“We are Unsung Heroes of the Hotels”

Passionate about her job, Ranjana Tripathi joined as Housekeeping Manager at Courtyard by Marriott Gurgaon last year. She looks after the Housekeeping, Laundry and Recreation Center. She finished her college in hospitality from International Tourism Institute Nanital and currently pursuing MBA in Human Resources from National Institute of Business Management New Delhi. She started her career with Ananda in the Himalayas in Housekeeping Department. In her nine years of work experience she worked with Goa Marriott, Hilton London, Holiday Inn and Fairfax Marriott Virginia. Her last assignment was with Fairfax Marriott Virginia as Night Manager, Asst. Front Office Manager and Head Housekeeper to understand entire room division function and provide best services to guests.

 By Sharmila Chand

How important in your opinion is Housekeeping to hospitality?

Housekeeping plays an important role in the reputation of the hotels because one feels most comfortable only in the environment which is clean and well ordered. The Housekeeping team works round the clock lo make sure the rooms are kept clean and guests’ needs are addressed in a friendly and efficient manner. It is important to make the guests feel at home and have an experience worth remembering. The image of a hotel is with in its people, premises, and ambiance and how the guest is treated. An efficient housekeeping team plays an important role to achieve these goals.

What is the modus operandi of housekeeping in your hotel?

We believe in “Be the Best” to track our performance. We have annual audits in place those are Brand Standard Audit, Mystery Shopper and Guest Satisfaction Survey. Our Associates are most important. We believe in “Only satisfied Associates can satisfy our Guest”. Since our guests are from around the world and mostly come on business and they work on different shifts, we provide services as per their convenient time.

Do you perceive any new trends in housekeeping?

More educated people are coming forward to join housekeeping because of career growth. More of Guest Interaction is in trend since Hospitality in India is growing tremendously. Housekeeping associates are meeting each of their guests on one-on-one basis thus are able to anticipate guest needs. hotel are eager to hire young and energetic staff. Good quality machines and equipments both Indian and imported are easily available at reasonable prices. Good quality and easy to use cleaning supplies are also available with the support of training from the manufacturers.

How much emphasis does the hotel place on training?

We strongly believe that regular training adds to the skill of the employees. There is a dedicated enrichment center to groom and skill associates. We have fifteen minutes training program in place twice a day and we go through a schedule to brush up topics. We have on job training on place. There is a well designed management training program of two years for a person recruited to be an Assistant Manager in the Housekeeping Department. The trainee is exposed to the entire process of Housekeeping functions in different Marriott brands and property.

How would you compare housekeeping in India with the international markets?

As of now India is providing better cleanliness and services. We have already grown and comparable with any good international hotel chain. However people need to change their mindset, as a section of society is still not comfortable choosing a cleaning profession but trend is changing.

What elements you take into account to recruit staff?

I always prefer people with attitude and passion for housekeeping. If these two things are their, I can teach rest of skills. An eye for detail, taste for cleanliness, service with a smile and good attitude are considered important. Previous experience is, of course, an advantage.

What is the role of the housekeeping staff in the context of security?

Housekeeping staff has free access to every guest room. Their honesty and sincerity is important. In some areas like guest rooms and corridors they are the only source of security who keeps vigil on strangers. As part of the training, they are educated to follow the procedures of safety and security of guests & property.

There is an issue of ‘security’ in outsourcing cleaning. What do you have to say in this regard?

Outsourcing certain hotel functions are becoming more and more popular because of the cost-economics of hotels. One function which could be considered as commonly outsourced would be housekeeping. Here are some of the advantages of outsourcing:

• allows housekeepers to concentrate on the core competencies of their job like delivering a well-kept house and keeping the areas maintained
• allows flexibility of operations in terms of utilizing and rotating the manpower
• offers specialized and expert guidance for the maintenance of different areas
• reduce staff problems in recruitment, training, allocation, appraisals, increments, and dismissals

Security is an issue since other company is providing you manpower. Manpower is provided as per requirement in that case no guarantee same person will come to your property on daily bases because they have to allocate staff as per hotel requirement. Here is the possibility of risk.

Any other input you would like to give?

We at Courtyard by Marriott believe in “Clean as you go” and everyone in our hotel is a housekeeper. In our hotel all departments help us in cleaning like restaurant have their own Vacuum cleaner and we do thorough cleaning twice a day. Our Associates are as good as Supervisors.