Hotel & Restaurant Management

Evolution of the hospitality industry; the service culture; counting and measuring occupancy and sales; perishability; location; seasonality; classifying by size, type, and number of employees; rating systems; extended-stay hotels; resorts; European, American, and Continental plans; inns; bed-and-breakfasts.

Trends; marketing strategies; package plans including travel, events, and tourist activities; trade shows; guest profiles; group plans; marketing to individuals, families, and businesses; global operations; condominiums and time-sharing; seasonality; chains; franchises; referral systems; all-suite hotels; budget hotels; casinos; conference centers; amenities.

A typical hotel's organizational chart; the general manager and general staff; food and beverage staff; front office; front desk; reservations; cashiers; concierge; housekeeping; uniformed services; telephone services; security and safety; retail, concession, business, and athletic services; special and VIP services; lobby, building, and room design; scheduling work shifts.

The components of a reservation; special requests; entering, acknowledging, storing, and altering the reservation; cancellations; denying reservations; the price-occupancy mix; yield management; sales and marketing tools; working with travel agencies; in-house vs. consolidated reservations systems; last room availability; independent reservation services; computer and voice recognition systems; guest history databases; group bookings; conventions, trade shows, and tour groups; handling overflow.

Knowing room count and availability; traditional and contemporary tracking systems; automated/computerized systems; adjusted room count; stayovers; under- and over-stays; no-shows; periodic recounts; resolving overbooking problems; legislative implications; deposits; guarantees.

How to organize your time, work efficiently, and get the best results.

Concepts in quality management; guest expectations; leadership style; empowering the staff; employee relations; setting realistic house regulations; measures of guest service; quality control techniques; guarantees; working with the Americans With Disabilities Act; handling complaints; comment cards; anticipating and preventing problems.

First impressions; valet parking; door staff; registration; blocking rooms; early registrations; the registration card; collecting guest information; promoting hotel activities; liability; assigning rooms; upgrades; VIPs; arranging payment; establishing credit; bell department; luggage; room inspection.

Rack rate; discounting; daily, weekly, seasonal, commercial, corporate, senior, and complimentary rates; weather factors; single and double occupancy; setting arrival and departure times; the American Plan Resort; the Hubbard Room Rate Formula; square foot calculations; the Building Cost Formula; the Ideal Average Room Rate; up-selling.

Receivables; ledgers; transient ledger; city ledger; what is and isn't included in the bill; recording charges; preparing, updating, and storing the folio; master accounts; split billing; casino accounts; preferred guest programs; the billing procedure; presenting the bill; taxes; allowances; transferring funds; cash transactions; advance payments; refunds; cashier procedures; foreign currency; checks; minimizing fraud.

Understanding the city ledger; accepting credit cards; master accounts; groups; packages; travel agencies; late charges; delinquent accounts; executive accounts; due bills; banquet charges; managing, extending, and monitoring credit; credit alerts; transferring funds from travel agencies; frequent guest programs; electronic drafts; handling bad debt.

Hiring night auditors; night audit duties; reconciling receivables; closing out; posting charges; anticipating errors; the transcript; proving room charges; housekeeper's report; balancing the math; reporting exceptions, credit, reservations, rooms management, room status, and receivables.

Customer service for today and tomorrow; "management by wandering around"; the effect of poor service; the psychology of service; being ubiquitous; the nine "musts" of good service; monitoring cleanliness; handling and storing dinnerware and utensils; the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point.

Establishing service standards; French, American, and Russian service models; table setting layouts; placemats; tablecloths; banquets; buffets; loading, lifting, carrying, delivering, and unloading food and trays; serving order and techniques; clearing food.

Individual servers; team servers; the captain method; basics of waiting; wine stewards; bus personnel; establishing wait stations; room layout and mixing table sizes; preparing food at the table; ensuring staff competency; taking care of many tables at once; seniority; side duties for wait staff.

Preparing for guests; taking the order; serving; learning the menu; working with the room layout; substitutions; cooking methods and times; serving alcohol; suggestive selling; dessert tables; where to stand; avoiding "who's the beef and who's the shrimp"; guest checks; coding; giving the order to the kitchen; timing and serving sequence; computerized systems.

The host; attentiveness; courtesy; dependability; knowledge; sensitivity; skill; tact; productivity; persuasiveness; organizing the dining room; forecasting; scheduling; work shifts; menus and checks; accepting vs. not accepting reservations; blocking space; special events; call-ahead or priority seating; alleviating no-shows.

The seven deadly sins of dining service: apathy, the brush-off, coldness, condescension, robotism, "rule book excuses", and the runaround; greeting guests; assigning tables; reservations list; turnsheet; table check; waiting list; leading and seating guests; reciting specials; accommodating disabled customers; the log book; the perfect host.

Personal and business banquets; catering vs. banquets; staffing; manager qualifications; weddings; banquet styles; function room setup; table shapes and layouts; meetings; cocktail parties; podiums, lecterns, and microphones; advance booking tips; deposits; guarantees.

The banquet sheet: key to success; getting the right information; communicating policies; understanding the function; menu planning; detail planning; types of meals; special menus; beverage service; open bar; cash bar; á la carte drinks; guarantee and set; confirming the schedule and arrangements; distributing the sheet and meeting with staff; preparing the kitchen; checking details; seating arrangements.

Arranging staff, equipment, and duties; planning place settings; the station, follow-up, and combination methods; cocktail parties; serving and clearing; preparing the chef; choosing entrees; buffets; traffic control; chafing dishes; keeping food hot; checkbacks; presenting the bill.

Tips and techniques for finding career opportunities in the hotel and restaurant business.