Working in hotels is challenging, no matter your role or level of responsibility.
Remaining productive in such a fast-paced, stressful environment is therefore challenging, but have you ever stopped to think if the working conditions at your hotel are negatively impacting productivity?
If they are, this isn’t your fault – it’s a common mistake, and, thankfully, can be easily fixed. You can start by taking some feedback from your staff. Is your hospitality software allowing them to perform their tasks efficiently? Are property conditions affecting their work day? Are communication processes as effective as they can be?
Here are some common working conditions that can damage the productivity levels of hotel employees.
Bad tech
Do you hear hotel staff regularly complain about the software they use each day? Are they still languishing on an early version of Microsoft Office that can’t deal with modern guest attachments?
We’re used to blisteringly-fast technology that can perform all manners of tasks in our private lives, so why shouldn’t the same level of functionality and speed be present at work? If the tools you’re expecting the team to use aren’t up to scratch, their productivity levels will likely suffer.
Bad utilisation of space
Few independent hotels are blessed with the amount of space you’ll find in the big chains, but that doesn’t mean you can’t make effective use of the available space. Colleagues continually bumping into each other and regularly misplacing items due to a lack of storage might result in poor productivity.
The term “set up to fail” absolutely applies here; your staff need adequate room and space in which to undertake their jobs effectively – even if that means finally throwing away the large office furniture you’ve held onto for years.
Bad lighting
Natural light is vital if you want the team to maintain a high level of productivity and reduce their fatigue. If natural light isn’t readily available, it’s important you replace it with as much decent lighting as possible to avoid eye strain and, let’s be honest, what might turn into a rather gloomy atmosphere.
Broken processes
When was the last time you reviewed your hotel’s key processes? With so much going on in a modern hotel, it’s all-too-easy to let processes fester and become cumbersome. Unfortunately, bad processes are often accepted as ‘the norm’ by employees who either don’t know better or who have given up trying to get them changed. And, when that happens, productivity usually takes a significant dip.
Take some time to have a chat with your team and start identifying the processes that need your attention. Pay particular attention to processes linked with technology and work that into your tech review process; you might be surprised by how many manual processes you can now digitise with affordable software.
Lack of work-life balance
There’s no escaping the fact that hospitality careers involve a fair amount of unsociable work. But that doesn’t mean employees within the industry should have a poor work-life balance. On the contrary, the best modern hotel operations focus on raising workplace flexibility. Flexi-time and working from home for departments whose roles lend themselves to it are two examples of where you could help improve the work-life balance of your team.
Your hotel team doesn’t have to be consigned to the four walls of the property, and those who have to be present may be harbouring a desire to work more flexible hours. Speak to the team individually and find out what they want from their job and ask how you can improve their work-life balance.
Wrapping up
We’re not suggesting any of the tips above can be implemented overnight. They require time, effort and a desire to keep up momentum. How many productivity gaps can you find in your hotel?
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CMS Hospitality holds over 30 years of experience in delivering hospitality software solutions. GuestCentrix offers the most complete solution in hospitality software, whether you’re running a hotel, a resort or a hostel. Our highly experienced support and installations team holds a unique understanding of the hospitality industry and will aim to provide software that suits your property’s needs.
Call us today at (+61) 2 9440 9711, or email us at sales@cmshospitality.com. We will be happy to guide you to the GuestCentrix solution that’s right for you.