The reservations office at Nomsa's Getaway Lodge is so busy that the reservations agents do not use the computer system to check room availabilities before recording reservation requests. Their standard procedure is to jot down all the relevant reservation information on a pad of paper, record the information when call volume slows, and then call the guest back to confirm the reservation. Given the fact that the reservations manager, Bradley Lawrence, doesn't trust the computer system, he insists that his staff maintain a reservations rack using typed reservation slips and a set of wooden pockets. Each morning, the reservations agents transfer the reservation slips for those guests expected to arrive that day to the front desk to facilitate a faster check-in.
Upon arrival at the front desk, each guest is asked to complete registration card. The front desk agent matches the information on this card with the reservation slip to ensure proper check-in procedures. Once the guest leaves the desk for the room, the front desk agent, if not too busy, records the check-in in the hotel's computer system. Although many guests claim to have a reservation, the front desk agent often fails to find a reservation slip that matches the registration information. The front office manager, Mr. Molefe, has been tracking the number of arriving guests claiming to have made a reservation against the number of successful matches with the reservation slips. He is concerned that less than ½ the number of guests stating reservations were made have reservation slips.
The hotel has had to develop new procedures for check-out due to the length of time guests appear to wait in line. At the time of check-out, the front desk agent simply reviews the guest's most current folio, settles the account to an acceptable method of payment, and writes down the room number of the guestroom that has been vacated. Sometime later, after the wave of departures, the front desk agent updates the computer system and calls the room numbers down to housekeeping using the hotel's intercom system.
Case Number: 3323CC.
Discussion Questions
1. What actions should be taken to improve the effectiveness of the reservations department?
2. What two actions could be done to improve the hotel's reservation-to-registration linkage?
3. What could be done to improve the communication between the front desk and the housekeeping department?
4. How might an efficient computer system reduce or eliminate many of the problems the hotel is now experiencing?