Many of the changes most apparent now in housekeeping—movement away from plastic bottles for water and amenities, “eco-friendly” optional linen changes, and technology for remote check-in, special requests, and room entry—were already underway before the pandemic. However, there’s little doubt that the pandemic accelerated many of these changes and introduced limited housekeeping policies, which helped labor-strapped properties stretch staff and cut costs.
These were among the points of agreement several sources shared while discussing some of the problems they face and the solutions they are finding now to improve efficiency, safety, and quality of life for staff, while also minimizing costs and meeting guest expectations.
Limited Housekeeping
The issue of housekeeping will always be front and center for hoteliers, both because it is so closely related to guest satisfaction and because it is among the biggest expenditures for hoteliers. However, as much as they would like to encourage it, when it comes to policies and practices related to limited housekeeping, hoteliers need to read the room now.
Clearly, there are savings to be had. Andrew Burgerhoff, director of rooms at InterContinental Chicago Magnificent Mile, claimed this can add up to $8 to $10 per day at IHG. To incentivize guests to opt out of daily service, he said, IHG has a program called Green Engage, which offers stayover guests 500 reward points for each day they opt out of housekeeping.
But whether or not their property offers inducements for opting out, identifying those who do as soon as possible is critical for hoteliers to determine the number of housekeepers they need to schedule. There are various approaches to making this determination, including what Brad Wenger, general manager, Hilton Wilmington/Christiana, called Hilton’s “scripting on arrival at the front desk.” He said, too, that “some hotels work with an average, like 20 percent, to project the number of rooms that will decline stayover service.”
Focus on Practices, Products, and Procedures
Meanwhile, the executives stressed the importance of saving labor and expenses in other ways, and described some of the changes, many of which are seen now in guestrooms, but some that are easing the process behind the scenes.
“At InterContinental, we’re open to anything to make the work easier and simplify the process, without cutting corners, of course,” said Burgerhoff. Among the visible changes, he said, are the bulk amenities to which many properties have switched, which likely save cost and definitely reduce waste. There is also less trash for housekeepers to remove, because, as Burgerhoff noted, guests are increasingly turning to their own digital media and hotel websites, paving the way to eliminate the printed collateral materials that used to litter guestrooms, which, he added, can now be accessed digitally using QR codes on the IHG app.
While there may not be significant cost-cutting opportunities in the choice of cleaning products, sources agreed that using multipurpose products can save time and proper usage can save costs. As Burgerhoff noted, “Using too much cleaning product is wasteful and no more effective.” Related to this, Wenger added, “Equipment should be properly maintained and calibrated to use the right amount of detergent, which not only saves on the cost of detergent, but better preserves thread counts that would deteriorate more quickly with the use of too much product.”
Safer, more efficient procedures
Wenger said, in addition to identifying the number of rooms that need cleaning, Hilton’s efforts to “ease the workload and labor cost” has involved examining and modifying the cleaning process. “It’s a game of minutes when it comes to increasing productivity, but the core deliverables in the room in a stayover situation—vacuuming, making the bed, cleaning the bathroom—don’t change.”
While Wenger said, “We can’t cut corners when it comes to the guest experience,” what they could and did do was make it more efficient. “One of the ways we were able to cut the amount of time needed to deliver a quality guestroom experience from 16 minutes to nine was by strategically staging supplies—i.e., having terry and linen located closer to the guestroom.”
Saving time and cost by saving steps is also the goal of IHG Way of Clean, a formal workflow process that IHG team members must be certified on within the first 10 days of employment. “Our goal is to reduce waste and enhance processes, and if we can do it in fewer steps, it becomes less complex and it’s generally much easier to execute perfectly all the time,” Burgerhoff said.
This workflow process, he maintained, also promotes safety, with specific approaches to handling chemicals, identifying hazards, safe lifting, and dealing with spills, practices that are reinforced during daily meetings.
Helpful Technology
The executives agreed that technology for scheduling, training, and communication saves an enormous amount of time and confusion, and found translation capabilities useful, if not indispensable, in a multicultural workforce. However, not all were using technology like the panic buttons now being mandated at some properties to enable housekeepers to call for help in the event of an accident or assault.
General Manager Scott Reents and operations manager Kristen Haro, both of Aligned Hotel Management, who work at The Tuxon Hotel Tucson, said the use of technology at The Tuxon is relatively limited to help with overall costs, although its staff, like its surrounding community, is extremely diverse. To help with training, Reents said that Haro created “an unbelievable housekeeping video that shows the staff how to clean every little corner of the room,” and team members are able to use an application that translates on the job, if necessary.
Wenger described how his Hilton property is now using the communication platform Beekeeper, being beta tested there. This technology, he said, is supporting communication and training largely by delivering content in the language individual team members prefer. “It’s a much more efficient, powerful way to get everybody a lot more information and put them in a position to deliver outstanding service,” he explained, noting “tremendous training opportunities” with information and video demonstrations delivered not just in the right language, but “in bite-sized pieces.” The reasoning behind it all, he said, is this: If people can communicate with each other and understand the information and training better, they are more likely to succeed in their jobs.”
The safety of team members was clearly a major concern for all the executives, a few of whom mentioned safe practices as well as technology.
Wenger said, “We’re always looking out for the safety and the well-being of our team members that are up on these guestroom floors, where they may sometimes be isolated and vulnerable to robbery or assault.” Toward this goal, he said, “We have a deterrent in the form of an audible alarm and housekeepers are given walkie talkies to reach assistance quickly.”
Attention to Retention
The ongoing need to recognize housekeepers as the essential team members they have always been should not be underestimated among hoteliers at all levels because, as Reents further emphasized, “Without housekeeping, we don’t sell rooms.”
Reents said an important component in keeping costs down at his own Tucson-area property is their success with retention. “Maintaining staff has really helped our bottom line because training is very expensive,” he noted.
What sets them apart, Reents and Haro believe, is their approach to onboarding, training, and treatment of employees. “We have really taken steps to make sure they know they are the No. 1 assets. We work with them, give them options in terms of hours, and if need be, transportation. We are always making sure that our staff are taken care of because they are literally the most important asset we have,” maintained Reents.
