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Venetian Macau participates in International Housekeeping Week

Another year….another reason to celebrate……

At the Venetian Macao Resort Hotel, the theme for the International Housekeeping Week this year was “We are proud of who we are”.

The opening ceremony commenced with a performance by some talented team members in the Housekeeping Department who put up a song and dance followed by the ribbon cutting ceremony by the Vice President of Hotel Operations, Mr. Mark McWhinnie and Paiza Executive Manager, Charles Ratnasingam to launch the week long celebration. Immediately after the launch all guests and Housekeeping team members were invited to tour the famous Housekeeping Hall of fame corridor to view the memorable moments captured on picture of the team in action through out the year.

Some of the activities carried out during the week long celebration were lucky draws with attractive prices ranging from free suite stays, F&B vouchers worth MOP $500, hand phones and electrical goods.

There were also games that the team members participated in such as Tug of War, Watermelon eating competition. Pass the Ping Pong Ball and etc. Team Members were also treated to cookies on Cookies Day.

On the final day of the celebration, the Housekeeping mini float parade was held, which was copied from the Pasadena Rose Bowl Float Parade. In this judged event with the theme of “Let’s Recycle”, participating teams from all sections in Housekeeping Department using all their skills, creativity and resources to design and decorate their magnificent floats using recycled items only. The floats were paraded in front of a group of judges who voted for the best top 5 floats. The winners were then presented with trophies and certificates of participation.

Hotels opening in Macau 2011

 

 

Galaxy
Galaxy Macau is a resort located on the Cotai Strip. It costs HK$14.1 billion to build and is currently being developed by Galaxy Entertainment Group. It is scheduled to open in the first quarter of 2011. Construction on the Cotai project began in 2002, but its opening has since then been rescheduled several times. When the Cotai project’s first phase opens in 2011, the 550,000-square-metre property will offer around 2,200 hotel rooms comprising the 1,500-room Galaxy Macau hotel tower complete with casino and entertainment areas, as well as two hotel partners, the Japanese-owned 410-room Okura Hotel and the Singapore-operated Banyan Tree Hotel that will have 254 suites.

Sands Corporation opening St Regis, Sheraton, Shangri-La and InterContinental

Shangri-la
Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts, Asia Pacific’s leading luxury hotel group, announces that the construction of the Shangri-La Hotel, Macau and the Traders Hotel, Macau has been resumed and both hotels will open in the second half of 2011. The 638-room Shangri-La hotel and 1,223-room Traders hotel will occupy a 40-storey building, designed by leading US and Asia architects and designers. A full range of facilities and services will cater to both convention and leisure travelers to the city.  The tower will include a casino, theatre, entertainment facilities and large retail shopping mall, none of which will be operated by Shangri-La.

Sheraton Macao opening November 01
Sheraton Macao Hotel is an incomplete hotel that was being built in the Cotai Strip in Macau. The hotel was funded by Las Vegas Sands and would have been managed by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide. Construction was halted halfway through in 2008, following the world economic collapse. In July 2010 construction resumed for a June-November 2011 opening.  Accommodation: 4,067 guestrooms, including standard rooms, suites and tower rooms, Total meeting space 25,215 sqm.  Other facilities: 2 Health club, 1 Spa, 3 outdoor swimming pools, 7 restaurants and lounges,  2 levels of retail Dining and entertainment options within Cotai,  1,600 seat entertainment theatre

St. Regis Macao
St. Regis Macao is one of the hotel projects in the Cotai Strip in Macao. The hotel is funded by Las Vegas Sands and managed by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide. Accommodation 439 guest rooms 300 residences with total meeting space 321 sqm, other facilities, Health club, Remede Spa, 2 outdoor swimming pools, 2 restaurants and lounges, 2 levels of retail, numerous dining and entertainment options within Cotai and a 1,600 seat entertainment theatre.

InterContinental
Sands and IHG have also done a deal in Macau for an InterContinental and a Holiday Inn. But construction will not begin until Sands’ current Macau project is up and running. The first phase of those sites is still expected to open in late 2011.

