Lecture 2

Front Office staffing levels and Rotas

• Job descriptions
The constitutive parts of a job description
• Personnel specification
• Staffing levels
The Activity Pattern
Scheduling alternatives
• Staff rotas - employee scheduling
EU Working Time Directive
Legal Notice 43 of 1990

Job descriptions
A job description lists all the tasks and related information that
make up a work position. It may also outline -
• reporting relationships
• responsibilities
• working conditions
• equipment and material to be used

Job descriptions must be worded in sufficiently clear terms as to

identify the specific duties of the employee. It must however be
made clear within the job description itself that the description is
not exhaustive and the employee may be required to regularly
undertake other duties. Job descriptions serve at least two
purposes:

1. An important selection tool.

When recruiting a new member of staff, the interviewer and the
prospective employee are immediately aware of the duties the
latter is expected to perform. The interviewer may use the
description to gauge the suitability of applicants.

2. A job description is useful in analysing a particular job and a

person carrying out that job. This more or less depends on how
detailed the job description is. In some cases a job description
may be supplemented by a job list, which deals with each specific
tasks. Go et al (page 204) consider a job analysis as an instrument
which "identifies both the tasks comprising a specific job as well as
the skills, knowledge, and attitudes required for that position." By
producing a job analysis for an existing employee, a manager may
then tweak a job description to cover duties that had been
previously omitted (eg. specific tasks using IT) or remove tasks
which are not in practice required (eg. references to a Whitney
board system). More importantly a job analysis will assist the

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manager to define training requirements (eg. a Front Office
manager may find that a front desk clerk needs training on
handling guest complaints).

The constitutive parts of a job description

Job descriptions differ from each other. However, one normally
expects the description to be worded in a format similarly to this
sample description provided by Abbott & Lewry (page 248):

Job title: Senior Receptionist

Place of work: Queen's Hotel Manchester
General scope of job:
To carry out reception duties as laid down in the
hotel's operating manual, and to assist the front
office manager in maintaining an efficient, helpful
and sales oriented department.
Responsible to: Front Office Manager
Responsible for: Receptionists, telephonists, reservations staff

Main duties:
1. To have full knowledge of, and be able to act in accordance with, the hotel's
fire plan and the Fire Act 1971

2. To be fully converstant with, and be able to implement, the Hygiene and

Safety Act of 1974 to the highest possible levels.

3. To ensure that all guests and their requests are dealt with efficiently,
courteously and promptly.

4. To maintain a high standard of personal hygiene and appearance.

5. To ensure that strict security is maintained in respect of all monies, keys,

guest property and hotel equipment.

6. To ensure that all reservation, registration and check-out duties are carried
out as laid down in the hotel's operating manual.

7. To carry out the duties of reservations clerk, receptionist or telephonist as

necessary.

8. To be responsible for the reconciliation and banking of all receipts and floats
as laid down in the hotel's operating manual.

9. To prepare all relevant statistics as laid down in the hotel's operating

manual.

10. To carry out any reasonable duty required by management for the efficient
operation of the hotel.

Occasional duties:
• To carry out general clerical or administrative duties as required by
management.

• To assist management with the induction and training of new front office
staff.

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Personnel specification (or job specification)
Whereas a job description describes what a particular job entails, a
personnel specification will describe the qualities required in a
person to be suitable to carry out that job description. When a job
vacancy arises, the personnel specification will assist the
interviewer in conducting an effective and comprehensive
interview.

Abbott and Lewry (page 248) suggest that an interviewer should

consider the "seven point interview plan" adopted by the National
Institute of Industrial Psychology. The plan recommends
considering the following points:

1. Physical requirements
• A front office job has few physical requirements, but
receptionists do rather more standing than is usual in other
clerical jobs.
• Physical appearance is important, as front office personnel
are representatives of the hotel.

2. Attainments
• Previous experience at a hotel front desk may well prove
useful.
• Clerical experience or a position involving a degree of
customer interaction will help.
• Interviewer should read a curriculum vitae with an eye to
spotting significant unexplained gaps.

3. General Intelligence
• Staff should be literate and numerate.
• A Certificate in Accommodation Operations or City & Guild's
should definitely be considered an asset!

