Do Not Disturb

I always thought that people who left a Do Not Disturb sign on the door understood that we wouldn't call them or knock on their door. Evidently for some it doesn't quite mean that. I had a complaint from some people that their room wasn't cleaned. When I looked at the housekeeping sheets it was noted that there was a Do Not Disturb sign. But they told me that they'd taken the Do Not Disturb sign off in the morning. Since the housekeepers were gone I went ahead and apologized.

The next day I let the housekeeper know that she had to clean their room. I emphasized doing a good job. And then I went about my business until the housekeeper came and said that she was finished and there was a Do Not Disturb sign on the door. So I went up and looked. There it was. And so I went and typed up a note and slipped it under the door.

And about two hours after I'd done so the guests came down and complained about having a note slipped under their door when I could have called them and let them know that the housekeepers were leaving. And then they complained about letting the housekeepers leave before noon. And so I apologiized. And I said that I let the housekeepers go when they were finished with their assigned tasks. And I said that with the Do Not Disturb sign I didn't want to ring them in case they were sleeping late.

And what it came down to was that I should have read their mind and called them before the housekeepers left even though they had a Do Not Disturb sign on the door.

And I sighed. And I went up and cleaned the room.

from 2002 - lodging stories

It is really nice to know that those fire sprinkler systems put out a lot of water. But I wasn’t expecting to learn how much water they actually put out while I was working. We found out just how much water damage happens just this year. A delivery person knocked off the head of one of our sprinklers. We were planning on replacing the carpet and one of the rolls of padding came too close to the ceiling. In just under fifteen minutes six rooms and a hallway sustained water damage.

Which employees know where the shut off valve is for your sprinkler system? If it is only one employee each shift it may not be enough. The employee who knows the systems valves could be anywhere around the property. A quick tour to show each staff member where to reach emergency equipment and other equipment could save your property hundreds of dollars in replacement and other costs.

We lost the use of six rooms. The carpet padding already in storage was damaged. Furniture and other fixtures had to be replaced. Rooms were out of order while the carpet was dried. Rooms remained out of order until the insurance adjusters examined them. If you are solidly booked you may have to walk some customers. Walk-ins may leave when they see some of the damage. Every minute saved is worth the time spent training or re-training each staff member on where are your system valves and switches.

The fire department was a great help in containing the damage. They helped us move the water off of the carpet. But the men and women of the fire department will not know where your system valves and shut off switches are located. The fire department is not going to be on your premises when the accident happens. I have to confess I was not up to speed when we had our sprinkler incident. My first thought when hearing that a sprinkler head had been broken was that someone had driven over a lawn sprinkler. By the time I walked down the hallway and saw that it was a fire sprinkler the water was flowing out of the room door. That took two or three minutes. I squished down the hallway. Fortunately I had a portable phone with me so I could call the fire department immediately. Their arrival was about ten minutes later. The staff is your first line of defense in cost containment

By the way, does your staff know more than the location of the shut off valves? What are your emergency procedures? Who do they call first and are those numbers easily found in an emergency? The property where I work has the phone numbers of the general manager and owner posted near the numbers for local services at the front desk. This is out of sight of the customer and easily seen by the front desk staff. We assume that they will hear about a problem from the customers or other staff. For most locations 911 is the first number to call, but what about others that need to be informed. The general manager, owner(s), and several others may need to be informed. Customers will want to know what has happened. Your staff - whether housekeeping, front desk, maintenance, engineering, or other – will help you keep the good will and business of each customer, if they know what to do in an emergency. The staff will help you retain your customers in the face of an emergency.

The fire alarm will probably ring, while your staff deals with any accident to the sprinkler system. Your staff will need to know how and when to shut off the alarm system. In our case shutting off the alarm before finishing with the water was not sufficient. The alarm would continue to be set off as long as the water was flowing. But that leads to another question. If a fire alarm is accidentally pulled do your clerks know how to turn off the box along with the main system?

Since I have been at this property, an exploring child pulled the only fire alarm. While many fire alarms are not pulled because of an actual fire, the person on duty needs to treat them all seriously. Is the list of customers readily available? Who does the clerk call first? Is there a way for the clerk to call rooms without staying by the front desk? And what do you do to get the mechanism of the fire alarm back together?

Most of these questions need to be answered by the owner or general manager before an emergency happens. Even if the alarm goes off without an emergency or the sprinkler head is broken without a fire the staff present must know how to deal with the situation. Each property will have different procedures depending upon the equipment present, but a game plan is needed. Written procedures are necessary, but it is just as important to train your staff to handle the problem. Anyone who will be at the front desk or by themselves at the property will need to know the proper procedures. There must be training and regular review of the procedures. When there is an emergency whoever is on duty will not have time to look up instructions.

