Balagbag, Milaor, Camarines Sur

S/Y 2020 - 2021

JOINT DELIVERY VOUCHER PROGRAM FOR SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL

TECHNICAL AND VOCATIONAL LIVELIHOOD SPECIALIZATIONS (JDVP TVL)
SY 2020 – 2021

Self – Learning Module

Name: _____________________________________ Rating: ____________

Grade & Year Level: ___________________________ Date:______________

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Prepared by: Mr. Calixto J. Trillanes, VII
LIFE PERFORMANCE OUTCOME:

I am a Trainee of Housekeeping NCII under Joint Delivery Voucher Program for Senior
High School Technical and Vocational Livelihood Specializations (JDVP TVL) SY 2020 – 2021, a
conscientious, adept performer, achievers, competently pursuing my mission in life.

PROGRAM OUTCOMES:

This module deals with the skills, knowledge and attitudes required to Housekeeping
NCII in Provide Housekeeping Services to Guests to know and perform the following Receive
housekeeping requests &Provide/Service housekeeping requests. This module focus only on the
Core Competency of the said program.

Explain and apply the fundamental elements of effective conflict resolution processes
and use to reduce group conflicts and divisions, foster agreement, and promote future
collaboration.

ESSENTIAL PERFORMANCE & INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES:

Describe and explain the new abilities they have developed as the result of self-initiated
learning experience and activities through analyzation and understanding every topic in the
chapter.

INSTRUCTION:

How to learn from this module:

1. Before working on this self-learning module, make sure you have a notebook, pen or
pencil and learning materials with you.
2. Read carefully the instructions given. Don’t hurry. Always review your answers.
3. If you are told to go and do something, do not hesitate to do so.
4. Accomplish tasks and complete worksheet seriously and correctly.
5. Submit outputs on or before the deadline at designated School.
6. Guidance, support & encouragement of the parent/guardian are highly encouraged.
7. Enjoy learning.

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 PROVIDE HOUSEKEEPING SERVICES TO GUESTS

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

After reading this unit, students will be able to:

 Introduction in Housekeeping
 Types of housekeeping
 Receive housekeeping requests
 Provide/Service housekeeping requests

Introduction

Housekeeping is an important area in any accommodation property. Most people see

housekeeping as simply „cleaning guest room but from an operational perspective there is a lot
more to housekeeping than just that. The role of housekeeping is to ensure the comfort and
safety of guests whilst they are staying at a hospitality organization. This is the guests 'home
away from home'. It is essential that that a guest is able to enjoy their room in the same manner
and with the same ease as they would enjoy in their own house. The aim of housekeeping is to
strive to enable guests to access items as easily as in their own home. It is therefore important
that housekeeping staff maintain a professional level of integrity, especially staff who clean
rooms. Housekeeping staff must have high levels of integrity, honesty and discretion as a guest
needs to feel that what takes place or what is left in their room must be safe and remain
confidential. Understandably an accommodation room is considerably smaller in size than the
customer's normal residence and therefore items that they may need might not be in immediate
access.

Types of housekeeping

1. Domestic Housekeeping- refers to housekeeping maintenance in a house. It covers

bedrooms, kitchen, dining, receiving area, grounds and the surroundings areas within
the house.

2. Institutional Housekeeping applies to housekeeping maintenance in commercial

lodging establishments like hotels, resorts, inns and apartels.
Institutional Housekeeping usually covers the following areas:

 Guest rooms
 Hallways and corridors
 Lobby
 Public Rooms and restaurants
 Offices
 Stairways
 Windows
 Stores, concessionaire shops
 Grounds
 Linen and Laundry area.

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 It does not include the kitchen and dining areas since these are handled by the Food and
Beverage Section.

Housekeeping job in commercial establishments is more complex to manage as

compared to domestic housekeeping. With a lot of guests to attend to, housekeeping
responsibilities have to be distributed to several sections of the housekeeping department. One
section attends to the maintenance of guestrooms; another to public areas while separate one
takes care of efforts have to be well coordinated among the various sections to ensure efficient
housekeeping maintenance.

