Managing Accommodation Services: Case Study of the Tower Hotel, UK

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the accommodation services offered by the Tower Hotel in London. It begins with an overview of the industry's scale and size, followed by an examination of different ownership models relevant to the hotel, emphasizing its independent ownership. The report then explores the roles of grading, classification systems, and online review sites in shaping guest perceptions and booking decisions. It delves into the front office functions, detailing key roles such as reception, guest services, and concierge, and their significance in guest interactions. The report further investigates the housekeeping department, reviewing key roles and the importance of forecasting linen stock and guest supplies. It highlights the inter-relationships between housekeeping and other departments, and the importance of scheduling maintenance to minimize guest disruption, as well as the significance of security within the hotel. The report concludes with a summary of the key findings and insights into the effective management of accommodation services at the Tower Hotel.

Managing Accomodation
Services

Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
P1. Scale and size of the accommodation services......................................................................1
P2. Different forms of ownership available to accommodation services in context to the Tower
Hotel are explained below...........................................................................................................2
P3. Role that grading, classifications systems and online review sites plays in accomodation
services in context to the Tower Hotel and the people looking for the hotels.............................3
TASK 2 ...........................................................................................................................................4
P4. Front office functions of an organisation within a variety of accommodation service in
context to the Tower Hotel is explained below...........................................................................4
P5. Key roles and functions within the front office department for the Tower Hotel is given
below............................................................................................................................................4
TASK 3............................................................................................................................................5
P6. Reviewing the key roles found within the housekeeping department in context to the
Tower Hotel.................................................................................................................................5
P7. Importance of forecasting linen stock and other guest supplies to ensure sufficient supply
to meet demand have been assisted below...................................................................................6
P8. Importance of inter-relationships between housekeeping and other.....................................7
TASK4.............................................................................................................................................7
P9. Importance of scheduling maintenance or repair work to minimise.....................................7
disruption to guests......................................................................................................................7
P10. Importance of security within the Tower Hotel .................................................................8
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................8
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................9

INTRODUCTION
Accomodation services refers to the services that provides people with short term
services for lodging or shelter or hospitality services. This includes hotels, campuses,
guesthouse, villas,resorts, apartments, buildings , hostels, PGs or shelter homes, etc. for rent as
well as other private accomodation facilities (Wang and Et. Al., 2021). The accomodation sector
provides more and more tangible products, such as clean rooms, beds and meals, etc. to make
the stay comfortable and happening for the guests. In hospitality business, this is essential to take
care of the needs, expectations and preferences of each guest staying in the particular shelter.
This assignment contains the information regarding the Tower Hotel in London, which is the
best in the accomodation service industry. It is the leading brand in UK and was established in
September 19,1973, consisting with best hospitality services to their customers providing them
with a wonderful and delightful experience.
TASK 1
P1. Scale and size of the accommodation services
Accommodation service industry seems to be one of the largest growing sector in todays'
market which tends to offer number of effective services in a wide scale or range at one
destination (Harkison, Hemmington and Hyde, 2018). There are in total 45 800 hotels in UK that
includes, 64.07% budget hotels, 62.93% mid-market hotels and 94.96% luxury hotels.The UK
offers its visitors with cleanliness, number of rooms, in-room facilities, great ambience with a
good location. Size and scale of any accomodation business can be determined by the overall
experience of their customers on their stay. There are certain levels through which the range of
the hospitable business services can be determined:
 Luxury hotel services: These belongs to the setor of services that offers luxury services
which involve special treatments provided to the customers. Giving them the magical
experience of their life, the Tower Hotel have acknowledge the taste or preferences of
their customers. They have incorporated several changes according to the latest trends in
their hotels in terms of ambience and graphics to attract the higher sections of the
customers, most probably celebs in this regard.
 Mid-range services : Mid-range services are the category that falls under 3-4 rated hotels
which are most convenient one for travel buddies (Zhang and Pitts, 2018). This sector
1