4. Special skills and aptitude

• Keyboard skills
• Linguistic skills

5. Interests
• Interests will provide clues as to an applicant's personality
traits.

6. Disposition
• Personality traits or qualities required by front office staff, eg.
being conscientious, methodical, accurate, friendly,
sympathetic, understanding, knowledgeable, enthusiastic,
persuasive.

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7. Circumstances
• A person's circumstances (eg. single, married, with children
etc.) may indicate whether a person is likely to remain in the
job and perform regularly and efficiently.
• Discrimination on the basis of a disability is illegal -

3. (1) A person shall be discriminating against another person on the

grounds of disability in any circumstances relevant for the purposes of any
provision of this Act, if:
(a) in circumstances which are similar or not materially different, he treats or
proposes to treat a person who has a disability less favourably than he treats
or would treat a person who does not have such a disability; or
(b) he treats or proposes to treat a person less favourably on the basis of a
characteristic that appertains generally to persons who have such a disability
or a presumed characteristic that is generally imputed to persons who have
such a disability.
Equal Opportunities (Persons with Disability) Act, 2000

Abbott & Lewry provide us with a sample personnel specification.

This can be modified to suit our own local requirements.

Post: Junior receptionist

Essential Preferred

1 Physical
Age 18-25
Health Good
Appearance Neat, well groomed Attractive
Voice Pleasant, clear Acceptable accent

2 Attainments/Experience Full time work in

equivalent hotel

Good reference

3 General Intelligence
Secondary GCSE or equivalent
with English and Maths

4 Special Skills/Aptitudes
Secondary Typing
Language(s)
Computer Studies
Advanced
Further C&G Reception
BTEC Diploma
First Aid certificate
Higher

5 Interests Sociable, gregarious Persuasive,

fluent, self-reliant numerate

6 Disposition Honest Initiative, mature

7 Circumstances Local Live-in

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Staffing Levels
One of the major difficulties for a manager in any hotel
environment is that of determining adequate staffing levels.
Inadequate staffing levels jeopardise the quality of service and may
in the long run affect business adversely, over staffing will on the
other hand cause an unnecessary expense. There is no magic
formula to determine staffing levels. There are however a number
of factors to bear in mind when determining staffing levels for your
front office department. Abbott and Lewry (page 245) suggest at
least six important factors:

1. Number of occupied rooms

Empty rooms will not generate clerical work or customer
contact.

2. Average length of stay

The shorter the average length the larger the number of
arrivals and departures.

3. Pattern of activity
Since the majority of guests in Malta travel by air on regular
scheduled and chartered flights it is easier to analyse a
regular pattern of activity when it comes to the arrival and
departure of guests.

4. Amount of personal contact required

The presence of concierge and/or guest relations may
minimise personal contact, as will automated check-in and
check-out processes.

5. Character of the hotel

In a leisure resort a guest may well be willing to wait a few
minutes at check-in, but business guests in what is perceived
as a hotel catering for business clients will often expect faster
service. Luxury hotels in particular need to avoid exposing
guests to the indignity of having to queue.

6. Technology employed
Computerisation (automation of business processes) means
less time is spent on clerical jobs and hence affects staffing
level.

The activity pattern

An activity pattern requires a series of shifts to handle the various
Front Office tasks, and may vary from weekdays to weekends. On
weekdays there is increased morning activity when a hotel's
accounts department, purchasing, sales and marketing, as well as
reservations are fully manned. On weekends the strain of handling

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calls, visitors and enquiries for these departments may be replaced
by substituting for reservations etc as the case may be.

A front office shift pattern may create a few problems. Generally

front office shifts are split into two: morning shifts or early shifts,
and afternoon/evening shifts referred to as late shifts. In some
cases hotels also utilise a supplementary "middle shift" which
covers normal business hours, provide a continuum from one shift
to another, providing backup for breaks and generally assisting the
busier periods of the day. The first shift normally starts early, and
the last shift finishes later than most jobs.

