Front Office Operation A Practical Approach

The Front Office or the Reception is the show window of the hotel and is the department responsible for the sale of hotel rooms through systematic reservations of hotel rooms, followed by registration and assigning the rooms to the guest. The front office could be called the control centre of the rooms division, providing 24-hour attention towards the handling and service of all guest requirements and needs.The Front Office employees play a vital role in the creation of a positive first and final impression, and the establishment of an on-going rapport with guests. In addition, the front office employees are influential in shaping the city's perception and judgement of the hotel through contact with restaurant patrons and visitors to the hotel. As the front office is the front of the organization, its personnel and staff is under constant observation by guests and visitors. It ensures that the guest arriving at the hotel are received, luggage handled and the formalities of check-in completed.A warm welcome, a smile, courtesy and genuine politeness contributes to a guest's satisfaction. As the front office is the first department that meets the guest, the first impression it creates is a lasting one and is the most crucial.All services and facilities available in the rooms as well as in the hotel are explained to the guests by the front office. The front office is also responsible for communication and for maintaining records of the guests who have stayed in the hotel and also develop a strong and positive working relationship with all other departments to develop an empathy with the problems that they may be encountering. The department is headed by a Front Office Manager/Room Division Manager.

"A practical guide to front office skills and services in the hospitality industry. Complies with the Hospitality, Tourism and Events Industry Competency Standards"--Provided by publisher.

• Importance of the Front Office in Hospitality and Tourism Industry, Roles, Responsibilities and Key Skills Required for Front Office Staff • Reservation Procedures and Policies, Check-In and Check-Out Procedures and Handling Guest Complaints and Feedback • Verbal and Nonverbal Communication Skills, Effective Listening and Questioning Techniques and Interpersonal Skills and Conflict Resolution • Types of Front Office Technology and Their Uses, Benefits and Challenges of Using Technology and Data Security and Privacy Concerns in Front Office Technology • Roles and Responsibilities of the Housekeeping Staff, Cleaning Procedures and Schedules and Inventory Management and Control • Introduction to Revenue Management, Pricing Strategies for Hotel Rooms and Forecasting Demand and Managing Inventory • Introduction to Sales And Marketing in Hospitality and Tourism Industry, Promoting Hotel Services and Amenities and Managing Online Reputation and Guest Reviews • Career Opportunities in Front Office Operations and Hospitality Industry, Continuing Education and Professional Certification Programs and Importance of Teamwork and Collaboration in Front Office Operations

Hotel Front Office Management uses a human resources approach to cover the unique management and operational challenges in the front offices of today's hotels and lodging facilities. This Fifth Edition continues its emphasis on applying theory and management strategies, as well as providing updated material on select-service hotel front office operation. It addresses the impact of the recession on the hotel business and discusses the impact of social media and guestroom technology on the hotel business and how the Internet is the single most important travel planning and distribution channel in hospitality. There is also new and updated information on environmental and sustainability issues, particularly as it relates to housekeeping topics.

Managing Front Office Operations provides an in-depth look at management of the front office and how this department interacts with other hotel departments to create a memorable guest experience. This 14-chapter book presents a systematic approach to front office procedures by detailing the flow of business through a hotel, from the reservations process to check-out and account settlement. It also examines the various elements of effective front office management, paying particular attention to the planning and evaluation of front office operations and to human resources management. Hospitality management students and new front office employees who aspire to a management position will benefit from this practical textbook that explores every facet of hotel front office operations.

The 2008 financial crisis shook the financial derivatives market to its core, revealing a failure to fully price the cost of doing business then. As a response to this, and to cope with regulatory demands for massively increased capital and other measures with funding cost, the pre-2008 concept of Credit Valuation Adjustment (CVA) has evolved into the far more complex hybrid Cross Valuation Adjustment (XVA).This book presents a clear and concise framework and provides key considerations for the computation of myriad adjustments to the price of financial derivatives, to fully reflect costs. XVA has been of great interest recently due to heavy funding costs (FVA), initial margin (MVA) and capital requirements (KVA) required to sustain a derivatives business since 2008, in addition to the traditional concepts of cost from counterparty default or credit deterioration (CVA), and its mirror image — the cost of one own's default (DVA).The book takes a practitioner's perspective on the above concepts, and then provides a framework to implement such adjustments in practice. Models are presented too, taking note of what is computationally feasible in light of portfolios typical of investment banks, and the different instruments associated with these portfolios.

Guest houses attract both local and international tourists and aim at providing them with a taste of local food and hospitality. This creates job opportunities and revenue for local regions. As the successful managing and running of a guest house has its own set of challenges, the intention of this book is to provide a practical guide to assist both guest house owners and managers in managing their establishments effectively. The book is divided into seven themes: the law, management principles, financial management, marketing, accommodation and front office management, planning the breakfast menu, and intercultural differences.