Deck 7: Managing Guest Service

Question 1

To show that the every complaint is seriously considered, first-class hotels compensate every complaining guest, no matter how small the payment.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

A "road warrior"is a frequent, business traveler who sleeps away from home a great deal and battles the challenges of regular travel.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

The authors define total quality management or customer service management as an attitude that has every employee acting like a concierge and thinking like a manager.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

The best type of quality guarantee is an open-ended one, where the hotel guarantees the guest complete satisfaction.

Question 5

Angry guests can be mollified if the employee who caused the problem is disciplined or, in serious situations, even discharged in front of the complainer.

Question 6

A duvet is a:

A) Washable cover that replaces the traditional bedspread
B) Second shower head in a "heavenly" shower
C) Name given to the recently introduced job of sleep concierge
D) Specially shaped bed pillow
E) None of the above, "duvet" is a food term

Question 7

TQM (Total Quality Management):

A) Overlooks mistakes made by employees
B) Avoids the costs of technical training by hiring only skilled employees
C) Does away with review and evaluation
D) Forbids discipline by supervisors
E) None of the above

Question 8

When guest and employee meet "eyeball to eyeball,"there's an opportunity for service to shine through. That opportunity has been called a:

A) Moment of truth
B) Who-knows-why?
C) Quality guarantee
D) Quality circle
E) None of the above

Question 9

Which hotel chain has won two Malcolm Baldrige Awards for quality?

A) Hilton
B) Ritz-Carlton
C) Four Seasons
D) Hyatt
E) None of the above

Question 10

The American Hotel & Motel Association (AH&MA) is now called the:

A) American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA)
B) American Hotel & Restaurant Association (AH&RA)
C) American Hospitality Association (AHA)
D) American Hotel Association (AHA)
E) There has been no change, it is still called the American Hotel & Motel Association

Question 11

Identify one complaint that guests will frequently register with the guest-service agent at the front desk, and offer a best-practice response that management has prepared in anticipation of the complaint.

Question 12

Many hotels prefer "associate"as a softer name for "employee,"because it also references the individual's critical role in accomplishing the hotel's mission.

Question 13

Despite all the fancy amenities available, guests still rank a good alarm clock high on the "must-have"list.

Question 14

Because of the high annual cost of mattresses, most hotels delay replacing them as long as possible.

Question 15

The term "soft goods"refers to the furniture in the hotel rooms: bed, bureau, television and the like.

Question 16

A 180 thread count, 100 threads in one direction and 80 in the other, is popular with most hotels.

Question 17

A "par"inventory of 5 is recommended for bed linens: one set on the bed; one in the floor closet; one on the maid's cart; one in the linen room and one in the laundry.

Question 18

"Road warriors"protect travelers against mishaps and are more evident in the USA since the attack on the World Trade Center.

Question 19

The very best hotels usually dry clean traditional bedspreads every other occupant.

Question 20

Comforters with duvet covers are replacing the more traditional bedspreads in many hotels.

Question 21

Shortening - almost reducing - the size of the vanity that holds all the bath amenities makes the bathroom look cleaner.

Question 22

Minor, in-room repairs often go unreported by the room housekeeper because the English form for doing so does not make sense to a foreign-speaking attendant.

Question 23

Quality circles are impressive building designs that hotels are using in lobbies to make a startling architectural statement.

Question 24

Empowerment gives the workforce authority to act in some areas that had previously been management's responsibility.

Question 25

Round and round we go, because empowering employees reduces the need for supervisors and reducing the need for supervisors requires employees to make more decisions.

Question 26

As one would expect, the racial and cultural diversity of the hotel industry's workforce is the same as the cultural and racial diversity of the national population.

Question 27

A counter revolution is taking place because hotels that were once smoke-free are quietly switching back to allow smoking.

Question 28

The same guest holds different expectations about the service to be received because the type, plan, rate and size of every hotel differs.

Question 29

Hotels are no different from manufacturing: The quality of both products can be monitored, measured and quantified.

Question 30

Total quality management (TQM) originated in the service industries, spearheaded especially by the hotel industry, and has been adopted gradually by heavy industry.

Question 31

Bedding has become as much a public relations/advertising issue as it is a factor of guest comfort.

Question 32

Amazingly, cleanliness ranks lower in guest survey results than does a good mirror and an in-room coffee maker.

Question 33

Although different hotel companies use different names and stress different issues, the focus of all QA programs is hiring, training, delegating and rewarding employees.

Question 34

Third (top) sheets, which are gaining popularity especially in upscale hotels, have an cost over and above the actual sheet's initial price, they add weight and hence cost to the laundry.

Question 35

Top sheets (third sheets) are changed along with other bedding, often daily; duvets might be changed daily, but that is unusual.

Question 36

"How was everything?"is the right question for management to ask guests if it is trying to uncover problem areas within the hotel.

Question 37

Safety can be improved by directing children and the elderly to escalators rather than elevators.

Question 38

Because few guests actually return to the same hotel, modern management theory leaves complaints slide by rather than spending time and money to resolve them.

Question 39

Complaints are like the icebergs that sank the Titanic: Most are below the surface, unseen until they appear with disastrous results.

Question 40

Preparing for complaints includes recognizing the best practices for solving them since complaints often follow the same pattern within a given department.

Question 41

If it were merely a question of dollar cost, it makes good sense (cents) to retain the worker rather than recruit a new one.

Question 42

One of the difficulties with introducing empowerment is that many employees don't want it.

Question 43

Probably the best place to fill a job opening for a bar back (support position for a bartender) is the Worldwide Web.