Shift patterns and staff positions have a direct effect on staffing

levels. If a hotel adopts the once traditional method of employing
separate cashiers and receptionists then the staffing requirements
will reflect this. If however a hotel encourages the more modern
approach whereby a front desk employee is in effect a "front office
clerk (or agent)" then the number of employees required may be
different. If the hotel adopts a day in/day out system (sometimes
referred to as compressed schedules) the number of staff required
may be even less.

There are other scheduling alternatives:

Part-time scheduling
Part-timers can replace staff on vacation leave, provide seasonal
employment to supplement full-time staff during busy periods.
They may and should ideally be scheduled regularly and not simply
on demand.

Flextime scheduling
Some employees may be willing to work flextime which is ideal for
situations where managers need to cover the varying workloads of
all shifts.

Compressed schedules
This is akin to the day in / day out shift - and normally means that
the front office employee will work four days in week and three
days in another. In one week the number of hours may exceed 40
hours and in the other week will be less than 40 hours. Under our
legislation when an employee exceeds 40 hours in such a situation
s/he is not entitled to overtime as the hours or offset in subsequent
weeks.

Refer to the Excel worksheet Staffing_Requirements.xls available

at [Link]

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Staff rotas - employee scheduling
Employee scheduling affects payroll costs, employee productivity
as well as staff morale.

Front Office managers must be sensitive to the needs of their staff.

Every employee will tend to have his preferences, but sometimes
such preferences may be due to the circumstances of the employee
in question. It is undoubtedly difficult to suit the needs of every
member of staff, but the roster must be seen to be fair and in
relation with the expected level of business.

Kasavana and Brooks (Page 398) provide us with a few helpful tips:

• A schedule should cover a full workweek, typically defined as

Sunday through Saturday.
• Schedules should be posted at least three days before the
beginning of the next workweek.
• Days off, vacation time, and requested days off should be
indicated on the posted work schedule.
• The work schedule for the current week should be reviewed
daily in relation to the anticipated business volume and
unanticipated changes in staff availability.
• Any scheduling changes should be noted directly on the
posted work schedule.
• A copy of the posted work schedule can be used to monitor
the daily attendance of employees. This copy should be
retained as part of the department's permanent records.

The EU Working Time Directive

When scheduling staff managers may be required to take note of a
number of legal requirements. Member states of the European
Union have been required to follow Council Directive 93/104 known
as the Council Directive concerning certain aspects of the
organisation of Working Time.

The aim of the Directive is to protect employees against the

adverse effects on their health and safety caused by working
excessively long hours without adequate rest. It provides for:

• a maximum 48 hour week averaged over a period of four

months.

• a minimum daily rest period of 11 consecutive hours a

day.

• a rest break (established by national law) where a working

day is longer than six hours.

• a minimum rest period of one day a week.

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 • a right to annual paid holidays of 4 weeks, and

• night work cannot exceed eight hours a night on average.

The Directive requires that all Member States in the Union enact
legislation which provides the minimal protection as outlined in the
Directive. Malta will have to adjust its legislation to adhere to this
Directive if it joins the Union.

Legal Notice 43 of 1990

In Malta, Legal Notice 43 of 1990 provides the minimum working
conditions for employees in hotels and restaurants. The Legal
Notice also sets minimum wages for employees in industry.

Legal Notice 43 provides as follows:

• Minimum wages are calculated over a 43-hour week during

the summer months spread over 6 days, and a 39-hour week
during the rest of the year.

• When a working day exceeds five and a half hours an

employee is entitled to an aggregate break of one hour for
meals and rest. (4(i))

• All employees in the industry are entitled to a day off in each

week as a weekly day of rest. (27)

• Full-time employees are entitled to four working weeks and

four days paid vacation leave, in addition to National and
public holidays. (32(1))

The Legal Notice makes no mention of minimum daily rests, nor

does it provide for minimum conditions for night work (although in
some cases these have been established in collective agreements).
To read more about this subject refer to -
[Link]
[Link]

Bibliography

Abbott P. and Lewry S., Front Office: Procedures, social skills and management
Butterworth Heinemann, 1991

Go F. et al, Human Resource Management in the Hospitality Industry John Wiley

& Sons, 1996

Kasavana M. and Brooks R., Managing Front Office Operations Fourth Edition,
Educational Institute, 1995

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