IN spite of being a science student, Raja Panchal was never interested in engineering. He wanted to do something different, and the hospitality industry attracted his attention, specifically the glamour associated with the fluently-speaking, immaculately-dressed men and women at the Front Office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Today, a third year student at the Institute of Hotel Management, Delhi<\/a>, he is all set to make his dream come true. If like him, you too, aspire to be a part of the only department in a hotel that has a direct contact with its guests, be prepared for some very hard work!<\/p>\n\n\n\n A Front Office manager heads the department and supervises a few duty managers to whom assistant managers report. Assistant managers in turn supervise the various departments. The concierge department headed by a head concierge takes care of transporting guests to and from the hotel to local attractions as well as assisting them with recommendations for restaurants, shopping and sightseeing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Bell boys assist guests with their luggage and several of them might report to a bell captain who in turn reports to the head concierge. On their arrival at the hotel, guests are greeted by welcome assistants. Reception executives take care of the check-in formalities such as filling up the registration card and updating the details in the system. They also ensure a smooth check-out. Several guest service associates might report to a reception executive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Guest relation executive (GRE) takes care of the likes and dislikes of the guests and recieving feedback on the service to ensure a personalized stay. The GRE heads the guest relations department, which looks after guest booking and room tariffs. Several guest relation associates report to the GRE. Typically, Front Office personnel comprise 10-15 percent of the hotel staff, says Professor DD Sharma, Head of Department, Front Office and Accommodation Management, IHM, Delhi.<\/p>\n\n\n\nGetting down to the basics<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
All hotels, be it a five star hotel, stand-alone or budget, have a line-up of staff at the Front Office. \u201cFrom the time a guest walks in, till his or her departure, the front office department has to work meticulously at each stage of operations. Usually the staff work in shifts ranging from 10-14 hours a day,\u201d says Babar Khanyari, Front Office Manager, The Imperial<\/a>, Delhi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n