involves sufficient amount of services considering the value for money. Mid- range
services are neither cheapest nor expensive ones. For example, mid range services offered
by Tower Hotels are uniformed service, food and beverages, room service, in-room
entertainment and Wi-Fi services, etc.
 Low budgeted services: These includes accommodation services that falls under 2-3 star
rated hotels which only provides hygiene, comfort, safety with inexpensive rooms. Here,
only the basic needs of the guests related to shelter are satisfied, food, conveyance and
other related items are not included or chargable.
P2. Different forms of ownership available to accommodation services in context to the Tower
Hotel are explained below
Ownership can be understood as the legal possession and a certain control over a
property, this may involve multiple assets or rights (Randle, Kemperman and Dolnicar, 2019). It
provides the owner with the legal capacity to dictate the business operations and dealings. The
ownership in hospitality business depends on the complexities of its structure in the
accomodation industry. Ownership may prevail in different forms in an organization related to
accomodation services are given below:
 Independently owned and operated hotels: This type of ownership exists providing its
owner with the utmost freedom with the involvement of higher risks. Here, the hotel
owner has a full rights to take decisions regarding the premises, staff, operational
structure and growth. The owner here does not allow any other competitor to use their
brand name. The Tower Hotel belongs to this category of ownership, this is fully
independent hotel which is owned and operated in the guidance of its owner.
 Chain hotels: They can be understood as all sorts of hotels that undersign as a hotel
group, without considering their legal status (Ye, Xiao and Zhou, 2019). These are
formed at different locations with a same brand name, that can be in the form of number
of outlets of a same brand. It incorporates several coommon operations for all its chains
along with some indifferent ones according to the diverse locality the firm chooses.
 Management contracted hotels: Management contracted hotels is an agreement based
concept hotels,that may take place between a management company and property owner
(Xie and Chen, 2019). Here the responsibility for managing the property by providing
2

direction, supervision, and expertise lies with the management company through the
means of established methods and procedures.
In the Tower Hotel there is no role for chain hotels or contracted management for hotels,
it works on the principle of independently owned and operated hotels. This hotel itself is a most
popular luxury brand in itself, it does not require any further processing strategy for its operation.
P3. Role that grading, classifications systems and online review sites plays in accomodation
services in context to the Tower Hotel and the people looking for the hotels
Guests consider several factors such as, hotel location, hotel amenities, testimonials,
reviews, accessibility, its value for money,etc. Most considerate and convenient point for the
customers while checking up for the hotel is its rating, online reviews, grading among other
competitors and its classification accordingly (Kim and Et. Al., 2021). Here, role of these factors
are presented below:
Role of Grading systems: Grading can be done on the basis of quality of experience that a hotel
offers to its customers through its accomodation services. The focus of grading system stresses
upon informing its customers with the details on how to check for the quality and differentiate
them from the facilities and services offered by compettitors. This proves to be really beneficial
and convenient for both, the tourists and the accomodation industry. For the organisations such
as the Tower Hotel, to improve their performances and bring more public at their doorstep.
Role of Classification systems: The classification of hotels can be easily done by using ranking
methods in context to several hotels with help of a particular nomenclature such as, ranking stars.
1 star usually describes the basic accomodation facilities with low budget and restricted quality
of its services. 3 star hotels usually offer its customers accomodation facilities with average
quality services, for some various services like meals may or may not be included. Finally, the 5
star one in which the Tower Hotel belongs, includes several extra facilities along with the basic
ones. They have spa zone, lounge area, club zone, gamezone, cafeteria, etc. within their
premises, offering their customers a heavenly and delightful experience.
Role of Online review sites: Online reviews helps the customers to make buying decisions while
looking for the hotels. Reviews play an important role in driving customer's interest towards their
hospitality business or scare them away. Some of the online review sites that can be considered
while booking a hotel could be TripAdvisor., Expedia., Booking.com., etc. The Tower Hotel
3