Preparation and training is the key to success in an emergency. Looking at the knobs and bells and whistles will take a little time during the day.

Too many boxes

Today I was reviewing our complaint file and found one from about two years ago. We were replacing all of our mattresses. We went from regular to pillow top mattresses. I can't say I'm sorry, but there were a couple of frustrations.

Just little things like trying to have the mattresses arrive in two separate shipments a week apart. We took out 92 mattresses, changed some of our rooms with two queens into single kings, then brought in 82 pillow top mattresses. It was a good change, but neither shipment arrived when scheduled but they did manage to arrive on the same day.

We hired extra help, but it was still a lot of work. And anyone with eyes could see that this was a project like road construction. It's a mess, but if they don't do it the roads will soon be in terrible shape. But not everyone thought the mess was worthwhile. I received a complaint that we had too many boxes in the hallway. I'd agree. We had too many boxes in the hallway, under our canopy and some were left unprotected while I prayed that it didn't rain. Evidently the fact that over the course of their stay they could see boxes of mattresses being moved in and out.

However that complaint didn't irritate me as much as our experience with the headboards. We replaced our headboards and other furniture the month after we did the mattresses. Our headboards would have been moved up anyway to deal with the new height of the pillow top mattresses and so the owner decided to do it all. The new headboards were lovely rectangles with two hooks on the back to hang them. And the hooks were in different places on each headboard. And so we measured 85 headboards in order to make sure they were all hung straight.

The headboards really were a lot less work than the mattresses, but it's the little thing of having to measure each headboard that got to us. Also with the rest of the furniture the handles were in the drawer, not on the drawer so we had to attach each and every knob and handle. It doesn't seem like much, but with fifty rooms to go it took more than a little time. It's not always the big things that really are irritating, sometimes small things - under an inch in diameter - like knobs and hooks can really get through our equanimity.

Dealing with customers

Am I complaining? Yes. But hopefully not in a boring manner. It's just that if you ask me to give something to someone else I'd like you to give me the name.

A guest asks me to give something to his supervisor. I asked for the name. He said 'He's in room..." And I said, "I need to do this by name." He said, "He's with this company." And I said, "Yes I realize that and so are you, but I need the name." He said, "He's F... but I don't know the last name, but it's money so I need you to give it to him." And I sighed.

Is it really to much for me to ask that you give me the name of the person rather than just telling me the room number, the company or that he's your boss?

Evidently so.

And I'm not trying to make trouble, but I've had a number of people with this company change rooms on me. I'm not trying to make problems, but we try to, for security and privacy, direct things to people by name rather than room number. I'm not trying to be difficult, but I ask the questions that I need to do my job and if you answer a different question I can't help you."

And frankly I've experienced bad customer service on the other side. I'm less tolerant of it than I used to be. Things I used to let go just bother me, since I've been on the side of giving good customer service and I know that it's not difficult to greet the customer as they come in. It's not hard to ask, "How can I help?" Telling the person on the phone that you've got so many customers ahead and asking whether they want to wait is simple.

But when I'm on the other side, I know the information I need to start looking for your lost item, or your receipt or whatever. If you don't answer the question I have, then please don't be surprised when it takes me longer to find what you need. The infromation you think I need first, may not be so. Please just answer the question that I asked - not the question you think I should have asked.

And more snow

Today we also had snow along with all the other stuff. But this was one of the storms that I can appreciate. We saw the light fluffy flakes with more air than water. Walking those flakes tickled the nose rather than chilled. And since I've shoveled at least twice a week for the last month or more, I was especially grateful to see the snow melt away before I got out a shovel or broom.

Enoying life is about finding the moments in-between to reflect, to relax, and to take pleasure in those moments without worrying about all the other things that are or may happen.

And one more thing

Did I say that some days everything seems to happen?

Well this is that day. Along with the couple having problems in their room, and the couple leaving a pickup, and the odd request came a problem with the fence.

Rather the problem wasn't with the fence so much as someone driving into the fence. My guess is that they backed into the fence. And so the whole backyard is open. Now we don't have a lot back there. There's a lawnmower - we were debating whether we could get another year out of it last fall. There's a number of pipes, a couple of tires, a few empty buckets, and a satellite dish. But we've made a report to the cops, we've called our insurance company, and we've called for an estimate on fixing it. We don't expect to catch the person and we expect the fix up will be less than our deductible.

And so it is just one more thing. One more thing to fix. There have been days in the past when I wrote a soliloquy on enjoying simple things like folding laundry. I don't think that's going to be such a pleasure today. Today it's just one more thing.