Question 44

Hotel labor unions are strongest in the large hotel cities, best represented by southern cities: such as Orlando, New Orleans and Memphis.

Question 45

Total quality management (TQM) is difficult to define and identify because both the lodging industry (the seller) and the guest (the buyer) are segmented into many parts.

Question 46

Managing for quality adds "leadership"to the traditional management functions of planning, organizing, staffing, directing and reviewing.

Question 47

TQM never permits criticism of a bad decision, but stresses, rather, a proactive approach that aims to avoid errors.

Question 48

Customer relations management (CRM) begins with employment, where "selecting"the employee is more important than "hiring"the applicant.

Question 49

The ADA is a federal law that followed and explained much of the original OSHA legislation.

Question 50

Among the early problems of the ADA, was the failure of the law to define terms (such as "readily achievable"or "undue burden"), which pushed many issues into the courts.

Question 51

Most visually handicapped persons read Braille.

Question 52

The dollar costs of unresolved complaints can be calculated quite accurately by using the dollar values that are part of the "Moments of Truth."

Question 53

Hotel managers complain more about the accuracy of guest-comment cards when those cards are used for salary and promotion decisions.

Question 54

The low response rate of guest-comment cards can be improved by reducing the size of the questionnaire.

Question 55

Managers should distract complaining guests by handling other business (telephone calls, computer messaging, etc.) while the complainant is talking.

Question 56

Quality control is maintained by several techniques, including fear of job loss; reduction in salary; and assignment of poor working hours (hotels are opened 24 hours per day).

Question 57

Avoiding mistakes rather than correcting them is the essence of total quality management.

Question 58

Public areas, such as lobbies, are the best place to resolve guest complaints because guests are less likely to make a scene.

Question 59

Good hotel managers resolve complaints without excessive costs, especially if no harm was done: Apologies are free; give away as many as needed.

Question 60

"Customers are always right"is so true in fact that every complaint requires the hotel to make some type of adjustment.

Question 61

Franchise inspectors and rating agencies frequently visit the housekeeper's office knowing that an orderly office means an orderly hotel.

Question 62

Sheraton's "Service Promise"awards discounts, frequent-guest points and even cash for failing to meet given levels of service. That sounds like a Quality Guarantee.

Question 63

The most successful quality guarantee program start out as advertising ideas.

Question 64

Meeting planners have started asking for guarantees from the hotel (coffee served with 5 minutes after the meeting session breaks) to balance the guarantees they give (so many hundred covers for the final banquet).

Question 65

Employee empowerment has emerged because the hotel industry no longer has a traditional top-down line organization (manager-supervisor-supervised) structure.

Question 66

A "Moment-of-Truth"is the term used during the employee interview, when sensitive questions are posed by the interviewer and answered by the job applicant.

Question 67

Avoiding mistakes rather than correcting them is the essence of total quality management.

Question 68

Public areas, such as lobbies, are the best place to resolve guest complaints because guests are less likely to make a scene.

Question 69

Good hotel managers resolve complaints without excessive costs, especially if no harm was done: Apologies are free; give away as many as needed.

Question 70

"Customers are always right"is so true in fact that every complaint requires the hotel to make some type of adjustment.

Question 71

TQM gets more attention from management when the economic cycle is up and the operating company has more money to use on the concept.

Question 72

How would you resolve this complaint: Power on the room TV went off for 30 minutes after the guest had paid for a film on HBO?

A) Give his party of 4 a round of drinks in the bar
B) Upgrade two levels to a master suite
C) Give an allowance for the cost of the film
D) Comp the guest's room for the night
E) Each of these would be appropriate

Question 73

Preparing for the complaint means:

A) Understanding that some guests are show-offs
B) Developing a tolerance for drunks
C) Overlooking a bit of exaggeration
D) Accepting the fact that some guests will never be satisfied
E) All of the above

Question 74

When referencing their customers, retailers speak of ________; economists cite ________ ; galleries talk of ________; and hotels refer to ________:

A) Styles; inflation; artists; yield management
B) Shoplifting; gross domestic product; art; food and beverage
C) Seasons; downturns; Mona Lisa; conventions
D) Customers; consumers; patrons; guests
E) None of the above

Question 75

Which of the following issues should NOT be part of hotel training?

A) Interpersonal skill: meeting, greeting, courtesy
B) Broadening beyond the immediate job such as security and emergency awareness
C) Personal needs: cleanliness, promptness; retirement savings, etc.
D) Work skills: technical ability; computer savvy
E) None of these, that is, they are all hotel related

Question 76

Bedbugs:

A) Are appearing, in part, because of increased international travel
B) Must have bed linens (to eat) to survive
C) Must feast every night (on blood) or die
D) Are almost unknown in modern, sanitary hotels
E) Two of the above are accurate

Question 77

Which of the following is essential for good sleep?

A) Centralized HVAC
B) Being roomed on a floor midway in the building
C) Quiet
D) In-room amenities
E) All of these add to the sleep experience

Question 78

AAA requirements include:

A) Accessibility for the handicapped
B) Proprietary reservation systems
C) Duvets on guest room beds
D) In-room refrigerators
E) All of the above except C

Question 79

"Peer-group"hiring:

A) Has nothing to do with employment despite its name
B) Involves the very associates with whom the new hire will work
C) Brings guests into the hiring process
D) Uses outside, disinterested agencies or individuals
E) Either: Both C and D Or both B and C

Question 80

Among the "new"additions to the American guest room is/are:

A) Top (third) sheets
B) Duvets
C) Bottom fitted sheets
D) Variety of pillows
E) All of the above