checks for its online reviews on the mentioned sites to get a glimpse of its brand image in the
eyes of its customers.
TASK 2
P4. Front office functions of an organisation within a variety of accommodation service in
context to the Tower Hotel is explained below
In any accomodation business, the Front Office Department represents the the interaction
with its customers, when they first arrive at the hotel. The front office staff takes care of the
transactions between the hotel and its guests (Séraphin, 2022). There are diverse form of front
office functions that are described as below:
 Reception: The staff at the reception checks for the visitors at the front desk by greeting,
welcoming, directing, answering screening and forwarding incoming phone calls of the
customers appropriately. They also check for the daily mails, receiving and sorting them
for the sake of company's records. The front office department at the Tower Hotel consist
of a reception desk for resolving queries of the customers.
 Guest Services: Guest services at a hotel clicks for the services, amenities or help that
the hotel provides to its guests (Balli, Shahzad and Uddin, 2018). These may include free
morning and evening beverages or snacks, free tickets for the local show, etc. The
services that are mentioned here are incorporated among certain packages of the Tower
Hotel at the guest service desk in their lobby. This allow the visitors with the information
or overview of the most happening places or the events prevailing in the city, inside or
outside the hotel.
 Concierge: Concierge refers to a hotel staff whose job is assisting guests by booking
tours for them, making theatre or restaurant rservations for them, etc (Page, 2019). The
Concierge at The Tower Hotel assists guests, patrons, tenants or employees with personal
services, such as making dinner as well as tour resevations along with offering
suggestions to events and arranging conveyance.
P5. Key roles and functions within the front office department for the Tower Hotel is given
below
Front office department is essential for each hospitality business, as it calls for the first
interaction of guests with the hotel premises. So, this becomes a necessity for the hotel to have
4

skilled and qualified workforce in front office division. All these job roles are interconnected and
falls under front office department duties, they together helps the Tower Hotel in achieving its
mission and objectives (Airey, 2021). Several job roles that perform different functions, ther
have been discussed below:
 Receptionist: Receptionist plays an important role in greeting the guests at a front desk
on their arrival (Sotiriadis, 2018). After this, they assist them with the check-in and
check-out procedures along with managing their reservations and bookings. A
receptionist at the Tower Hotel have a friendly demeanor who keeps the workplace in
order and maintains a positive enivironment for the guests and the staff.
 Guest Service Manager: The role of a guest service manager will involve skills to
oversee the daily operations prevailing in the hotel. The guest service manager at the
Tower Hotel checks for the smooth welcome and departure of the guests and all the
payments made by them. They are responsible for managing all the lobby activities and
keep a check on the functionality of hotel amenities, such as the pool, spa, and valet
services that prevail in hotel premises.
 Concierge Manager: Concierge manager provides detailed information and assisting
customers and supervise all the staff in an organization (Jiao and Chen, 2019). They
provides, maintains and promotes the hospitality services at the highest level of all times.
The cncierge manager at the Tower Hotel confirms the reservation of guests and
maintains a positive relations with them by providing excellent services to the customers
according to their needs.
TASK 3
P6. Reviewing the key roles found within the housekeeping department in context to the
Tower Hotel
Housekeeping department in hospitality business takes care of the cleanliness,
maintenance and aesthetic appeal of all the rooms and public areas. In the Tower Hotel, this
deparment is responsible for maintaining overall hygiene checks in the hotel. Various key roles
and responsibilities of the housekeeping department are given below:
 Housekeeping Personnel Management: Housekeeping department requires several
personnel for different job roles to check for hygiene services and report for any safety
5