Today's the day

In the hotel business many days roll by with the usual checking guests in, checking guests out, cleaning rooms, fixing breakfast and nothing all that out of the ordinary. But then there are days. I've written about the domestic violence and the call my girlfriend to let her know about the truck. And just now a request for a room just to use the TV.

And now...

Really, truly, I don't care if you use the room for a couple of hours to watch TV or to have a nooner. But please don't expect a reduction in the price. If you say (and even if that's all you do), "I'm going to just watch a TV show" it doesn't lessen the cleaning that I do. I still wash the sheets after you leave, I still wash the towels. And please don't expect me to believe that you won't use the bathroom and sink so I will clean those. My costs to the franchise remain the same. My costs to the credit card company remain the same. Two hours or ten hours - the amount of time you spend in the room just won't make a difference in my costs.

But that's what happened today. Someone told me that they wanted to rent a room for a couple of hours to watch a TV program and didn't want to believe there was no difference in the price. I had to break it to a customer that just watching TV means I have to clean the room just as much as if they took a nap or more.

No thanks

Today I told someone that it wasn't my problem. A guy called and wanted me to take down the name and phone number of his girlfriend - or ex girlfriend - with whom he'd had an argument. I was supposed to call her and let her know that her pickup was in our lot. He seemed surprised when I said, "I'm not getting in the middle of this." And I'm not.

If he left the pickup there it is his problem. If she left the pickup here then it's her problem. In any case, my responsibility is to the owner and my guests. Getting involved in a domestic dispute is something I'm leery of. The questions that flashed through my head were along the line of "Does he have a protection order against him so he can't call her?" and from that going if anything similar to that I really don't want to be in the middle.

If the pickup stays in my lot, then I'll do the thing I do usually. That is, let the towing company check out the name and person from their license plate and take it from there. Getting in the middle of a fight, that's just not going to happen.

Upsetting

In the motel business I sometimes come across more upset than I want. Last night was one of those times. I'm not sure who was beating up whom but there was plenty of moise and some sounds as if someone were hit. So my night person called the cops to deal with the couple. One of them mouthed off to the cops and went to jail and the other wanted to stay the rest of the night since they were too drunk to drive.

I hope I'm appropriately sympathetic in instances of domestic violence, but this is not behavior that we expect in our guests. Especially since we had several items broken in the room. If the guest had called to the front desk to report broken items I might have been more sympathetic. But when we hear complaints from rooms around the people. And when we go down and hear signs that someone is being beaten up. And when we have to call the cops. Then I'm not sympathetic to the plight.

And so our left-over guest was asked to leave. The credit card they used was charged for room damages and clean-up for smoking in a non-smoking room. And my housekeepers had more work then they should.

What's the appropriate action? I want to help the one being abused, but is it help to let them remain? I tend to think it is more help to make clear that this is a major problem and provide a phone number for the women's crisis center, than to just let the person stay. I had several options and none of them were good.

So I'm upset. And a little bit angry at the world.

Right into the round file

I hire people regularly. I hope not to fire people. So when I hire people I look for whether they can follow directions. I certainly don't believe that I'm always right, but I do want people who can do things my way. My classified ad says a couple of things like 'professional and friendly'. It gives our address but not our phone number and right after the address says, 'No Phone Calls, please.'

I received a call today from someone who asked "Which side of the highway are you on"' and I gave directions, then concluded with 'and how else can I help you?' The reply was "I saw your ad in the paper and wanted to get directions so I could fill out an application." I asked, "Did you see the note about 'No phone calls'?" And heard, "Yes, but I wanted to make sure I found you."

I don't want my phone tied up with applicants when I'm working with customers. I do want to know that applicants can find us by themselves. I do want people who can follow directions. Can you guess where the application is going?

Those cute little folds

There's actually a purpose to those cute little triangles into which the facial tissues and toilet paper are folded. On the toilet paper studies make it clear that less is used when it comes over the roll than under. At home I'd do it according to preference since it's not a big difference. But for a hotel it makes a difference and I can quickly see that the toilet paper is round the right way if I've got that cute little fold. And for the facial tissues, there I want my housekeepers to replace the box if it's almost empty and the fold shows that they've at least been by the box.

The purpose isn't all that obvious sometimes, but I suspect there are a number of other things out there where even if it isn't obvious a purpose is being served.

It's not that you're handicapped.

