I am new to motel management. I have done almost nothing to relate. The only experience I can claim is when I waited tables at a restaurant/bed and breakfast in Manti, Utah. I checked in 1 guest one night, and a United States Senator the next. Actually I can't claim that I checked in the Senator but I was there to talk to him about the absurdity of environmental regulations on the logging industry (in which my Father has worked for decades). He was not interested, but his adviser Bruce took some time with me.
My background is mostly in retail and sales. I have done customer service throughout and in this business especially, customer service is paramount. It is number one, and that is a trend that has continued to grow on a massive scale as society becomes more and more dependent on consumerism. People are realizing that stores and services want their dollar, and the idea that has penetrated the psyche of the consumer is that those stores and services need to earn it.
I have taken that prevalent idea and coupled it with 12 years of customer service, and found a comfortable niche. The name of the industry is hospitality. Having spent 2 years in service to the people of Southern Indiana I gleaned a touch of Midwestern hospitality, a particularly effective blend of welcoming attitude and sincerity. When you come through that office door literally into my home it becomes about you. They are to be treated as a guest so that when the topic of price finally comes up it will be considered a deal.
When that guest walks in; smile, show a little humor, but make it simple. Show some honest curiosity about where they are from and where they are going, what they have been through and what they plan to go through. If you listen just right you can catch an interest. Discuss that. Listening skills are easy; keep eye contact and lean toward them. Open your body language so they can see that they have your full attention. People will listen forever when you talk about them. Just keep that in mind.
When you have talked them up, when they are smiling and chuckling with you, check them in. They will hand you their money without blinking and more importantly - they will enjoy the rest of their night. I am fortunate to be managing this motel because the rooms have a certain quality that had not been properly identified until I stepped in.
This place is homey. No, not homely (though some critics would say so), it is homey. Welcoming. Cozy. Each room feels like a bedroom or small apartment, and after I get done with the guest, the experience becomes that much richer.
If I do everything else wrong here I can still be a success if my customer service is spot on.
Time and Pressure
When I came to the TJ I inherited an interesting HR issue. The previous manager had a non-professional relationship with her housekeepers. She liked to work with them, converse with them, hang out with them, and keep them around for hours after they were done. I call it the "Good Old Girls Club," and I both had to put an end to it, and implement necessary changes while getting the crew comfortable with having me around.
It has been quite a juggle, but my strategy was simple. I did not implement change. Two weeks into the job I held a meeting where I made it clear who is in charge. Then I let them continue their routine while they got comfortable working with me. At the end of the month I held another meeting where I announced intentions to make changes. It was not immediate. I gave them two days to come to terms with that fact, but it was not necessary. They have adapted with no verbal complaint.
My housekeepers are a myriad of small town personalities. They have learned to be highly political, and very human. As such they respond to professionalism differently than an urbanite. It is being familiar with that small town mentality that has given me the edge. I know these are good, genuine, albeit drama-loving, folk that work hard and accept the inevitable change when it comes. I did not hit them with it immediately because I knew they would soften to change faster than most, and embrace it more fully after learning to work with me.
Most importantly I have emphasized throughout the work experience that they are the TJ Motel. They are the reason it maintains its international reputation as the place to stay in Thames. If someone remarks that the TJ is the best place to stay in Thames I have commanded them to respond with something similar to, "That's because I clean it."
Change
So what have I implemented? One project I have is time-tracking. I've developed a spreadsheet to track time averages per room, per maid based on data they compile just by marking off rooms. I get to measure their progress using very little data because much of it can be correctly assumed. Using this time tracking I have divided them up so they are no longer working as a team for every room. They have been assigned one maid per room lest one of them need help.
On the tracking sheets I have given them industry-standard time limits and encouraged them to meet and beat that goal. What is their incentive? Reputation. I have created the idea in their minds that they are the best, they have importance, and they have value here. It is not without sincerity. I absolutely mean it. The fact that they do the job, and they do it well takes the pressure off of me to do it myself.
I have changed the task sheet to fit my protocols, and to be more user friendly. It used to be color-coded, and that code became intrusive because I have people who decide they need to check out a day early, or I held a room for them and they decided to leave but they were marked as staying . . . the list goes on.
To conclude I devised a simple formula to estimate just how long it should take to get all the rooms done, give or take 20 minutes. I used the industry standard estimates on how long each room should take to get done should one maid be working. The industry standards are 20 minutes for a room with 1 bed, 25 minutes for a room with 2 beds, and 30 for a room with 3 beds. I then divide that number by 60, and divide it again by the number of maids I have working that day. Add in 30 minutes for prep, wrap-up and the break time allotted after each building and you get the maximum number of hours allowed to complete the task.
(MPR)/60 ÷ X(# of Maids)+ 30 mins
Keep in mind that payroll is a terribly high cost, even if you are paying minimum wage. Also keep in mind that should you go slack on your regulation of hours they can quickly get out of control. They will take shortcuts. The cleanliness will suffer, unless you want to spend the whole shift micromanaging the staff. Keep your maids disciplined by honoring your expectations of their time-table and complimenting their work if it is good. Poor work needs to be pointed out. Compliment their strengths, and use that to guide awareness on what needs to be improved.
In a small business it is easy to become friends with your employees. No matter the circumstance a level of professionalism must always exist. Professionalism merits respect, respect garnishes good work, and good work keeps your customers happy. Make no mistake - if a poor job is done by the maids, you will hear about it. You will bear the blame because essentially, as in all management and leadership positions, everything is your fault.
Notes:
Recently I had to let go of one of my maids because she did not show up on the busiest cleaning day of the summer. Her other sins were bringing her issues to work, letting them interfere with doing a good job, taking extended breaks, leaving without notification, and missing basic cleaning steps in a number of rooms. After weeks of suggestive improvement she only degraded further. My first termination. It was not easy, but it was necessary. This is where the professionalism pays off. If she had perceived me as a friend and not a manager, the parting would have been brutal. If, however, she perceives me as an authority figure and the head of this establishment, she has an inherent respect that garners reluctant acceptance of her termination.
Having had this experience I rethought my approach to hiring. I have a new hire that I have put to the test. Because I trust my current staff almost 100% I value their job satisfaction. An important part of that is their being happy with their coworkers. The trial then is to take the new hire and have her trained one-on-one with each of my girls. We come together for a vote, and if they like her I have 33% more reason to hire her. I reserve 66% of the say in this regard, thus owning a huge majority of the hiring responsibility.
This new hiring exercise has paid off well, and I know that as long as I maintain that I will be able to have a happy housekeeping staff, that will prolong their association with the TJ.
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