Each hotel offers its own particular package of facilities. The hotel guests expect to find many auxiliary facilities in addition to the basic ones of accommodation, food and drink.
A hotel guest may expect to find a telephone, a radio and TV in the room and be able to telex or fax urgent messages.
The guest may wish to purchase newspapers and magazines, have suits dry cleaned, and shirts laundered. Many hotels provide a hair dressing establishment where a guest can get his hair cut, a gift shop where he may buy or presents souvenirs for the family.
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The hotel may provide service for reserving tickets for the theatre or making travel arrangements and provide sports facilities such as tennis court or swimming pool.
Conference facilities may also be provided. All or some of these auxiliary facilities and the restaurants and bars may also be available to non-residents.
The classic hotel organisation model was built around two major hotel managerial personalities the chef and the maitre d’hotel. The chef was the chief or ‘king’ of the kitchen.
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Like a feudal lord he held sway over everything that had to do with the preparation of food in the hotel. Similarly, the maitre d’hotel was the ‘master’ of all services in the hotel and it was his responsibility to see that the guests were always served promptly and properly.
In the modern hotel organisation, a complex line and staff structure has emerged. In a hotel those who have a regular contact with the guests are known as line executives. The most important line operations in a hotel are the Rooms Division and Food and Beverage Division.
Staff executive are those who perform ‘behind the scenes’ activities and have little or no guest contact e.g., engineering is a staff function.
Hotel General Manager occupies a crucial role in the midst of hotel operations as he is in close contact with employees and guests as well as top management. The decision he makes plays a major role in determining the effectiveness of the hotel staff and the satisfaction of the guest.