 

Hospitalit-e Project on Track

For many years L&A has been at the forefront of new technology in Housekeeping and has successfully delivered many different training programs around the world. These workshops, courses and programs have always been in a face-to-face environment, but from early next year the first course ‘Finance for Housekeeping Managers’ will be available online. The online delivery is currently in development and almost complete.

This project is a collaboration between Lycette & Associates, Balfour College and PHAN (The Professional Housekeeping Association of NSW). The course and pilot, scheduled to take place this month has been financed through a grant awarded by the NSW Government under the Australian Flexible Learning Framework. PHAN members are participating in this month’s pilot course. Upon completion the participants will receive a certificate for 3 units of competency in Finance as part of the Certificate IV course in Hospitality. The units of competency are as follows:

• SITXFIN003A – Interpret financial information
• SITXFIN004A – Manage finances within a budget
• SITXFIN005A – Prepare and Monitor budgets

The eleaning project team has worked hard and diligently to keep on track. After a recent mid-project meeting with the Australian Flexible Learning Framework the team was congratulated for its progress to date.

The pilot is scheduled for 14September and will take place at the Four Seasons Hotel in Sydney. Registration is already complete and the course is already at maximum capacity. Participants have signed up to undertake a maximum 6 hours per week over a 3-week period and the course concludes with a workplace-based assessment by the end of October. All participants agreed to provide the team with feedback upon completing this pilot course.

Finance for Housekeeping Managers will be available through L&A or Balfour College 4 times per year. Each course is run over several weeks and students move through all the subjects and assessments as a cohort.

For more information on elearning, this course or anything else on housekeeping email Liz Lycette on liz@lycetteandassociates.com

L&A visits Wolgan Valley, Emirates’ new luxury resort

Recently, Lycette & Associates had the opportunity to visit Wolgan Valley Resort & Spa, Emirates new conservation based luxury resort just over the Blue Mountains 180 km west of Sydney. The $125 Million resort was built with the same principles as the acclaimed Al Maha Desert Resort & Spa. These principles are sustainable and environmental awareness, leading in wildlife conservation and in particular protecting endangered species. Situated between two of Australia’s most prominent national parks and bordering the Blue Mountains World Heritage Area, Wolgan Valley Resort &
 Spa features 40 individual secluded suites, and is fully integrated into its environment. The resort occupies only two per cent of its 4,000-acre land, while the remaining area is dedicated as a wildlife reserve.

The journey to Wolgan Valley was undertaken with colleague and friend Michael Jackson, a service specialist with i Perform, which was involved in the initial staff training before the resort opened its doors last October.

Our host, Andrew Adams-Smith, Guest Services Manager at the resort organized a lovely lunch and took the time to show us around the property from the main arrival area, to some of the suits and the heritage1832 settler farmhouse. It was fascinating.

But for L&A no visit is complete without a look at the resort’s housekeeping department. We met a few room attendants and were able to discuss some of the difficulties they encounter on a daily basis. The layout of the resort is not unlike the Commune by the Great Wall in China with a reasonable distance between each suite. A motorized buggy is required to get staff and supplies around the resort. Dust is an ongoing challenge!

Unfortunately, the executive housekeeper, Brenda Olson was not available the day we visited, but we met later on the phone. The interview with Brenda Olson is available in our next blog post.

It was a most interesting day indeed. With special thanks to Andrew for his hospitality and his endless enthusiasm when showing us around this remarkable resort.

Experiences of a mature student

By Ariane Lellmann

In 2005 the Blue Mountains International Hospitality Management School invited L&A to be involved with its “Industry Stars” programme. This programme regularly invites industry professionals to address students through guest lectures, share “real life experiences” in candid Q&A sessions and conduct small work shop sessions.

Involvement in this programme was a highly rewarding experience and lead to my on-going role at BMHS through my delivery of lectures, regular review of all practical Housekeeping matters, updating of Housekeeping training techniques to ensure students are kept abreast of the latest industry trends and technologies and the introduction of a regular Housekeeping Olympics contest at the end of each semester.

At this stage of my career I am very much enjoying this association and am finding it very satisfying to ‘give back’ to young aspiring students some of the motivational advice and inspiration I was fortunate enough to have received during my working life. I am

particularly happy to talk about the many diverse aspects and challenges of professional housekeeping management to awaken and foster an interest in Housekeeping as a career path. I have been very pleased to have mentored several students who chose a 6-month industry placement in Housekeeping as part of their studies.

