Information Sheet No. 1.

/Learning Outcome Number 2:

PROVIDE/SERVICE HOUSEKEEPING REQUESTS.

Learning Objectives:

In this lesson, you are expected to:

1. Determine how to give housekeeping requests based on the situation
2. Recognize requests that can be done within the department or with other
departments
3. Demonstrate the appropriate way of providing housekeeping requests.

In LO2 of the Module in Providing housekeeping Services to Guest, you will

learn to determine how to give housekeeping requests based on the
situation, recognize requests that can be done within the department or with
other departments and demonstrate the appropriate way of providing
housekeeping requests to guests.

Definition of terms
Teamwork - the collaborative effort of a group to achieve a common goal or to
complete a task in an effective and efficient way.

Safety – the condition of being safe.

Security – a condition of being free from danger and/or threat.

Trolley – a transport vehicle used in housekeeping move supplies from one

room to the other.

Provision of supplies – giving of housekeeping supplies including equipment.

Procedure - a series of actions conducted in a certain order or manner.

The need for teamwork

While responding to housekeeping demands

from guests, sometimes it only requires
your efforts or those of the department, there
are instances when other departments or
individuals must be involved. The only thing a
guest wants is for his request to be fulfilled
satisfactorily and promptly, regardless of who
handles it.

For example, there is a large spill in a room maybe better dealt with 2 people
rather just one. A large equipment or furniture that needs moving will
require a team to lift it.

CBLM on Date Developed: January Document Number

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NC II Developed by: Annie
Rose M. Pakingan
When you feel that you can’t fulfill the request on your own, you should
learn to ask help from others and be ready to help as well if others need your
assistance.

Safety and Security

Where you receive a request from a guest for extra service provision and the
guest appears annoyed, upset, affected by drugs or alcohol then you should
always obtain help from another staff member.

It is absolutely important to let someone know the room you are entering to.
When you are rendering service to a room, others can tell by the location of
your trolley and looking at your room chart but certainly when you respond
to a request to take an item to a room, it would be impossible for other staff
to locate you if you’ll need any help. All it takes is a quick call to other staff
member “Hi, its Annie I’m here on the 7th floor, just taking some extra guest
supplies to room 708. Should be back in 10 minutes.”

Responsibility

It is important to ensure that the request is addressed properly regardless if

it has been forwarded to another person for completion.

Keep track of what is happening and keep the guest informed as to the time
of completion of the said request.

After the request is delivered, make sure to check on the guest to ensure
his/her satisfaction.

Locate and deliver required items to guest room

Introduction

In most cases, it is the housekeeping department’s responsibility to receive

and carry out any requests from the guests. This is generally easy to do
because most requested items are accessible to room attendants – supplies
are on the housekeeping trolley or in the Floor Housekeeping storeroom or
can be borrowed from a vacant room.

No staff member should ever use the phrase “It’s not my job!” when
responding to a request from a guest.

In a service industry, it is your priority to assist and serve the guests. If the
request is outside your normal work responsibility, you should:

 Record and confirm the request

 Pass the details on the relevant person to complete the action
 Never tell the guest to ring any department responsible for his/her
request.
CBLM on Date Developed: January Document Number
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Rose M. Pakingan
Action is the key to responding to a request

Once a request is made, you must immediately seek out the item or
equipment necessary to complete the request within the agreed timeframe.
To accomplish the task, you have to act on their request.

To do this, you will most likely just go to your trolley (or the nearest
housekeeping storeroom), grab what is needed and take it to the guest room.

Passing on Requests

In other cases, where the request falls outside your ability to fulfill it, the
appropriate person must be notified and the request passed on important
points when doing this are:

 Pass on all the relevant details including the name and room number
of the guest is vital. This information
allows the person to get back in contact
with the guest to clarify things or amend
the promised delivery time
 Make sure the person you give the
message understands it. Ask them to
repeat it back to confirm it. Make special
mention of any important bits including
the need for urgency.
 Stress any agreed time that have been
given. If you promised the item in 10
minutes, you must let the other person
know when that 10 minutes is up.

Requests for information

It is sometimes more time consuming to provide certain things to guests.