I had someone apologize to me today saying, "You'll have to forgive me, I'm handicapped." Unfortunately I didn't blame the problems on the physical handicaps displayed. It was on the fact that they weren't using a perfectly good brain. When you call a motel to make a reservation having the credit card by the phone is a reasonable idea. When you call a motel to make a reservation having a pen and paper by the phone is a perfectly reasonable idea. Blaming your being handicapped for the fact that you're yelling at someone to bring you the credit card and don't have pen or paper at the phone perpetuates the myth that different abilities mean one person or another is less. And since I've known people who are mentally challenged who can manage their credit better than I can and make sure to have pen and paper and credit card at hand when they start to order over the phone.... I just don't accept the excuse, 'but I'm handicapped.'

Certainly their are limitations. And I certainly will work to accommodate the actual limitations that someone has. But, for all those who have worked for equal treatment, I expect each and every person to work with their limitations and their gifts rather than using one or the other as an excuse.

And you just noticed

Last night I had a guest check in after looking at our rooms. That's fine. I think that one of our selling points is when I have a guest look at our pillow-top mattresses, our re-tiled bathrooms, our cleanliness and more. Then a few minutes later they called down for a wake-up call. And after a half-hour, they wanted the names of the delivery places. A little later they asked how the internet worked. But then, after about two hours, they wanted to check out and get a refund since they didn't like the room.

I do want to acomodate my guests, but I really expect them to notice that they don't like the room sometime before they finished eating. Maybe when I show them the room before they decide to take it?

Then a complaint came through the national service that I didn't give them a refund. So I've sent them a letter that says I'm looking into their problems with the motel and will take what I feel is appropriate action. And that action is to keep the letter on file for a year so that I have evidence for our national line that I responded to the complaint.

No, I don't give refunds when I have had a guest in a room for over two hours just because they didn't like the room. I just can't work my brain around to accomodating a guest that much.

Closure

Closure is good. We need to put things in the past where they belong and move on. But... sometimes people want something else when they say they want closure. I think that's what is happening with an employee of mine who has called and wants to talk to me or take me out to dinner because she wants closure. The fact is that this person came in one day and quit without notice. Since it was on a holiday I ended up working double shifts for about a week between not being able to put an ad in the paper immediately and getting through the process. I'm not sure what closure the employee needs or wants. It sound more to me like my approval is desired.

And that approval is not going to happen. Certainly I can forgive and am working on forgiving this person for putting me in some untenable hours, but if closure means I'm supposed to forget or approve, then it's just not going to happen. And I have a sneaking hunch that is what meant by 'closure' in this case.

And what is the truth?

Hiring seems like a never ending task some days. I spent yesterday working on training a new hire and planned to do more of the same today. But she didn't come in. She called and said she had another job in 'no-name town'. Except that I had worked with her and she had told me I live in 'no-name town' but am moving down here to go to school. I broke up with my boyfriend and my kids are living down here so I'm looking for a job in this town since I don't have anything left in 'no-name town'.

And another thing. I had scheduled her to start on a particular day, but that day she was snowed in. And she asked for another chance. And I gave her another chance to start work, since she was moving down the mountain and wouldn't be snowed in again and there had been a snowstorm, so.... I gave her a second start date.

Maybe she didn't like the job, maybe she didn't like me as a boss. And I'm glad I didn't spend anymore time training her. Yet I wonder, if she was moving why was she looking for a job in 'no-name town' and if she wasn't why look for work here?

Firing part two

I think I was right to be more cynical than hopeful in yesterday's article about firing or possibly firing someone.

That person was late today. About an hour late.

And when I said I was disappointed I heard - my car broke down and it's icy and I couldn't get out until daylight and I called a cab buy none would come and .... - but while that was going on I was thinking - I'm sympathetic but I need you here on time and how does this help me feel like you're going to be dependable tomorrow.

And then I mentioned that the employee needed to leave when scheduled I heard - I might have to get another job. With my child ill I need more money coming in. And I won't be able to afford to fix my car without more money. - and while they were all true and I want to be sympathetic I hired this person as a part-time worker at a particular salary.

And I'm tired of listening to problems of why the work can't be accomplished. I certainly hope I'm reasonable when it comes to problems, but I can't hear the same thing day in and day out without wondering if the problem isn't the person rather than the indicated problem.

I've had experience with on-going problems. My father died a slowly with both Parkinson's and heart disease. The combination caused him to go on partial disability before retiring. After my mother's death he ended eating out since he had never really learned to cook. And I remember hearing him say once that, "I had enough medicine to shovel the snow off my car or sit thorugh church, but not to do both so I stayed home." But while the problems were daily, the excuses weren't. And the problems were not used to excuse not following through on what he said he'd do.

I've also given support whre I think I can. We've been going through a series of snowstorms and I've called this employee and others to say that they shouldn't come in because the weather's too bad. But today wasn't one of those days. The skys aare clear, there's a little bit of wind, the roads have had a couple of days to clear from snow. Getting to work on time just shouldn't have been a problem.