However, my wish to increase of my involvement with the school at a more meaningful level presented one small hitch:  I needed to upgrade and formalise my academic qualifications!

So in March 2009 I enthusiastically embarked on a Master Degree of Business in Management at the University of Technology Sydney(UTS). This course covers 12 subjects and studying part-time should take me 3 years to complete. My enthusiasm was quickly tempered by my introduction to a painfully steep learning curve and realisation that in-depth research, academic writing and the extensive use of electronic media required different skills that did not at first come intuitively.

But, as we all know, Housekeepers do not give up easily! As I single-mindedly perservered I discovered that 25 years experience of managing colleagues of many different nationalities and backgrounds, motivating people daily in the face of repetitive and often physically demanding jobs yielded a very rich experience that made my student problem solving exercises, case studies and class discussion and presentations feel easy and natural. All of us at L&A know how to carefully observe and assess a situation during the first days of a consultancy so that we can differentiate between surface symptoms and underlying root causes in order to design a truly meaningful plan forward. This systematic problem solving method proved to be an essential skill.

Naturally subjects such as “Economics”, “HR” and “Finance” are part of my study programme, but I find those subjects that focus on people related topics the most inspiring and enlightening. My fabourite subjects are; “Organisational Psychology”, “Change Management” and “Management Skills”. All are fascinating subjects that explore the true potential and value of people in an organisation as well as the community and environment in which it operates. My international hospitality experience has been a wonderful foundation on which I thoroughly enjoyed exploring these issues further while at the same time having my own assumptions and opinions challenged, tested and thereby broadened.

My chosen topic for the next semester is “International Business Studies” focusing on the rich diversity and different approaches different cultures and nationalities bring to business and negotiation. Again this is a topic familar to many people in our industry!

Another, somewhat unexpected and fabulous aspect of my studies has proved to be the many different people I have met in lectures and during group work projects. Discussing the implementation of Macdonald’s fast food concept and particular style of American service culture in Saudi Arabia’s capital Ryiad with a young Saudi oil engineer as well as talking about change management issues in the Australian education system with a 75 year old, fellow mature student have been truly inspiring and have presented me with new perspectives.

I believe most Housekeepers instinctively understand the truth of Lee Iacocca’s words “Management is nothing more than motivating other people”  (Lee Iacocca, CEO Chrysler Corporation,1978 -1992). I certainly feel that the experiences of my studies have increased my awareness of this matter.

I look forward to completing my studies and to achieving the fomal qualifications that will facilitate my greater involvement and contribution to the industry that has been such an important part of my life.

Blue Mountains Hotel School – Housekeeping Olympics

Liz and Ariane from L&A were delighted to assist the Blue Mountains Hotel School Year 2 Business Degree students, set up and run the Inaugural Housekeeping Olympics on 1st June 2009. Modelled on the PHAN Olympics held in January this year, events included the toilet paper throwing relay, the toilet paper mummy wrapping competition and the famous bed making relay.

The afternoon event was enjoyed by all and the winning team was rewarded with the coveted Golden Toilet Brush award for outstanding performance.

City of Dreams launches with Optii Keeper – May 2009

Macau’s newest hotel and casino complex ushers in Best Practice for housekeeping with Optii Keeper, the world’s first housekeeping optimisation solution.

The ‘City of Dreams’ complex in Macau is the latest Asian leisure and entertainment destination, setting new standards in leisure entertainment for Macau and Asia. City of Dreams is set to greatly strengthen Macau’s growing reputation as the region’s premier leisure destination.

Realising the need to deploy a more strategic approach to business optimisation, City of Dreams was looking for a housekeeping solution able to provide operational savings and guarantee a more efficient administration of its 2 hotels on site, the Crown Towers and Hard Rock Hotel.

“With the uncertain economy characterising the present marketplace, hoteliers are finding it increasingly difficult to optimise their workforce without sacrificing the quality and service delivery. Optii Keeper can be the housekeeping department’s best ally by helping to improve quality, lift staff morale and deliver enormous productivity gains.” said Ross Lightfoot, Vice President, Sales of Optii Solutions. “We are proud to be working with City of Dreams in assisting the properties to deliver on their departmental profit expectations – and exceed the service delivery.”

