What is the single most important thing consumers have learned from the pandemic? It’s the importance of cleaning and sanitization. That message has been driven home in many ways within the businesses they patronize, as well. Restaurants have instituted strict cleaning policies, as have grocery stores and other companies. The hotel industry is no exception to this trend, but hotel housekeeping software can help. Without the right housekeeping practices, consumers may not have confidence that your property is hygienic and safe. It’s also important to understand that this need is not going to go away. In fact, maintaining hygiene and cleanliness will be the driving force going forward to get five-star reviews from your guests.
Of course, living up to those expectations is no small task, but hotel housekeeping software can help.
The Problems Faced by Housekeeping Staff
Before we dive into how hotel housekeeping software can help, it’s important to have a better understanding of the challenges faced by the housekeeping department.
- Booking Rooms Under Maintenance: One problem that often plagues housekeeping is the front desk staff booking rooms that are currently going through maintenance. Not only does this needlessly result in room changes when the guest realizes that the room is not able to serve their needs, but it also lowers the guest’s perceptions of the hotel and their stay. You’re unlikely to get a positive review when this happens, and the damage to your brand can be considerable, particularly if this is an issue that occurs often.
- Booking Rooms That Have Not Been Cleaned Yet: Even more common than booking rooms under maintenance is booking rooms that are not fully cleaned yet. This can occur in several ways, but one of the most common is erroneous information in your computer system either stating that the room has already been cleaned or that it was not used recently. In both cases, front desk staff may assign the room, only to find that they must swap rooms when the irritated guest informs them that the room is not cleaned and is not acceptable.
- Duplicated Work: How often have your housekeeping team members found themselves duplicating work? One team may clean a room and leave, only to have someone else come along later and clean it again because its status was not updated. Manual status updates take time, are slow, and are often put off when something of higher priority comes along.
- Tasks Not Accomplished: To be sure, your managers have a daily to-do list. However, if that information is not accurately communicated to your housekeeping staff, it’s all too easy to find that few things on the list get done. Those that do may not be completed in a timely manner, either. Simply listing tasks, assigning them to employees, and then tracking completion can be incredibly time-consuming and difficult.
- Not Knowing Who’s Doing What: Which member of housekeeping has been assigned to clean a particular room? Who is handling the lobby? What about the dining room? Tracking who’s doing what can be incredibly time-consuming, and one omission could lead to a cascading failure that culminates in a less than stellar review from a guest.
How Can Housekeeping Software Help You Overcome These Hotel Housekeeping Challenges?
While housekeeping services in hotels face a very wide range of challenges every day, there are solutions. One of those is housekeeping software. At Hotelogix, our Housekeeping Module offers vital functionality all baked into an easy-to-use interface. What features do we bring to the table, though? Let’s take a look at some of the things that make Hotelogix at once simple to use, yet incredibly powerful.
Task Assignment and Management
First, let’s start with task assignment and management. Hotelogix makes it simple to assign rooms to staff members based on metrics that matter to you. Assign by blocks or floors, or choose to do so by room status. Add tasks as necessary to ensure that every area of the hotel is clean and ready for your guests, from the rooms to the lobby. Our module also makes it simple to add and remove housekeeping staff.
Track Everything Easily
As mentioned, just keeping track of who’s doing what and which tasks have been completed is a job in itself. With our housekeeping software, you’re easily able to assign tasks and then track completion. This goes beyond checking that a room is clean or that toiletries have been replenished. You can use it for unique services that customize the guest experience, such as bringing complimentary hot chocolate to the rooms in the winter or leaving fresh flowers in a vase during a room cleaning. Everything can be tracked in real-time so you’re always in the know.
No More Doubling Up
Each day, print off and hand out individual lists of housekeeping tasks. This ensures that everyone is crystal clear on their duties for the shift and avoids duplicated work. Our software also includes filters to help you sort rooms and tasks based on status, block, or floor so that you’re able to get everything handled in record time.
Block Out Rooms That Are Not Ready
From rooms going through maintenance to those that aren’t yet cleaned, our hotel housekeeping software ensures that you’re able to tell which are ready for guests and which are not. Your staff can update room status in real-time, and those that aren’t ready (and won’t be) can be marked as Do Not Release. This ensures that you can virtually eliminate the chance that your team will release a room to a guest that isn’t ready and you can avoid those negative reviews. Our system also helps you automate room status changes, by automatically changing a room’s status to “dirty” or “do not release” and through other helpful features.
New Technology in the Housekeeping Department
Housekeeping has traditionally been pretty low-tech. However, things are changing today. That change is coming faster than ever thanks in no small part to the pandemic. Today, guests value cleanliness and hygiene more than ever before. The right hotel housekeeping software can offer simple, streamlined solutions to the challenges you face in daily operations.
Ready to learn more about how Hotelogix can support your success and ensure that your property lives up to guests’ expectations? Take advantage of our free trial and explore the Housekeeping Module to see how well it can fit your team, how much time you can save through automation, and how much better your team can operate with the right support.