RECEIVE HOUSEKEEPING REQUESTS

Accept housekeeping requests from guests

A hotel cannot provide all the necessary items a customer may need inside each and
every room for a number of reasons:

 The room size is too small.

 It would become cramped for space
 Not all customers need all items
 The capital outlay for a business would be
considerable
 It reduces the chance of damage and theft.

Therefore it is vital that housekeeping are able to get a

requested item to a room in the shortest possible time.

Types of accommodation properties

The items included in a room or upon request differ depending on the type of
accommodation provided.

Housekeeping requests by guests can be made across a range of accommodation

properties for a wide variety of reasons.

A housekeeping department exists in any property that offers in-house accommodation.

Housekeeping departments operate within:

 Hotels, motels and clubs

 Resorts, chalets and hostels
 Passenger ships and trains
 Serviced apartments.

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Types of guest requests

There may be many times during a shift when the room attendant will have to handle
guest requests and the reasons can vary.

Need for item sent to the room

A guest may request services or products such as:

 Additional equipment in their room – because they have

needs during their stay that are not accommodated by the
normal in-room items
 Valet or laundry service – common among long stay guests
 Additional bedding – where the existing bedding is
unsuitable, uncomfortable or insufficient
 Extra tea, coffee, sugar and milk sachets – a common
request where the guests spend a lot of time in their room
 Extra crockery or cutlery – where the room features a
kitchen or kitchenette this is also a common request especially where
guests want to entertain in their rooms
 Vases – for flowers that have been delivered to them
 Replacement items such as hair dryers, toasters, irons and electric
jugs to replace items that are not working
 Extra bathroom guest supplies – another common request for
longterm guests: guests with long hair often ask for extra shampoo
and conditioner
 Additional items in compendium – such as letterhead paper,
envelopes, postcards, pens, note paper
 Additional towels – to accommodate extra showers or
baths taken by the guests: where the property has a
swimming pool this is a common request
 Extra hangers for clothes, extra pillows, extra blankets
 A power conversion board – to adapt their electrical
equipment to the power supply of the venue: common
where the property caters to some international guests
 Ice and ice buckets

Servicing of room

 Rectification cleaning - guests may request an improvement in the servicing of room.

They require housekeeping staff to provide remedial service to the room when the
original room service is deemed by the guest to be sub-standard
 Clean-up after an in-room party or entertainment
 A special room service where they have spilled something on the floor.

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Repairs

 Repair or removal of broken equipment – such as controls for the TV, DVD player, air
conditioner, broken bedside lights, free-standing lamps
 Instructions to enable them to work equipment – such as the TV, in-room safe, lights
(especially where room cards are needed to activate the power to a room), heating and
cooling controls.

Lost & found

Guests may also contact housekeeping when making a Lost and Found enquiry. They
may have found an item in a room they have just been roomed in or they may contact
housekeeping after they have departed to enquire about something they have lost.

Housekeeping is often the department that operates the Lost and Found facility for a
venue because most Lost and Found items come from guest rooms.

Handling complaints

Ensuring guest comfort may relate not just to issues that can be handled quickly by
housekeeping (such as rectification cleaning, a replacement jug for one that’s not working or
extra tea and coffee supplies) but also handle or direct guest requests relating to:

 Noisy people in the room next doors

 Poor views from the balcony
 Noisy pigeons outside the room which stop guests getting
to sleep
 Noisy elevators near the room
 Lack of facilities in the room
 Quality of facilities that is below guest expectations
 Advertising that has created expectations that are not
being met.

In most cases housekeeping may not be able to rectify these complaints personally, but they
should ensure the appropriate person is contacted in a timely manner.

Handling guest requests promptly

Given that housekeeping staff are usually very busy trying to achieve the tasks set for
them by the Executive Housekeeper on a daily basis (which are essentially the servicing of
departing and staying guest rooms), they must still ensure they handle any requests from in-
room guests in addition to their allocated workload and do so in a polite and friendly manner, in
accordance with all relevant house policies and procedures.

If the room attendant cannot assist the guest immediately, they should at least
acknowledge the guest’s request and advise them when assistance will become available.

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 There may also be times when a guest makes a request
and the room attendant cannot provide an immediate answer as
to whether or not the request can be fulfilled.