About Optii Solutions

Optii Solutions is the premier provider of innovative software solutions to the global hotel industry.

Optii Solutions’ goal is to work hand-in-hand with clients to identify and solve strategically important organisational challenges in accommodation hotels. The solutions are created interactively, with direct involvement by hotel clients from conceptual design to refinement and testing. Optii therefore produces solutions that are easy to use by all levels of staff, relevant, effective and deliver measurable results.

Optii Solutions is a private, debt-free company headquartered in Brisbane, Australia.

The Hilton Sydney – a successful model of Housekeeping staff outsourcing

By Ariane Lellmann, Lycette & Associates – senior consultant

The Sydney Hilton is a 5*, 577 bedroom hotel, reopened in 2005 after 2.5 years of extensive renovations, containing 4 Bars and restaurants, Spa, wide spread Public Areas and major function space. The Executive Housekeeper, Ms Leonie Looser, is a hospitality professional with over 25 years experience and has been with the Hilton Sydney since 10 years. Since the hotel re-opened 2 years ago, only the Executive Housekeeper and 1 Assistant Executive Housekeeper are employed by the hotel, all other Housekeeping staff are supplied from an outsourcing provider.

Lycette & Associates had the opportunity to discuss with Leonie this particular chosen outsourcing approach and how this impacted on her daily work and responsibilities.

Preparing to outsource successfully:

AL: Leonie, did you have any previous experience with outsourcing companies and to what extend?LL: Yes, I have previously worked with outsourcing providers, but only as a labour top-up resource.

AL: What were your initial main reasons for looking at a full outsourcing option and what were your expectations?

LL: When the Hilton closed for renovation in 2002 Housekeeping consisted of a very mature age work force. We were not looking for a quick, cheap cost cutting exercise but for a viable financial partnership with a provider in regards to OH&S and workers compensation cost responsibilities

AL: Given average hotel occupancy how many staff for how many departments were you approximately looking for on a daily basis?

LL: Apart from our Hilton employees in-house Laundry (15 staff) we were looking for an overall team of approximately 100 plus staff, covering a.m./p.m. Room attendants, a.m./p.m. Supervisors, a.m./p.m. Public Area attendants, Uniform room Attendants (open 24 hours) and administration.

AL: The Hilton is a very large hotel and a complex, demanding operation but a long-time and experienced Housekeeper such as you does all the jobs involved almost automatically. How did you approach identifying the many essential key points in a systematic fashion when preparing the brief for the selection process?

LL: We have started with Hilton’s Standard Operating Procedures, our brand standards and core competencies as a base and developed a very detailed manual from there. We have written our own very specific “how-to-do” procedures, detailing every step in regards to equipment care, furniture care and every task, big and small, to be carried out in our operation. This has taken months to prepare, but it is a very critical step in the preparation process in order to avoid any misunderstandings. Every step and task of the operation needed to be clearly defined as to “who”, “what”, “how often” and “to what standard” so that I was confident we had a clearly defined basis of the 5* quality operation expected at a Hilton Hotel. We also determined and set the staffing levels and productivity.

AL: So quality assurance was obviously one of your main issues – what else were your initial concerns?

LL: Yes, the issue of ownership on quality and a potential clash of a “business deal” versus the “demands of quality” was very important to me. I was also concerned about commitment to training, communication and how to truly understand a 5* operation. Therefore it was very important to spell out what exactly was expected as a basis for any future negotiations.

AL: What would you consider as priorities and crucial elements to focus on when interviewing and subsequently negotiating with an outsourcing provider?

LL: The biggest drive was my absolute commitment to quality; any discussion and negotiation about the business model had to entail our detailed “how-to-do” specifications and I didn’t take anything for granted. After an initial selection process we allowed the providers to price and cost the model on the specific basis of our given expectations and set their margins. We then compared these quotations against an all-staff-in-house model with 3 different occupancy levels, based on average previous actual experience and figures. Apart from that varied and detailed reference checks are also very important.