hazards prevailing in a hotel. The housekeeping department in the Tower Hotel, look
over facilities and common area to be clean, safe and hygienic. Their responsibility lies
with notifying managers for necessary repairs and collecting and disposing of trash.
 Guest Room Cleaning: Guest Room Attendents takes care of cleaning and servicing
guest rooms in order to provide a pleasant and comfortable experience for guests. The
staff in guest room services at the Tower Hotel are friendly and responsible for
maintaining an aesthetic upkeep of rooms, public areas, back areas and surroundings.
 Environmentally-friendly procedures for sustainable housekeeping: There should be
a usage of environmentally friendly products and procedures for making housekeeping
duties more sustainable. The housekeeping staff at the Tower Hotel uses eco-friendly
products such as born good, anti- microbial detergents and other such products which
either reusable or recyclable. This reduces pollution and protects the envirnment, therby
sustainable planning for surroundings as well as business.
P7. Importance of forecasting linen stock and other guest supplies to ensure sufficient
supply to meet demand have been assisted below
Forecasting in hospitality business refers to predicting for the necessary supplies
related to bedding essentials, bathroom essentials, pillows , blankets, robes, helpline, etc.
This is done in the Tower Hotel to check for the availability of the mentioned items at the
time of guests' check-in. This is really important to forecast lein stock to make the
availability of necessary items for the customers top make their stay more comfortable and
pleasant. Several other most important factors are given below:
 Managing and forecasting inventories: Forecasting linen stock would help the
managers in managing linens, uniforms, equipment, cleaning supplies and guest
supplies in advance. The helpdesk staff at the Tower Hotel checks the availability of
consumable and non-consumable items and forecasts stock levels at par.
 Budget and control of expenses:These forecasts help the managers to check for
the budget regarding the regular supply of necessaries. This also helps in reducing
its cost and maintain the supply of only those goods which are for regular
consumption. The Tower Hotel uses this forecast to remove or reduce a particular
kind of stock.
6

 Providing pleasant environment: Management of proper linen stock ensures
gratifying experience of the customers during their stay. This is required to
maintain a delightful and comfortable environment to the guests. Correct usage and
availability of particular lein stock in the Tower Hotel helps the managers to avail
good vibes and pleasant atmosphere around.
P8. Importance of inter-relationships between housekeeping and other
key departments within a selected organisation to provide quality provision and services
A proper communication is required among several departments in order to smooth
functioning of an organisation. Accuracy and efficacy in communication is a key within various
departments of the Tower Hotel builds trust in them for each other. This is really very important
for housekeeping department to maintain the good relations with other departments.
Interrelationships of houskeeping with various other departments are mentioned below:
 Housekeeping with Front office department: Housekeeping department coordinates
with the Front Office department to update each other regarding the room status for the
upcoming guests. Departments in The Tower Hotel check whether the room is occupied,
vacant, out of order, on change, etc.
 Housekeeping with Food and beverage department: Housekeeping coordinates with
F&B department for clearing up of trays from guest corridors. In the Tower Hotel this
interrelationship ensures cleanliness of the outlets and placement of specific amenities in
rooms of the guests such as compl,imentary snackes and beverages.
 Housekeeping with Conference and events departments: Housekeeping department
coordinates with the conference groups and event departments to fulfill the requirements
of a hospitality business to conduct an event successfully. In the Tower Hotel, these
departments together plays an important role in making proper arrangements for
conferences, events, meetings and workshops to be held in the premises.
TASK4
P9. Importance of scheduling maintenance or repair work to minimise
disruption to guests
Scheduling maintenance or repair work is necessary for the smooth functioning of
all the operations in hospitality business. A preventive maintenance plan increases overall
7