In such instances, the room attendant should seek out

accurate information to satisfy the guest’s requests, or pass on
the request to the appropriate department (or the Floor
Housekeeper) for action and follow up.

The guest should always be told of how their request is to

be dealt with and kept informed about the progress of the
request.

The basis for providing excellent levels of customer service in housekeeping

In order to ensure the comfort and wellbeing of guests, housekeeping must develop a
good relationship with guests.

This can be achieved by:

 Good personal presentation – as determined by house

requirements that apply to uniforms and personal hygiene
 Greeting guests by name when known
 Providing excellent service at all times
 Not giving the guests the impression that serving their needs is a
chore/imposition
 Not rushing service delivery as and when it is required
 Enquiring “Is there anything else I can do for you?”
 Finishing service delivery with appositive statement: “It’s been a
pleasure”
 Providing information to guests (about the property, the local
area, tourist attractions, transport, local customs, currency etc) –
and not just providing service in terms of specific housekeeping
duties
 Assisting guests in public areas (such as the corridors of their
floors or in lifts) or inroom when they see them struggling with
their luggage. The assistance may simply involve offering to call a porter to assist
 Smiling
 Handling complaints in a professional manner
 Providing a safe and secure environment for the guests while they are staying in the
establishment
 Respecting the guest’s need for confidentiality and privacy
 Having excellent product knowledge about the appliances, items, features in guest
rooms.

For room attendant to provide excellent service, they must know the importance of making
guests feel safe, secure and welcome while they are away from home.

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Handling guest complaints

Unfortunately, even with the best of intentions, things can sometimes go wrong and
result in a guest complaint. As identified before, some requests are in fact complaints.

The following are guidelines to assist in dealing with a customer complaint:

 Remain pleasant at all times, but do not smile when

the guest is complaining
 Listen without interruption
 Know the correct procedure and the establishment
policy on dealing with customer complaints
 Ask the guest how they would like you to resolve the
problem
 Focus on the issue and don’t take the complaint
personal
 Apologize to the guest for any inconvenience
 Advise your supervisor and get their feedback as to
how they feel you handled the situation.

Use guest name where possible

When dealing with a guest’s request, the room attendant should acknowledge the guest
by addressing them by their name, if appropriate and possible.

It is said that a person likes nothing better than to hear the sound of their own name.
Using the guest’s name is an excellent way of personalizing the service and showing that the
individual guest is valued.

Make sure however that you follow any house policies that might apply to the use of
guest’s names.

These usually reflect generally applicable standards of courtesy, such as:

 Avoid using first names – only use last names

 Never use nicknames
 Get the pronunciation right – if you are not sure you can do this, use “Sir” or “Madam”
 If you don’t know the guest’s name or have forgotten it address the guest by “Sir” or
“Madam”

How will I know the guest’s name to begin with?

Most requests from guests for items for their room come about from:

 A phone call to housekeeping from the guest

 A face-to-face conversation with the guest as they are walking down the corridor and see
you cleaning rooms.

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 In either situation they usually begin the conversation by
identifying themselves and the room they are staying in – “Hi, I’m
Greg Jones from 377. I was wondering if you could …”

This provides the perfect opportunity to find out the guest’s

name but you have to be alert to the possibility it is going to happen
and be ready to listen for it and remember it.

If you forget the guest’s name it is easy enough to find out a

name from the internal rooming system using the room number as
the basis for the search: where there is more than one person in the
room (for example, a twin room may have 2 males or 2 females) and
you are not sure who is who, use “Sir” or “Madam”.

ACCEPT HOUSEKEEPING REQUESTS FROM STAFF

Housekeeping not only services the needs of the guest. As the department responsible for
the cleanliness of a property, it is often called upon to handle requests made by other
departments. Therefore all departments will have requests of housekeeping. Similar to dealing
with requests from guests, these requests must be handled in a professional and timely manner.

Types of staff requests

The types of requests may be varied depending on each specific situation, however there
are some common staff requests including:

Cleaning

 Cleaning duties - of items such as furniture, carpets,

equipment, windows, floors and bench surfaces
 Cleaning of in-house facilities – including public
areas, change rooms and offices
 Emergency cleaning – unexpected cleaning requests
 Cleaning and servicing of staff changing rooms.

