Guest services

Service tasks cover the work that keeps a stay running: cleaning, maintenance and guest service. Each task is raised against a unit and the reservation it serves, assigned to a team member, and given a due time. It moves from open to assigned, in progress and completed, and the completion time is recorded when it is done.

Linking the task to the unit and the stay means the team can always see why the work exists. A cleaning task after checkout belongs to that departure. A maintenance task during a stay belongs to the guest who reported the problem. A guest service request, such as extra towels or a late-night tea, is tracked like any other piece of work, so it is not forgotten when shifts change.

Service staff work their own task list; the front desk raises requests from guests and follows them up.

• Raised against the stay. Every task names the unit and reservation it serves.
• Assigned to one person. Each task has one person assigned, who sees it in their own list.
• Completed with a time. Completion records when the work was done, so turnaround can be measured.

Agree the task types you use and who can raise each one. Decide how tasks are assigned (by area, by shift or by the person on duty) and how quickly each type should be completed. Agree how maintenance found during cleaning is raised. Prepare examples of a checkout clean, a guest request in the evening, a repair reported mid-stay and a task that is reassigned at shift change.

A guest calls the front desk at nine in the evening because their shower is cold. The front desk raises a maintenance task on the unit and reservation and assigns it to the staff member on call, who sees it on their task list, starts it and completes it within the hour. The next morning the retreat manager can see the request, who handled it and how long it took.

• My service tasks — Each staff member’s own open tasks and due times.
• Open service work — All open, assigned and in-progress tasks by unit and stay.

• Service task turnaround: From a raised task to completed work.

Check permissions for service staff.