In the end it comes down to whether the problems are lived with and through or used as just one more reason. I suspect I've done the latter myself when I always intend to do the former. Yet the real quesion isn't whether or not one or the toher happens in a particular instnace, but waht is the continuing pattern. And that is why I probably shouldn't use the word cynical.

In this case I'm not cynical about people, but I've experienced the continued behavior of a particular person. And I've experieinced enough to say there's going to be another problem and another problem and one of the par's of being a manager that I don't like is going to come into play And I suspect I'll end up firing this person.

And I do sorrow.

The pool

The pool and spa at the motel have reminded me over the past few weeks why I used to have a pool in my dream house and that pool has disappeared from my dreams, but has gone into my nightmares.

We may have had three major snow storms in as many weeks. And that means lots of moisture, but it's not in the air. The air is dry. The water evaporates from the pool and the spa. And I've been filling them about every other day. Usually it seems like about once a week.

And the pump for the pool heater has been making a funny noise - a high pitched squeal, while the spa temperature has seemed to fluctuate at every moment. So after trying a couple of things I figured that the thermostat must be going out on the spa heater, while the bearings were going out on the pool pump.

So I called the pool guy to come and take a look.

The problem. The water was too low. The pool pump was squealing from air that came in when the pool level gets too low. The spa heater was kicking off when the pressure changed due to the water being too low.

So I spent money on a repair that didn't happen. And am now putting water in the pool and spa every night.

Just one of the many reasons that the pool has gone from a dream to a nightmare.

Firing

One of the other parts of my job that's not so great is firing. At this point I have an employee - fairly new - whose asked for a raise. The problem is she's not good enough for a raise and not bad enough to fire. And I don't think she's going to realize it.

Actually I was ready to fire her a couple of weeks ago. But one of the owners wanted to wait until later. The help she gave was enough to get by. But I keep hearing under the breath comments about how difficult this, that and the other thing is. And while they're not directed at me I can hear them and, more importantly, so can anyone passing by.

But one of the other problems is that I'm scheduling her tasks to finish about noon and she finishes two to three hours later. Yes, that is a way to increase your paycheck for an hourly worker, but that's not the way to keep your job and it's not a way to get the raise for which you've asked the owner and the manager.

And so tomorrow I'm going to ask for two things. One is that I not hear any complaints about how difficult the work is. The second is that she finish by noon. We'll see what happens.

I'm more cynical than hopeful.

Hiring

I love the training after hiring. I love helping people learn new things. But hiring and waiting to see if people work out, that's not such a pleasure.

I have a new hire who went home sick earlier this week. That's fine. She was sick. But...

Today, before she's scheduled to come in I get a call.

"I won't be coming in today. My husband got called into work."

"Will you be able to come in for part of the shift?"

"I don't know. I don't have child-care and don't know when he'll be back."

and later

"Well, I'm not sure I can continue to work. My husband is the breadwinner of the family and my job has to come after his job."

"Do you know whether you'll be able to come into work tomorrow?"

"I'm not sure."

and a still later...

"Well, my husbands job has to come first so I'll return the work shirt on Monday."

I sigh. I always thought both jobs were important and that you made the decision to support both jobs together. Evidently I'm wrong. Evidently the one person rules the other. And evidently it takes more than one phone call to get the message to me that someone is quitting rather than not able to work for the one day.

And so I may Love training , but the events around it are another matter entirely.

Moves

One of the problems I run into at the motel is that while I have fifty rooms and don't always sell out, I also have a limited number of rooms of any type. I have five rooms that have two beds and are smoking. And right now I have a lot of construction workers coming in. They smoke and want a smoking room. And I have someone who has been renewing his stay in his smoking room for the last five nights a day at a time.

But the reservations were made before the one person was doing this renewal each day. And so today I had to tell him that he couldn't have the same room. What we do is honor the first booking. And we don't overbook.

I could say the reason we don't overbook is guest satisfaction. That's a major part of it. I do like to keep my guests happy. But another little factor is the policy of our chain. That policy is that if we have overbooked, then we have to find a comparable room and pay for that room until we can put them in the room type they booked at our own motel. When I started we only paid for the first night at a comparable motel, now it is until we get them that room or their reservation is finished.

So I was grateful today that I could move that person from a smoking with two beds to a smoking with one bed.

I often write about theproblems with guests and staff, but more often than not the problems are easily solved and the guests are willing to work with me so that we can both be satisfied. The guests that I usually mention are a reason for me to get out of this business. But guests that will help me accomodate their desires and my desires are why I stay in this business.