Staff Uniforms

 Order and supply of staff uniforms

 Providing laundry service – many properties operate their own
on-premise laundry whilst other venues will use the services of
an outside commercial laundry. Most staff uniforms will be
cleaned through the housekeeping department.

Provision of Supplies

 Cleaning products, rags & equipment

 Chemicals
 Clean linen for F&B departments
 Towels for gymnasiums.
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Security

 Check rooms and floors for safety concerns

 Ensure guest room and emergency doors are shut
 Close storerooms
 Participate in emergency and evacuation procedures.

Other tasks

 Move room service trays from rooms or corridor to

appropriate store area
 Check mini bars for departing guests
 Check actual status of a room – whether a guest has
actually left the room or if it is occupied.

As mentioned, when handling requests made by staff, they must be handled in a timely
manner. These requests are made to help provide a better experience for guests and must be
treated seriously. All staff members are part of a team, each with a role to play. Housekeeping
has many requests for other departments and would also expect their requests to be handled in
an efficient manner.

RECORD HOUSEKEEPING REQUESTS ACCORDING TO

ENTERPRISE REQUIREMENTS

Any contact that housekeeping has with a guest has the potential for a request to be
made by the guest. The reality is that guests rarely speak with housekeeping staff unless they
have a need to do so, so be aware of this and be ready to respond appropriately.

Confirm and note details of the request

The key to this is repeating back to the guest what it is they have told
you they want, using your establishment knowledge to clarify any areas
that are not clear.

For example, if a guest phones and says they want more towels, you
need to determine what size towels they want. If the guest tells you they
have spilled something in their room and want it cleaned up, you should
ask the nature of the spill (what was spilled, what it was spilled on, and
how big the spill is) so you can prepare for what is needed.

Sometimes the guest will ask questions about what is available to suit their need, so you need to
respond accurately and honestly to these questions. It is important that honesty is used so that
you avoid creating false expectations in the mind of the guests.

Noting details of what is needed

The key to this is to not rely on your memory but rather to write down the relevant details.

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This advice applies whether the request comes in person or over the phone. There should always
be note paper and a pen near the phone in the housekeeping department and a room attendant
should always have a notebook and pen as standard items when they are working.

When a guest makes a request simply write down:

 Guest name
 Room number
 Specifics of the request – type of item or service
required, number involved (where appropriate – “6
wine glasses”)
 Time for delivery to the room that was agreed to.

It is always wise to confirm the details to save time, effort and guest frustration if the wrong
item or service is delivered. There may often be communication difficulties caused by different
languages, lack of local knowledge, tiredness and unfamiliarity with the property.

ADVISE ON TIME FOR PROVISION/DELIVERY OF IDENTIFIED SERVICE OR

ITEMS TO GUEST ROOM

After a request has been received, recorded and confirmed, you should provide the guest
with an estimated timeframe as to when the request will be met.

Keys to agreeing on a timeline

The timeframe for meeting any guest request must be reasonable and achievable.

It is best if the guest agrees that the time given by you is agreed to by them, but
sometimes they place unrealistic timelines that simply can’t be met. Obtain agreement where
possible and where you can’t, do your best and be as quick as you can. Remember you will
probably have other tasks to do and other guest needs to provide so the Golden Rule is “Under-
promise and over-deliver”.

For example, if you tell the guest the item or service they have requested will be there in
5 minutes and it actually takes 10 minutes they will be disappointed and annoyed. If you
promise the item in 10 minutes and have it there in 5 minutes, they will tend to be impressed
with your fast response.

Never allow yourself to be forced or intimidated into a timeline that you know can’t be
met. It is far better to politely explain this timeframe cannot be met, explaining the reasons why,
where applicable, and re-assuring the guest you will act as quickly as possible.

Sometimes you don’t need agreement

In many cases where a guest makes a request for additional room servicing
requirements, they are happy to be informed “Certainly, Mr Adams. That’s half-a-dozen extra
teas, coffees, sugars and milk for Room 583. I’ll be there in 5 minutes with those for you. Is
there anything else I can do for you?”