AL: Negotiating and composing a business contract of this volume requires very specific expertise, apart from an operational understanding of the Housekeeping operation. Who and what did you work with closely during the process?

LL: Absolutely – the Hotel Manager, Financial Controller and I worked together very closely during the entire process and we also had professional legal advice and assistance.

 

Working with the chosen outsourcing provider on a daily basis:

AL: Housekeepers traditionally tend to like to nurture their own staff, don’t like “losing control” and by nature of their quintessential job scope worry about quality control. How do you now handle communication with the provider and their staff?

LL: We have on site full time a senior Operations Manager with whom we have a very close relationship. We also have daily Supervisor meetings just as in any operation, regular monthly Room Attendant meetings and possibly 1-2 more ad-hoc briefings. The Supervisors are also invited 3-monthly to general information and communications meetings with the Hotel Manager and Hilton pays for this time. It is extremely important to think of the provider’s employees as “our team” and to integrate them with hotel employed team members from other departments. Here nobody thinks of them as outsiders and we all are simply “The Housekeeping team”.

AL: How do you assure training of new staff is to the expected level of competency for the Hilton Sydney?

LL: The training process and duration for new starters is part of the contract and has been previously agreed and set at 10 days to reach full productivity. Any training required due to new policies to our brand service standards is paid for by Hilton. Any coaching or disciplinary meeting will have a Hilton employed person and a provider employee present. We are very quick to follow up on any guest comment/ complaints/ mystery shopper results (positive as well as negative feedback)

AL: How do you assure compliance with health and safety standards?

LL: It is very important to understand that the hotel cannot shift away from that responsibility. The hotel has to provide a safe workplace and equipment and has the responsibility to document its risk management policies and actions.

AL: How do you maintain a motivating environment for the staff wanting to achieve their best and can you still have recognition and incentive schemes?

LL: Absolutely and that too is very important and was discussed at the contract negotiation phase. The provider hosts 2 “employee of the month” awards based on Hilton’s performance criteria, one for Room Attendants and one for the other Housekeeping positions. From Hilton’s side we run another smaller incentive scheme for staff that have done something special plus we invite all staff quarterly to a lovely morning tea party with lucky door prizes.

AL: How do you handle special and/or unforeseen cleaning tasks (such as follow-up after a carpet shampoo, follow-up after preventive maintenance/any maintenance job) as well as periodic cleaning tasks?

LL: All these jobs have been priced out before and a fix job rate for each task has been agreed, which I need to budget.

AL: After your initial concerns how do you now handle quality control and delivery of consistent service standards?

LL: We have a very transparent and measurable quality control programme based on our brand standards in place. We spot check occupied rooms as well as departure rooms and everything is documented and uploaded in our quality computer system. It works very well and also forms the basis for the award system.

 

The experience of 2 years:

AL: You are now looking back on 2 years of working with your chosen provider. What would you describe as the main benefit for you and the hotel in working with the current system?

LL: It is important to have the right mind set to make this system work. The main benefit I feel is that I am not bogged down with a lot of paperwork and reports anymore, particularly pertaining to the recruitment process. This allows me to focus on many other aspects better. I am also sharing the responsibility for overseeing the performance of all.

AL: How do the actual results compare to your initial expectations financially?

LL: Financially this system runs on par with an in-house-employed system, but the benefit for us is in the avoidance of the potentially unknown workers compensation blow-out.

AL: How would you describe the skills and knowledge required to be a “Business Manager in charge of Housekeeping Services” in today’s competitive environment?

LL: A thorough understanding of financial management is essential. You have to understand yield and average rate and know where and how savings can be obtained in relationship to occupancy and average rate. I need to develop my own annual business plan and score card and am held responsible against those. This reflects not only financial performance but also the quality as scored in our guest satisfaction surveys. I also believe that suppliers’ relationships are very important and you have to have an active role in the purchasing decision process. Last not least it is essential today to have an understanding of the most recent changes to the Industrial Relations laws affecting the workplace.

AL: Looking to the future and the changing needs and expectations the hospitality industry places on its Managers, what advice would you share with young graduates/professionals interested in developing a career in Housekeeping?