guest satisfaction and cuts down the large expenditures saving the staff time ultimately
(Hjalager and Madsen, 2018). It is one of the most important things for the hotel
maintenance function that could be utilised to optimise the facilities and maximise the
effectiveness of the hotel premises. Most of the day-to-day issues of hotel management are
electrical blackouts, computer crashes, Wi-Fi outrage and effective housekeeping services,
etc. These issues should be checked before the arrival of the guests or assisting them with
the particular room. The administrator of the Tower Hotel have the main responsibility to
check and respond timely to avoid discomfort to individual.
P10. Importance of security within the Tower Hotel
Security is an essential feature to take into consideration for the security of guests, staff,
physical assets and the hotel itself. Security in hospitality business can be ensured by installing
digitalized locks on the guest room doors. Informing guests to use the safe vault of the hotel and
not to keep the valuable personal items handy for any theft. The Tower Hotel uses world class
security systems to ensure the safety of their customers, employees and assets. They uses key
card access for the roomsto provide personalized security experience for the guests. An after-
hour detection system is used to ensure the in-land property to be safe and secure. Risk
assessment security plans, alarms, camera systems, Health and Safety and fire procedures have
been followed to opt for the healthy and safe environment.
CONCLUSION
From the above report, this might be concluded that accomodation services provides
more and more tangible products to make the stay comfortable and happening for the guests.
This industry seems to offering number of effective services in a wide scale at one destination.
The ownership in hospitality business depends on the complexities of its structure in the
accomodation industry. Most considerate and convenient point for the customers while checking
up for the hotel is its rating, online reviews, grading among other competitors and its
classification accordingly. In any accomodation business, the Front Office Department represents
the the interaction with the customers, when they first arrive at the hotel. All these job roles are
interconnected and falls under front office department duties, they together helps
anyorganization in achieving its mission and objectives. Housekeeping department is responsible
for maintaining overall hygiene checks in the hotel. This is really important to forecast lein stock
8

to make the availability of necessary items for the customers to make their stay more
comfortable and pleasant. Interrelationships of houskeeping with various other departments are
important to exercise several functions within the hospitality business.
REFERENCES
Books and Journals:
Airey, D., 2021. The past, present and future of tourism in the academy. In Tourism in
development: reflective essays (pp. 169-177). Wallingford UK: CABI.
Balli, F., Shahzad, S. J. H. and Uddin, G. S., 2018. A tale of two shocks: What do we learn from
the impacts of economic policy uncertainties on tourism? Tourism management. 68.
pp.470-475.
Harkison, T., Hemmington, N. and Hyde, K. F., 2018. Luxury accommodation–significantly
different or just more expensive?. Journal of Revenue and Pricing Management. 17(4).
pp.231-243.
Hjalager, A. M. and Madsen, E. L., 2018. Business model innovation in tourism: Opportunities
and challenges. The sage handbook of tourism management, pp.373-390.
Jiao, E. X. and Chen, J. L., 2019. Tourism forecasting: A review of methodological
developments over the last decade. Tourism Economics. 25(3). pp.469-492.
Kim, Y. R., and Et. Al., 2021. Spatial spillovers of agglomeration economies and productivity in
the tourism industry: The case of the UK. Tourism Management. 82. p.104201.
Page, S. J., 2019. The public sector and tourism. In Tourism Management (pp. 371-408).
Routledge.
Randle, M., Kemperman, A. and Dolnicar, S., 2019. Making cause-related corporate social
responsibility (CSR) count in holiday accommodation choice. Tourism
Management. 75. pp.66-77.
Séraphin, H., 2022. Mobility of tourism academics in the United Kingdom higher education
environment. Anatolia, pp.1-5.
Sotiriadis, M. A. R. I. O. S., 2018. Emerald Handbook of Entrepreneurship in Tourism, Travel
and Hospitality. Emerald.
Wang, P., and Et. Al., 2021, December. Improving the accommodation of renewable resources
by distributed energy management in a grid-connected system considering multiple
demand responses. In 2021 International Conference on Power System Technology
(POWERCON) (pp. 176-181). IEEE.
Xie, K. L. and Chen, Y., 2019. Effects of host incentives on multiple listings in accommodation
sharing. International journal of contemporary hospitality management.
Ye, S., Xiao, H. and Zhou, L., 2019. Small accommodation business growth in rural areas:
Effects on guest experience and financial performance. International Journal of
Hospitality Management. 76. pp.29-38.
Zhang, Y. B. and Pitts, M. J., 2018. Interpersonal accommodation. In Language,
Communication, and Intergroup Relations (pp. 192-216). Routledge.
9