FRONT OFFICE OPERATION

This competency covers knowledge, skills and attitude in Front Office service in accordance with the
industry standards. It covers the basic, common and specialized (core) competencies such as :receive
and process reservations, operate computerized reservations system, conduct night audit services,
provide club reception services, provide porter services, provide concierge and bell services, and provide
cashiering services. ØLikewise, this course, covers various information on different management
systems in the hotel front office.

Three Units of Competencies

Basic - Practice career professionalism
Common - Develop and update Industry Knowledge
Core
• Receive and process reservations
• Operate computerized reservations system
• Provide accommodation reception services
• Conduct Night Audit Services
• Provide club reception services
• Provide porter services
• Provide concierge and bell services
• Provide cashiering services

FUNCTIONS OF A HOTEL
1. Lodging and accommodations
2. Revenue Centers
3. Cost Centers
4. Serve and enrich society
5. Profit for the owners

Lodging operations and accommodations means establishments that provide lodging accommodations

LODGING TYPES
§Hotels
§Motels
§Resort Hotels
§Suburban Hotels
§All-Suites
§Apartelles
§Apartment hotels
§Condominiums

ROOM TYPES AND TARIFFS

Single room: Single bed for one person; 36 x 75
Twin Room: Two twin or two single beds; two persons; 36X75; 36x80
Double room: Two persons in one double bed or matrimonial bed good for two persons 54x75;58x75;
(60X80) ( 76X80)- King Size-bed
Double-double; two double or two queen; for two or more.
Triple room: room occupied for 3 persons; 2 single beds and roll away bed; two double bed and roll
away bed, 3 single beds
Quadruple, Family room, Suite room, Connecting room, Adjacent room

TYPES OF BEDS
Single bed
Double bed
Queen bed
King bed

“Front Office Department”

-It is the most important in a hotel
-Nerve center qHeart of the Hotel
-Interface between the Hotel and other department ------Communication Center
-First contact
-First impression
-The front office develops and maintains a comprehensive data base of guest information, coordinate
guest service and ensure guest satisfaction

INTERDEPARTMENTAL COMMUNICATION OF FRONT OFFICE

1. BANQUET
2. ENGINEERING AND MAINTENANCE
3. CONTROLLER
4. SAFETY AND SECURITY
5. HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
6. HOUSEKEEPING
7. FOOD AND BEVERAGE
8. SALES AND MARKETING

Front Office Systems

Basic Functions of theFront Office
1. Sell rooms
2. Maitain balanced guest accounts
3. Offer services such as
faxes, mail, messages,
travel desk, currency
exchange etc
4. Request/ Queries/
Complaint handling
5. Telephone handling

SECTIONS OF FRONT OFFICE

* Reservation
* Reception
* Registration
* Bell desk,
* Concierge (information desk).
* Lobby
* Front office cashier
* Night auditor
* Telephone operator
* Business centre

Front office
-Front Office NC11 Qualification consist of competencies that person must possess in order to able to
conduct the process of making:
-Reservation ØRegistration Ø Check in and check out of guest in a commercial establishment qFront
Office NC11 is competent qReservations Agent/Clerk qFront Office Agent/Front Desk Clerk
qBellman/Bellboy/Porter
qClub Concierge

Career Opportunities for Front Office Services NC II graduates

•Front Office Desk Clerk / Receptionist – accommodate hotel, motel, and resort visitors by registering
and assigning rooms to guests, issuing room keys or cards

• Concierge – assist patrons at hotel, apartment or office building with personal services.

• Front Office Manager – in charge of the front office staff, ensures smooth and efficient operations, and
deals with any problems that arise with customers.

• Hotel Night Auditor – prepares a summary of cash, check, and credit card activities, reflecting the
hotel's financial performance for the day.

•Travel Agency Reservation/Ticketing Officer – work usually takes place behind an agency counter
where he helps clients book the necessary travelling requirements.

FRONT OFFICE AND ITS ROLE

OBJECTIVES:
• Explain the basic concept of a front office and its role; • Classify the room types and list their tariffs;

•The main function of any hotel is to sell rooms which contributes the maximum towards revenue of the
hotel. •Front Office Department is one of the most important departments of any hotel because for a
guest, it is the first point of contact with the hotel staff.
• It performs various functions such as reservation, registration, check-in, check-out etc
•The front office is always the key point for processing reservations, registering guests, settling accounts
and checking-out guests.
•It also handles the distribution of guest room keys, mails, messages and providing other information to
guest.
•Requires special skills and professionalism

The Guest Cycle

* Pre - arrival
* Arrival
* Occupancy
* Departure

FRONT OFFICE PERSONEL

1. Front Office Manager
2. Bell Boy
3. Cashier
4. Door attendant
5. Night Auditor
6. Receptionist
7. Concierge
8. Reservations Agent

SECTIONS OF FRONT OFFICE

•Reservation -Responsible for booking rooms for the guest in advance.
-Receiving reservation requests through different sources like telephone, fax, e-mail and website.