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 By supplying this timeframe, the room attendant is showing that the request has been
taken seriously, and is giving the guest an expectation about the service to be provided. The 5
minute timeframe may also take into account other things the room attendant has to do both to
finish their allocated work and meet the unexpected guest request.

However, should this timeframe change for any reason, the room attendant must inform
the guest of the progress being made with their request and supply the guest with a new revised
timeframe, and the reason for the change in time.

By doing this, the guest will then be able to adjust their expectations: they may not like
the revised timeframe but at least they are aware of it (and can plan accordingly) and know that
something is being done to satisfy them.

This will help ensure greater customer satisfaction. If you personally are unable to action
a request for guest service that you agreed to, make an attempt to see if someone else can assist.
This may mean asking another room attendant, a porter or a room service person.

Time delays

Despite your best efforts there will probably be times when a breakdown arises in
relation to services provided by the housekeeping department.

In all instances the guest should receive an apology for this lapse in service and
appropriate remedial action should be taken immediately, where appropriate, to try to retrieve
the situation to the best extent possible.

Examples of breakdown in providing housekeeping services to rooms

This breakdown in service provision may result from:

 Sub-standard servicing of the guest room when the room

was prepared – someone may have missed cleaning an item,
an area or item may not have been properly cleaned, guest
supplies may not have been re-stocked
 A previous promise to deliver a service may not have been
fulfilled – a guest who was promised a replacement hair
dryer may not have been supplied with one. The task could
have been forgotten or a message for another staff member
may have been misplaced
 A room displaying a “Do Not Disturb‟ sign and the room
attendant responsible for that room not notifying the Floor
Housekeeper that, at the end of the shift the sign was still in
place and the room had not been serviced
 A promise to deliver something to a room by a certain time may not be able to be met
– perhaps the item required is out-of-stock or there are insufficient staff to meet the
promised timeline
 An item that was promised to a guest turns out to be unavailable and can’t be
supplied as promised.

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 In essence, anything that:
 Fails to deliver the service that either we promised
 Fails to deliver the service the guest expected
 Fails to meet house service delivery standards.

Can be said to be a breakdown in service delivery and should be

apologized for.

Keys to making apologies

Where there has been a delay you must apologize for this. You
must be sincere in your apology but also brief. You must make sure you
apologize not only for the lack of service or item that wasn’t delivered but you must include an
apology for any inconvenience that has been caused.

The apology should never:

 Blame anyone else
 Discredit the establishment
 Commit the establishment to making some form of recompense or compensation.

SERVICE HOUSEKEEPING REQUESTS

LIAISE WITH OTHER STAFF TO OBTAIN AND OR DELIVER IDENTIFIED

SERVICE OR ITEMS

As identified in the past section, guests or staff may have requests which must be
addressed. In some cases these tasks can be performed by yourself or within the housekeeping
department. In many cases, in order to respond to a guest request it requires the involvement of
other people or departments. A guest is not concerned who handles their request. Their concern
is that it is simply handled in a satisfactory and timely manner.

The need for teamwork

On some occasions, there will be a

need for teamwork and the person receiving
the request for housekeeping services may
need to obtain assistance from another staff
member to comply with the request.

For example, a large spill in a room may be better dealt with by 2 people rather than just
one. A large piece of equipment or furniture that needs moving will require a „team lift‟
approach.

Where you feel that you are unable to fulfill the request on your own, you should always
be prepared to ask others for their help. You should also be prepared to help others when they
ask for your assistance.

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Safety and security

Where you receive a request from a guest for extra service provision and the guest
appears annoyed, upset, affected by drugs or alcohol then you should always obtain help from
another staff member.

Certainly it is important to let someone know the room you are going to. When you are
servicing a room, others can tell where you are by the location of your trolley and looking at your
room chart, but when you respond to a call to take an item to a room it is impossible for others
to know where you are should you need help.

All it takes is a quick call to another staff member “Hi it’s John here on the 7th floor: just
taking some extra guest supplies to Room 1010. Should be back on station in 5 minutes.”

Responsibility

Regardless if the request has been forwarded to another person

for completion it is important that you ensure that the request is
action.

Keep track of what is happening and where required keep the

guest informed of what is happening and expected time for completion.

