From a young age the hospitality industry has always enticed me; for me the appeal lies in a combination of not being stuck behind a desk all day doing the same mundane activities, incredible travel opportunities and interacting with a broad range of characters on a daily basis.

First a little bit about me....

It was following the completion of a Bachelor of Business majoring in Hospitality Management from Macquarie University's International College of Management Sydney (ICMS) that I made my first steps towards my career goals by joining the I-Grad program.

Born and bred in Sydney's North Shore I was eager to explore opportunities outside of my comfort zone and in only just over four years I have been fortunate enough to work with Crowne Plaza Hotels at Surfers Paradise, Hunter Valley and now Coogee Beach with a view to one day making the big move overseas.

From starting as an I-Grad I have progressed to an Assistant Manager onto a Guest Experience Manager and now my current position as Housekeeping Manager. In this blog post I'm hoping to shed some light on the Housekeeping division and expel the typical stereotypes it is associated with.

A small insight into Housekeeping.....

When I asked some of my colleagues outside of my department to think of things they associated with housekeeping, lists including room cleaning, linen counts and brand standards were quickly rattled off. Yes, housekeeping does include all of these things but it actually embodies a whole lot more!

My first taste of housekeeping came when I was an I-Grad at Crowne Plaza Surfers Paradise. If it had not been for the compulsory rotation into this department I would have no doubt focused my path on Front Office or Food & Beverage as many other aspiring hoteliers often do when planning their career in hospitality.

On my first day I remember asking the Executive Housekeeper at the time what their normal workday was like and she just looked back at me and smiled.

I quickly realised this response was because there is no such thing as a "normal day" within the housekeeping department, perhaps a quality which appealed to me the most. Now as a Housekeeping Manager myself I truly understand how you can arrive to work with your entire day planned ahead of you only to deviate so far away from this plan that you are left wondering where the day went that very afternoon.

When we think of housekeeping our initial thought usually surrounds cleaning rooms and perhaps how hard and/or time consuming can this actually be? These were questions I too am guilty of wondering before I joined the department. I soon realised that without a doubt being a room attendant is one of the most physically demanding, repetitive and crucial roles within hotels today.

As a result the biggest challenge the majority of housekeeping managers face today is keeping your team consistently engaged and motivated all year round whilst providing them with sufficient support. One of the key draw cards of the Hospitality Industry is its cultural diversity, giving you the opportunity to work with a mix of different personalities.

This can also create difficulty, as since no two individuals are the same there is no singular managerial approach that will appeal to every team member. I have found for an adequate level of motivation to be achieved it is therefore essential to be constantly adapting your leadership style to suit individual needs.

Housekeeping is commonly referred to as ‘the heart of the hotel', which I think is extremely fitting since any hotel worldwide would cease to function properly without this fundamental department. The housekeeping team at Crowne Plaza Coogee for example is 40 employees strong that come from just as many cultures with diverse backgrounds. As such housekeeping is typically the largest department within a hotel placing great significance on the Hotels Employee Satisfaction Scores as well as Payroll.

It is interesting to note that a multitude of key systems and procedures have been introduced to mainstream departments, including opera and micros, however housekeeping currently remains one of the few areas without significant structural changes since the birth of the hotel industry.

This is not to say housekeeping has not adapted throughout the years. Gone are the days of clipboards and highlighters and enter the technological age where each housekeeping staff member collects an IPod Touch from me at the commencement of every shift allowing for considerable increases in productivity and efficiency.

From dealing with constant areas of budgets, productivity, par levels, inventory, thread counts and optii to the daily issues that seemingly appear out of nowhere there is never a dull day as Housekeeping Manager!

Take yesterday for example – a series of curtains from a conference room vanished into thin air with no sign of where they went . . . No I'm not kidding.

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