•Role of Reception at Front Office -This section is responsible for receiving and welcoming the guests on
their arrival.
-Receiving and Welcoming guest

• Information ( Concierge) -This section is responsible for providing information to the guest
-Coordinating guests’ mails, parcels and couriers.

•Communication/Telephone -This section maintains the communication network of the hotel. There is a
computerized call accounting system which charges the outgoing calls to the guest account.

• Bell Desk ( Bell Man) -This section is responsible for escorting the guests to their rooms and
familiarizing them with hotel facilities, safety features and in-room features.
-Handling guests luggage during arrival and departure.

• Concierge -This section is responsible for providing personalized services to the guests.

•Cash and Bills ( Front office Cashier) -This section is responsible for recording all financial details of the
guest.

• Travel Desk - This section is responsible for making travel arrangements of the guest.
Sources of Reservation
•Walk in ( Individual
•Corporate accounts
•Associations
•Travel Agencies
•Government Institutions/Office
•Free Independent Travelers- (FIT)
•Educational Institutions ( schools or training center) •Local or domestic travelers: “sariling atin” 30-50%
discount
•Balikbayans “ OFW’s) • Hotel Sales & Marketing Executives

•VIP- Very Important Person.

•VVIP- very, very important person
•FIT- free independent traveler or foreign individual tourist
•Joiner- person joining another guest in the same room •Stayover- The guest is not expected to check
out today and will remain at least one more night.
•SO- slept out- guest is assigned a room but did not sleep on his bed
•Skipper: The guest has left the hotel without making arrangements to settle his or her account

Room status terminologies

OCC- occupied- occupied by a paying guest.
VC- vacant ready - vacant room already made up and ready for occupancy, has been checked by the
supervisor
VD or on-change vacant dirty
ooo- out of order- room is under renovation or not fit for occupancy since it requires maintenance or
repair. Blo- blocked- reserved for a guest who is expected to arrive with in day
NS-no show- room reserved but not used or reservation has been cancelled.
HU- House Use
Day Guests- Guests who arrive and depart the same day.
•DND - Do Not Disturb: The guest has requested not to be disturbed
•Cleaning in progress: Room attendant is currently cleaning this room.
•DO - Due Out: The room is expected to become vacant after the following guest checks out.
•CO - Check-Out: The guest has settled his or her account, returned the room keys and left the hotel.
•LC - Late Check out: The guest has requested and is being allowed to check out later than the
normal/standard departure time of the hotel.
•EC - Early Check-in: Guest has requested for an Early Check in and is being allowed to check-in earlier
than the normal/standard check-in time of the hotel.
•ETA- Expected Time of Arrival
•ETD- Expected Time of Departure
•Folio:/Guest Folio: An overview of a guest’s hotel account including all charges and payments made,
stored at the reception desk
•VCI - Vacant, Cleaned and Inspected - Room is Vacant, Cleaned and Inspected by the Housekeeping
Supervisor. •H/L - Heavy Luggage - Guest has Heavy or more luggage than usual.
•L/L - Light Luggage - Guest has light or very less luggage.
•N/L - No Luggage - Guest has no luggage also know as Scanty Baggage.
•DL - Double Lock - Guest has put a double lock in the room.
•CL - Chain Lock - Guest has placed a Chain Lock in the room
•SR - Service Refused Guest refused to clean the room. •MUR - Make-Up Room
•Overbooking: When more rooms are sold than are physically available to sell.
•Pax: Another term for number of people or passengers.
•Run Of House (ROH): ROH in hotel terms means a basic room type with no guaranteed specific
amenities. •Turn: The process of completely changing a meeting room set-up from one event to the
next.
•Voice: Taking a hotel reservation over the phone. •Walk in guest – Guest who request a room rental
without having made a reservation.

THE AVIATION PHONETIC ALPHABET

A: Alpha M: Mike
B: Bravo N: November
C: Charlie O: Oscar
D: Delta P: Papa
E: Echo Q: Quebec
F: Foxtrot R: Romeo
G: Golf S: Sierra
H: Hotel T: Tango
I: India U: Uniform
J: Juliet V: Victor
K: Kilo W: Whiskey
L: Lima X: X-ray
Y: Yankee Z: Zulu

Arline Code and Country

• Alaska Airlines - AS
• Aloha Air -AO
• American Airlines – AA
• British Airways - BA
• Continental Airlines- CO
• Cathay Pacific Airways CX
• China Airlines- CI
• Hawaiian Airlines - HA
• Midwest Express -YX
• Northwest Airlines- NW
• Air New Zealand NZ
• United Airlines UA
• Emirates Airlines- EK
• Gulf Air Company - GF
• Japan Airlines- JL
• Jetstar Airways- JQ
•Korean Air-KE
• Kuwait Airways Corporation KU
• Malaysia Airlines- MH
•Philippine Airlines-PR
• Qatar Airways – QR
• Royal Brunei Airlines -BI
•Thai Air – T2
• Thai Airways International- TG
• Saudi Arabian Airline- SV