggage with the hotel. The Connaught Hotel
provides this service.
• Private Dining- This is provided in luxury hotels. The Connaught Hotel has this facility for its guests.
• Bars- It is a facility offered in five star hotels. The Connaught Hotel provides it to its customers.
• Banqueting- In it, hotels offer space for hosting of functions. It is provided by The Connaught Hotel.
• Spas- Most of the luxury chain of hotels offer it. This is provided by The Connaught Hotel.
Continue….

The accommodation services like hotels, hostels and resorts can be owned in various
ownership forms explained as below-
• Independently owned property- These properties are owned independently by a single
owner and there is no franchising mode involved in them.
Chain hotel management-
• Management contracts- In it there is a written agreement between management
company and owner of the hotel.
Different forms of ownership

• Franchises- In this type of ownership, brand and goodwill of a parent hotel company is
provided to another company for a specific period of time.
• Referral groups- These type of hotel chains function independently however an
affiliation is maintained with a particular chain.
Continue….

The most common classification system used to classify hotels is star rating system. In it,
hotels are given stars according to facilities provided by them. One Star Hotel is the one
which meets basic needs of travellers. Two Star Hotel provides value facilities to guests.
Three Star Hotel has additional amenities and a comparatively higher price. Four Star Hotel
gives upscale services to guests. Five Star Hotel provides highest comfort standards to
customers and its prices are very high.
Role played by grading and classification systems

• The Connaught Hotel is an example of a Five Star
Hotel as it has various luxury services for its guests.
Impact of online review sites- The reviews given by
online sites like TripAdvisor create an impact on the
mind of guests while selecting a hotel or a resort.
Continue….

The front office department is extremely important in a hotel as it has a lot of roles to play.
The detailed explanation of functions of front office department in the context of The
Connaught Hotel is as follows-
• Reservations- It is the primary function of front office department. It has to handle
reservations of guests and allocate them rooms available.
• Reception- The front office department also hosts a reception which is the first area
noticed by guests entering the hotel.
Front office functions

• Guest services- The front office department also offers different types of guest services
to its guests.
• Concierge- This is a function of front office department which involves keeping luggage
of guests safely till the time they return to the hotel.
• Night audit- It is a safety function which front office department has to perform to
ensure that its guests are safe.
Continue….

There are many employees which work in the front office department of a hotel. The key
roles of front office department of The Connaught Hotel are-
• Front office manager- The duty of Front Office Manager is supervision, reservation and
concierge. Other duties include assisting in training, cross-training and preparation of
monthly reports. The Front Office Manager in The Connaught Hotel has to perform all
these tasks.
Key roles in front office department

• Reservation manager- The reservation manager needs to be well-informed and
courteous towards guests.
• Reception manager- The reception manager needs to handle the operations of reception
effectively.
• Guest services manager- The guest services manager needs to manage the services and
facilities being provided to guests.
Continue….

• Night audit manager- The night audit manager's duty is to ensure that regular night audits
are conducted in the hotel.
• Head concierge- The head concierge is tasked with the duty of ensuring safety of luggage of
guests till they arrive.
• Importance of front office services- The front office services are important as they affect the
functioning the whole hotel.
• Relation with mission and objectives of business- The front office department ensures that
efficiency, effectiveness and productivity of other departments of hotel is maintained.
Continue….

From the above presentation, it can be concluded that providing best accommodation
services should be the priority of hotels. For this, it is necessary that all the relevant
information related to functioning of hotel industry and cooperation and coordination
between front office department and other departments is analysed.
Conclusion

• Ho, V., 2017. Giving offense and making amends: How hotel management attempts to
manage rapport with dissatisfied customers. Journal of Pragmatics. 109. pp.1-11.
• Killaspy, H. and et.al., 2016. Quality of life, autonomy, satisfaction, and costs associated
with mental health supported accommodation services in England: a national survey. The
Lancet Psychiatry. 3(12). pp.1129-1137.
References

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