Once the request has been fulfilled, it is a good idea to check

with the guest to ensure they are satisfied with the outcome.

LOCATE AND DELIVER REQUIRED ITEMS

TO GUEST ROOM

In most cases, it will be the responsibility of housekeeping to carry out any guest
requests that they receive.

This is generally fairly easy to do because moist requests relate to items that the room
attendant has ready access to – guest supplies are on the housekeeping trolley and most other
things requested are either in a Floor Housekeeping storeroom or can be “borrowed‟ from a
vacant room.

In other cases, however, some requests may involve a bit more time and effort.

“It’s not my job!”

No staff member should ever use the phrase “It’s not my job” when responding to a
request from a guest. In a service industry, it is always your job to assist guests.

If the request is outside your normal work responsibility, you should:

 Record and confirm the request

 Pass the details on to the relevant person for them to action.

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  Never, ever tell a guest “You’ll have to ring the Maintenance department – we
don’t handle replacing light globes” or “Sorry, Room Service do that – perhaps if
you ring 22 someone there can help you”.

Action is the key to responding to a request

Once a request is received, you must promptly seek out the

item or equipment necessary to complete the request within the
agreed timeframe.

The key to any request from a guest is to take action on

their request.

To do this, you will most likely just go to your trolley (or to the nearest housekeeping
storeroom), grab what is needed and take it to the guest room.

Passing on requests

In other cases , where the request falls outside your ability to fulfill it, the appropriate
person must be notified and the request passed on important points when doing this are:

 Pass on all the relevant details including the name and room number of the guest
is vital. This information allows the person to get back in contact with the guest to
clarify things or amend the promised delivery time
 Make sure the person you give the message to understands it. Get them to repeat
it back to confirm it. Make special mention of any important bits including the
need for urgency.
 Stress any agreed time that have been given. If you promised the item in 10
minutes, you must let the other person know when that 10 minutes is up.

Requests for information

It is sometimes more time consuming to provide certain things to guests. Requests for
information are amongst these.

Requests for information can cover:

 Information on the products and services offered by

the establishment – even though guests have an in-
room compendium they can still want more detail
than what is there and there is always the possibility
that this information is out-of-date.
 Use your product knowledge about the property to
answer these questions, and where you don’t know
the answer, apologize, tell them you will find out the
answer and get back to them, then do so.
 Availability of services, hours, location of meals,
services and equipment – you might be able to
inform a guest that there is an ice machine at the
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 end of the corridor but perhaps you don’t know when
the spa opens or what the treatments are how much
they cost.
 How various types of equipment works – you are
expected to know how to operate all the in-room
facilities (this should be one of the first things you are
trained in as part of your on-the-job training) but
guests may ask you about other items of equipment
throughout the property that you know nothing about.
This is to be expected if you are the first person they
see as they walk back to their from not being able to
operate a piece of gym equipment, not being able to
get the vending machine to work.
 Requests for information about local services,
attractions, transport, shopping, entertainment, bars,
places to eat. While is probably more a reception or
concierge role, once again, guests can ask you because
“you are there”.

In these situations:
 Never say “I don’t know” and leave it at that
 Never tell them it’s not your job to provide that sort of
information
 Never tell them to look it up in their in-room information
compendium.

Never give them the impression that asking for the information is an imposition or a stupid
thing for them to do.

SET UP EQUIPMENT IN GUEST ROOMS

From time to time the housekeeping department may be asked to help set up items
requested by guests. These requests need to be accommodated as quickly as possible because
when such requests are made, guests are usually waiting to use the items.

What items might be involved?

The items that may need setting up could include:

 Table and chairs – for meetings or to assist with

the provision of room service meals
 Internet connection
 Television
 DVD player
 Data projector
 Portable bed
 Portable cot.
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In-room meetings

Guest rooms are sometimes hired by companies for business purposes to hold a small
meeting make presentations or display goods and in such instances it may be your responsibility
to move furniture around, set up tables and chairs before the meeting commences.

Directions will be given by the person hiring the room about what they want, where they
want it set and the time by which it needs to be ready.

Elderly people

Elderly people can often have problems with technologically-based items in their rooms.
They may be perfectly well able to operate their TV or DVD at home but the one in their room
may be different and they may not be able to make it work.