LL: Learn all there is about the department while you have a chance in order to have a thorough understanding and appreciation of what is really involved. Become financially savvy and understand the aspect of financial management. Develop and hone your communication skills, may that be to negotiate successfully, share information clearly or motivate those around us – after all, we are in a people’s business.

Are your Housekeeping Department cuts actually costing you money?

Housekeeping Departments have one of the highest expenses and payroll budgets in all modern hotels operations. Attempts at savings by employing inexperienced or inadequately trained senior departmental staff invariably lead to inefficiencies in personnel management, resources control and a poorly prepared and presented property.

Principal of the Blue Mountains Hotel School, Guy Bentley asks us to ““consider the investment in the facility and in the rooms it takes to present the standards of comfort and elegance the client demands today.””

Bentley emphasizes the role of the Housekeeping Department and in particular the knowledge, experience and competence of the senior Housekeeping Department Managers in ensuring the successful presentation of the hotel and ultimately the success of the owner’’s investment. With General Managers now often responsible for more than one property they no longer have the time to build and nurture a close professional relationship with their Executive Housekeeper but Owners still need to have the confidence that their properties are being prepared and presented consistently and efficiently.

““The Executive Housekeeper holds the key to ensure that this main product meets the clients’’ requirements every day and investing in Executive Housekeeper professional development and mentoring support provides insurance on the investment””, he says.

Employing adequately trained and experienced senior Housekeeping Managers and ensuring their on-going professional development is critical to success in modern hotel operations. Unfortunately however it is often ill-considered and the Housekeeping Department training provisions are invariably areas of ‘‘cuts’’ when things get tough.

There is always the desire for an increase in productivity along with a simultaneous reduction in costs but in practice of course this is rarely achievable. It is very short- sighted to simply promote a competent Room Attendant or Floor Supervisor and then to expect them to be able to organize and manage a large team responsible for the cleaning and presentation of all rooms and public areas in a hotel. It takes an experienced professional to co-ordinate the necessary resources to ensure such tasks are performed reliably, efficiently and to consistent quality standards.

Executive Housekeeper of the Radisson Plaza Sydney, Maureen Jolowitz believes that ““the current Executive Housekeeper’’s role, with Owners’’ requirements and technology is far more complex than previously. Housekeepers, particularly those new to the role require support and formal mentoring. We don’’t need to reinvent the wheel –– the skills and experience are available and a formal mentoring system would assist in boosting the confidence, moral and status of Executive Housekeepers and therefore Housekeeping Departments.””

Michael Cottan, General Manager of the Shangri-la Hotel Sydney identifies specific and emerging challenges facing Executive Housekeepers; ““Executive Housekeepers lead a diverse workforce consisting usually of many cultural backgrounds, skilled and unskilled, full-time, part-time and outsourced labour. Most often senior Housekeeping Department staff have achieved their position by working up through the ranks and are inadequately prepared for the challenges of leadership and management skills.””

Leonie Looser, Executive Housekeeper of the Sydney Hilton puts it this way; ““In today’’s world and the quest for the hard earned dollar, little time has been left for the mentoring, training and development of the Housekeeping professional””.

A strong, well-managed and experienced Housekeeping management team will increase the efficiency of the operation and have a significant impact on the hotel’’s on-going profitability.

The hotel industry requires a higher level of professionalism in Housekeeping operations to competently manage current and up-coming challenges. It also needs an increase in the supply of experienced and professional senior and Executive Housekeepers to manage the Housekeeping functions of new properties being developed. Unfortunately the supply of potentially new recruits is limited as many hotel school students are attracted to other management roles in the industry rather than the less glamorous and generally lower rewarded Housekeeping positions.

This situation must be corrected and the role and function of the Executive Housekeeper and senior Housekeeping staff in the overall profitability and successful operation must be recognized and promoted. Furthermore suitable candidates must be identified and nurtured into Housekeeping roles to maintain this often over-looked, but vitally important area of operations.

Investment in in-house and external professional development of senior housekeeping staff is essential to the profitable future of the hotel industry.

March 2005 Issue – Executive Housekeeping Magazine
This article was first published in ‘The Executive Housekeeper’ magazine, the official publication of Australia’s Executive Housekeeping associations. www.adbourne.com