Requests for information are amongst these. Requests for information can
cover:

 Information on the products and services offered by the establishment

– even though guests have an in-room
compendium they can still want more
detail than what is there and there is
always the possibility that this
information is out-of-date.
 Use your product knowledge about the
property to answer these questions,
and when you don’t know the answer, apologize, tell them you will
find out the answer and get back to them, then do so.

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  Availability of services, hours,
location of meals, services and
equipment – you might be able
to inform a guest that there is
an ice machine at the end of
the corridor but perhaps you
don’t know when the spa opens
or what the treatments are and
how much they cost.
 How various types of
equipment works – you are expected to know how to operate all the
in-room facilities (this should be one of the first thing when you are
trained in as part of your on-the-job training) but guests may ask you
about other items or equipment throughout the property that you
know nothing about. This is to be expected if you are the first person
they see as they walk there from not being able to operate a piece of
gym equipment, not being able to get the vending machine to work.
 Requests for information about local
services, attractions, transport,
shopping, entertainment, bars, and
places to eat. While is probably more a
reception or concierge role, once again,
guests can ask you because ‘you are
there’.

In these situations:

 Never say “I don’t know” and leave it at that

 Never tell them it’s not your job to provide that sort of information
 Never tell them to look it up in their in-room information
compendium. Never give them the impression that asking for the
information is an imposition or a stupid thing for them to do.

2.3 Set up equipment in guest rooms

Introduction

From time to time, the housekeeping department may be asked to help set
up items requested by guests.
These requests need to be done as quickly as possible because when such
requests are made, guests are usually waiting to use the items.

What items might be involved?

The items that may need setting up could include:

CBLM on Date Developed: January Document Number

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Rose M. Pakingan
  Table and chairs – for meetings or to
assist with the provision of room service
meals
 Internet connection
 Television
 DVD player
 Data projector
 Portable bed
 Portable cot.

In-room meetings

Guest rooms are sometimes hired by companies for business purposes to

hold a small meeting make presentations or display goods and, in such
instances, it may be your responsibility to move furniture around, set up
tables and chairs before the meeting commences.

Directions will be given by the person hiring the room about what they want,
where they want it set and the time by which it needs to be ready.

Elderly people

Elderly people can often have problems with technologically-based items in

their rooms.

They may be perfectly well and able to operate their TV or DVD at home but
the one in their room may be different and they may not be able to make it
work.

Don’t make them feel stupid for asking, take time to make sure they have
understood what you have told them and check to see they are able to
operate it properly on their own before you leave. A call to the room
15minutes later to check everything is fine would also be appreciated and
shows evidence of excellent service.
Elderly people may also seek your regular assistance in:
 Moving heavy items – which can include their personal luggage
 Getting items down from high places
 Obtaining things from low places
 Obtaining a wheelchair to access other facilities in the venue.

Portable beds and cots

Setting up portable beds and cots is a task that many in housekeeping hate!
They are often cumbersome to move, and difficult to set up. Lots of injuries
have resulted from moving and setting up these items. If possible, it is
advisable to place them into rooms and get them set up prior to the guests

CBLM on Date Developed: January Document Number

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arriving – so no-one can hear or see what goes on! Tips that may assist
include:
 Be careful – they bite: watch your fingers
 Practice before having to do it front of a guest – it’s embarrassing to
have problems with people looking on
 Follow the instructions
 Don’t rush
 Have an experienced person with you when you do your first one. You
never know when you’ll need help even though you’ve done loads of
practice. It should be a standard house rule that guests are never
allowed to set up a portable bed or cot. Not only is allowing them to do
this very bad service but there is a great risk they may injure
themselves.

Know the house rules

It is important for you to be well-versed on the different types of equipment

that need to be set up and the steps to take to actually set up the equipment
in a safe, secure and fully operational manner.

You must also adhere to all health and safety regulations when moving items
about, especially heavy items.

You must also follow any establishment policies on setting up equipment.

Where appropriate, agree on suitable time to collect equipment

There may be times when the guest will only require an additional piece of
equipment for a certain time span – a short-term loan.

When this item is placed in the room, it may be a good idea for you to reach
an agreement with the guest about the collection time for that item.