Don’t make them feel stupid for asking, take time to make sure they have understood
what you have told them and check to see they are able to operate it properly on their own
before you leave. A call to the room 15minutes later to check everything is fine would also be
appreciated and shows evidence of excellent service.

Elderly people may also seek your regular assistance in:

 Moving heavy items – which can include their personal luggage

 Getting items down from high places
 Obtaining things from low places
 Obtaining a wheelchair to access other facilities in the venue.

Portable beds and cots

Setting up portable beds and cots is a task that many in housekeeping hate!

They are often cumbersome to move, and difficult to set up. Lots of injuries have resulted
from moving and setting up these items. Where possible, it is advisable to place them into rooms
and get them set up prior to the guests arriving – so no-one can hear or see what goes on!

Tips that may assist include:

 Be careful – they bite: watch your fingers

 Practice before having to do it front of a guest – it’s embarrassing to have problems with
people looking on
 Follow the instructions
 Don’t rush
 Have an experienced person with you when you do your first one. You never know when
you’ll need help even though you’ve done loads of practice.

It should be a standard house rule that guests are never allowed to set up a portable bed or
cot. Not only is allowing them to do this very bad service but there is a great risk they may injure
themselves.

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Know the house rules

It is important for you to be well-versed on the different types of equipment that need to
be set up and the steps to take to actually set up the equipment in a safe, secure and fully
operational manner.

You must also adhere to all health and safety regulations when moving items about,
especially heavy items. You must also follow any establishment policies on setting up
equipment.

Where appropriate, agree on suitable time to collect equipment

There may be times when the guest will only require an additional piece of equipment for
a certain time span – a short-term loan. When this item is placed in the room, it may be a good
idea for you to reach an agreement with the guest about the collection time for that item.

The main reasons to identify a time for collection for these items are:

 To allow the guest to be able to plan their stay with us – it saves them wondering what is
going to happen in relation to the item: they know what’s going to and happen and can
plan accordingly
 To prevent the situation where the guest may place the item in the corridor outside their
door – minimizing the chance of damage to the item, or theft
 To give the guest space in their room – unwanted items take up space that the guest may
want to use for something else
 To allow the asset to be put back into inventory and available for use by another guest if
the need arises.

In relation to agreeing on a time for collection of these short-term (or other) loan items:

 The arrangement to pick up should be made as a suggestion rather than a requirement –

the central idea is to provide service not to set limitations or „tell the guest what to do
 Guests should be encouraged to contact housekeeping and arrange for an extension of
the pick-up time where they want the item for a longer period
 Where housekeeping staff will be off duty when the pick-up time arrives, arrangements
need to made with another department to collect the item. It is not acceptable for the
guest to have to “put up with” an item in their room that they don’t want there simply
because we can’t pick it up. Room service staff, porters, or staff from any department
could be asked to assist.

Log books

Some establishments will have a log book to record information about when and where
extra items were delivered and when they need to be collected.

When an item is recovered from a guest room and returned to the store (or the vacant
room from where it was borrowed), this log is signed to demonstrate that return. The log book
assists in tracking assets and making sure all rooms have their necessary items.

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Items from guest rooms as required

Whilst the majority of requests involve items to be taken to the room, there are times
when requests involve items being taken from the room.

These items may be:

Types of items for collection

To service a guest request effectively, you may need to pick up items from
the guest room such as:

 Room features including furniture, appliances or amenities not

being used
 Housekeeping items and equipment that have been left behind
 Towels, face washers and bath mats that are now dirty and need
replacing
 Toilet paper, tissues and other bathroom and guest supplies that
have run out
 A replacement item – to take the place of something that isn’t
working
 Items that are no longer needed but which have been specially requested previously.
 Guest items requiring further action such as dry cleaning, storage or repair.

Keys in collecting items

It is vital to understand that if you have made a promise to pick something up at an

appointed time, the guest is expecting you to arrive at that time.

They have probable changed their plans, re-arranged things to accommodate this, and
are waiting: and every minute they wait past the scheduled time seems like an hour and their
level of frustration rises and rises. They can’t get on with what they want to get on with until you
arrive!

