Part 1:  Benefiting your People!

Quality Assurance Inspections are of utmost importance to every hotelier.  Seriously, it’s true.  Switch “QA” for “TA”…”Trip Advisor” and now even skeptics of this process are keenly interested.  While I know that there are General Managers out there who don’t see the value of brand QA inspections, there isn’t a single one who isn’t interested in their Trip Advisor reviews.  Why is there a disconnect?  Isn’t it logical that the brand would have an internal check & balance for their name, their standards, and their reputation?  Further, General Managers are highly committed to assuring the quality of their product.  Yet, some see no value in the QA process and consider them a “necessary evil” that needs to be checked off their “to do” list.  Could it be that one reason this perception exists for some, is that the approach to the QA itself is ineffective and inefficient?  If that is the case, how can it be turned around into a tool that can be used to advance the success of your property – your people, your product and your profit?

Let’s consider how the difference between a stationary exercise bike, and a bicycle, can well illustrate the difference between an effective QA and an ineffective QA process.

Both require time, energy, and the same motion.  However, one keeps you in exactly the same place while the other advances you from point A to point B.

spinningwheels
pointApointB

 

It can be similar with the QA process.  You can either go through the process as if on a stationary bike, or it can be a vehicle that advances your business to the next level.  In this 3 part series we’ll look at 3 ways to accomplish this objective.  The first:  Make the QA process a true benefit to your people.

Benefiting Your People

What really is it that actually “spins our wheels”, keeping one in the same place?  Is it the regular preventative maintenance or deep cleaning of your property?  NO, of course not!  It is the paperwork.  Note, not the documentation, but the manual paperwork.  Nobody likes spinning their wheels and wasting time doing “busywork”.  However, manual documentation is precisely that: busywork.  How can we say that with such certainty?  How can simply changing the documentation process advance your property’s success and be beneficial to your people?
paperwheel

 

A lifeless piece of paper offers no future benefits to a property or to team members.  The utilization of software tools can put an end to the wheel-spinning-fruitless-paperwork-exercise, and put your team on a high-speed vehicle with lasting benefits to everyone.

oday, there are several excellent software suppliers whose products offer hoteliers options that can fit any size hotel, needs and budget.  So take your pick and stop using manual records!  That is step #1.

Which is more beneficial to a Chief Enginner?  A Housekeeping Manager?  General Manager or Owner?

TRUE:  Paper records are pretty much useless once they are “filed away”.  

  • The time and labor dollars spent on manual records do not advance you from point A to point B.
  • Manual records cannot automatically schedule tasks for the next time they are due.
  • Manual records cannot alert you when due dates approach.
  • Manual records are vulnerable to coffee spills, getting lost, illegible (especially when new team members try to interpret where their predecessor left off).
  • Manual records limit the information readily available to General Managers and Owners.
  • Manual records take time, energy and effort.  They also keep you in place, spinning your wheels.

TRUE:  Electronic records are beneficial to the team:

  • Electronic records keep your information and records readily accessible and useful, indefinitely.
  • Electronic records can be captured from the guest room via any mobile device.  Hoteliers are always looking for ways to increase the time on the floors with the team vs. in the office doing paperwork.
  • One initial step of recording a task electronically puts the next steps in motion by automatically scheduling it for the next time.  It also triggers reminders in advance, allowing for proactive scheduling and maintaining the necessary care your property investment deserves.  Easy peasy lemon squeezy.

Having electronic records advances teams from point A to point B because it makes the time spent on recording the information genuinely worthwhile.  It gives them permanent records that can be used in the future, setting them and you up for success.  Here’s an example, this is a screen shot from my Samsung Galaxy phone I just took; note how conveniently it makes access to due dates and tasks.  How beneficial it is for Housekeeping and Maintenance to easily coordinate their tasks together.

screenshot

 

In part two of this series, we will explore how to make your QA process advance the success of your business by benefiting your physical product.  

Americans’ Biggest Complaints About Hotels – Forbes.com 7/12
– “”The hotel industry’s… steep drops in satisfaction with several categories: hotel facilities and services, guest rooms,…
preventing problems is the most satisfying thing for guests.” It’s completely within a hotel’s control to monitor room maintenance, cleanliness and properly operating facilities,…”

people-cheering