
The housekeeping department is essential to a hotel's success, as guests spend significant time in both public areas and guest rooms. Maintaining high standards of cleanliness and sanitation is crucial. Property-trained room attendants play a key role in upholding these standards, but several challenges can impede effective training.
One major challenge is the diversity of staff resources, including language barriers and varying training needs. Many hotels find it difficult to provide regular training due to the high-paced nature of the department and the need to clean a set number of rooms daily. The pressure to deliver rooms on time often limits opportunities for comprehensive training.
Additionally, many hotels are outsourcing their housekeeping staff to facility management companies to reduce costs. While this can be cost-effective, it introduces challenges in ensuring that staff adhere to brand standards and hygiene protocols. Outsourced staff often lack prior hotel cleaning experience and may see their roles as temporary, resulting in less attention to detail.
Facility management companies typically provide only basic training, and their employees arefrequently rotated among properties, which complicates the training process further. Each hotel has its own standards and requirements, making adaptation difficult for staff.
Language barriers also pose a significant challenge, as many outsourced employees speak languages other than English, making it harder for them to grasp training materials. Additionally, newcomers to the hospitality industry may take longer to understand guest needs and expectations.
To address these issues, training should be continuous, engaging, and interactive. It should focus on delivering clear, practical knowledge and procedures while fostering a sense of responsibility and passion among room attendants. Regular monitoring of staff performance post-training is also essential to ensure adherence to standards. By overcoming these challenges, we can provide guests with a “home away from home” experience and deliver personalized service that creates memorable stays.
About the author:
Suman Basu is the Executive Housekeeper at MovenPick Hotel Dubai.