So make sure you are there when you said you’d be.

If you are going to be late:

 Get someone else to collect it – and make sure

they do it on time
 Contact the room, apologies and arranged a
revised time.
 Never just be late and fail to notify the guest.
 If the item you are picking up is heavy or
awkward, take someone else along or a trolley.

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When you arrive to collect the item:

 Knock on the door and announce “Housekeeping”

 Greet the guest by name
 Apologize, if applicable
 Tell them why you are there – “I’ve come to pick up the
…”
 Ask for permission to enter the room
 Thank the guest for their permission to do so
 Keep your eyes and ears to yourself
 Pick up the item and walk to the door
 Apologize again, if appropriate
 Make arrangements for a replacement item, where
appropriate and a time for its delivery
 Thank the guest again
 Depart the room.

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RULES IN DOING THE ACTIVITY

1. Find a place in your home where you can study well.

2. Have a chair and table. Make sure you have the materials you need like paper,
pen,pencil, etc.
3. Read carefully and understand the lesson. Then, you can start answering the activity.

POST TEST

A. Multiple Choice
Directions: Read and analyze the questions below. Select the correct answer from the
options given. Write the letter of your choice on your answer sheet.

1. It refers to housekeeping maintenance in a house. It covers bedrooms, kitchen,

dining, receiving area, grounds and the surroundings areas within the house.
a. Domestic Housekeeping
b. Institutional Housekeeping
c. Housekeeping
d. Hotel Housekeeping

2. It applies to housekeeping maintenance in commercial lodging establishments like

hotels, resorts, inns and apartels.
a. Domestic Housekeeping c. Housekeeping
b. Institutional Housekeeping d. Hotel Housekeeping

3. A ________ cannot provide all the necessary items a customer may need inside
each and every room for a number of reasons.
a. Room c. House
b. Hotel d. Apartel

4. A _______________exists in any property that offers in-house accommodation.

a. Food & Beverages department
b. housekeeping department
c. serviced apartment
d. Finance Department

5. _______________ is another common request for long-term guests: guests with

long hair often ask for extra shampoo and conditioner
a. Cutlery
b. Vases
c. Additional towels
d. Extra bathroom guests supplies
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 6. Guests may request an improvement in the servicing of room. They require
housekeeping staff to provide remedial service to the room when the original room
service is deemed by the guest to be sub-standard
a. Cleaning c. Rectification cleaning
b. Disinfecting d. General cleaning

7. The following are types of requests that may be varied depending on each specific
situation except for one.
a. Cleaning
b. Staff uniforms
c. Massage service
d. Security

8. A room displaying a ____________ sign and the room attendant responsible for
that room not notifying the Floor Housekeeper that, at the end of the shift the sign
was still in place and the room had not been serviced
a. “Do Not Disturb”
b. “Knock before entering”
c. “Observe Silence”
d. “Caution”

9. Some establishments will have a __________ to record information about when

and where extra items were delivered and when they need to be collected.
a. Logbooks
b. Security
c. Housekeepers
d. Butler

10. ________________ common among long stay guests and this items is need to be
sent to the room
a. A power conversion board
b. Valet or laundry service
c. Additional towels
d. Extra crockery or cutlery

B. True or False
Directions: Read and analyze the questions below. Select the correct answer from the
options given. Write true if the statement is true and false if the statement if false on
your answer sheet.

___________1. The role of housekeeping is to ensure the comfort and safety of guests
while they are staying at a hospitality organization.

___________2. Ensuring guest comfort may relate not just to issues that can be
handled quickly by housekeeping.

___________3. Providing excellent service at all times is the best practice in hotel
establishments.

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 ___________4. A room displaying a “Do Not Disturb‟ sign and the room attendant
responsible for that room not notifying the Floor Housekeeper that, at
the end of the shift the sign was still in place and the room had not
been serviced

___________5. On some occasions, there will be a need for teamwork and the person
receiving the request for housekeeping services may need to obtain
assistance from another staff member to comply with the request.

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POST TEST
A. Multiple Choice.
1. A
2. B
3. B
4. B
5. D
6. C
7. C
8. A
9. A
10. B

B. True or False
1. True
2. True
3. True
4. True
5. True

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