The main reasons to identify a time for collection for these items are:
 To allow the guest to be able to plan their stay with us – it saves them
time wondering what is going to happen in relation to the item: they
know what’s going to and happen and can plan accordingly
 To prevent the situation where the guest may place the item in the
corridor outside their door – minimizing the chance of damage to the
item, or theft
 To give the guest space in their room – unwanted items take up space
that the guest may want to use for something else
 To allow the asset to be put back into inventory and available for use
by another guest if the need arises. In relation to agreeing on a time
for collection of these short-term (or other) loan items:

CBLM on Date Developed: January Document Number

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 The arrangement to pick up should be made as a suggestion rather
than a requirement – the central idea is to provide service not to set
limitations or ‘tell the guest what to do’
 Guests should be encouraged to contact housekeeping and arrange
for an extension of the pick-up time when they want the item for a
longer period.
 Where housekeeping staff will be off duty when the pick-up time
arrives, arrangements need to made with another department to
collect the item. It is not acceptable for the guest to have to ‘put up
with’ an item in their room that they don’t want there simply because
we can’t pick it up. Room service staff, porters, or staff from any
department could be asked to assist.

Log books

Some establishments will have a log book to record information about

when and where extra items were delivered and when they need to be
collected.

When an item is recovered from a guest room and returned to the store
(or the vacant room from where it was borrowed), this log is signed to
demonstrate that return.

The log book assists in tracking assets and making sure all rooms have
their necessary items.

2.4 Items from guest rooms as required

Introduction

While the majority of requests involve items to be taken to the room,

there are times when requests involve items being taken from the room.
These items may be:

Types of items for collection

To service a guest request effectively, you may need to pick up items from
the guest room such as:
 Room features including furniture, appliances or amenities not
being used, housekeeping items and equipment that have been left
behind,
 Towels, face washers and bath mats that are now dirty and need
to be replaced,
 Toilet paper, tissues and other bathroom and guest supplies that
have run out,

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  A replacement item – to take the place of something that isn’t
working,
 Items that are no longer needed but which have been specially
requested previously,
 Guest items requiring further action such as dry cleaning, storage
or repair.

Keys in collecting items

It is vital to understand that if you have made a promise to pick

something up at an appointed time, the guest is expecting you to
arrive at that time.

They have maybe changed their plans, re-arranged things to

accommodate this, and are waiting: and every minute they wait past
the scheduled time seems like an hour and their level of frustration
rises and rises. They can’t get on with that until you arrive!

So, make sure you are there when you said you’d be.

If you are going to be late:

 Get someone else to collect it – and make sure they do it on
time
 Contact the room, apologize and arranged a revised time.
 Never just be late and fail to notify the guest.
 If the item you are picking up is heavy or awkward, take
someone else along or a trolley.

When you arrive to collect the item:

 Knock on the door and announce “Housekeeping”
 Greet the guest by name
 Apologize, if applicable
 Tell them why you are there – “I’ve come to pick up the …
 Ask for permission to enter the room
 Thank the guest for their permission to do so
 Keep your eyes and ears to yourself
 Pick up the item and walk to the door
 Apologize again, if appropriate
 Make arrangement for a replacement item, where appropriate and a
time for its delivery
 Thank the guest again
 Depart the room.

CBLM on Date Developed: January Document Number

Housekepping 2024
NC II Developed by: Annie
Rose M. Pakingan
 Self-check No. 1. /Learning Outcome Number 2: PROVIDE/SERVICE
HOUSEKEEPING REQUESTS.

TEST 1. MULTIPLE CHOICE

Instruction: Choose the best answer and encircle the letter of your choice.

1. The key to any request from a guest is to take ____ on their request.
a. Notice c. Responsibility
b. Action d. Charge
2. It is use to assist in tracking assets and making sure all rooms have
their necessary items.
a. Record book c. Notebook
b. Log book d. Baby book
3. A shortcoming, fault or imperfection;
a. Fault c. Flaw
b. Defect d. Blemish
4. Providing housekeeping items including equipment, cleaning products
and cloths.
a. Provision of Goods c. Provision of Materials
b. Provision of Supplies d. Provision of Purchase
5. A _____ is not concerned who handles their request. Their concern is
their request is handled in a satisfactory and timely manner.
a. Staff c. Management
b. Guest d. Supervisor
6. Below are the tips in setting up portable beds and cots, except;
a.

CBLM on Date Developed: January Document Number

Housekepping 2024
NC II Developed by: Annie
Rose M. Pakingan