NN GRADUATION PAPER AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE REAL SITUATION AND SOME SOLUTIONS TO IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF HOUSEKEEPING SERVICE AT GRAND TOURANE HOTEL

DUY TAN UNIVERSITY FACULTY OF ENGLISH GRADUATION PAPER AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE REAL SITUATION AND SOME SOLUTIONS TO IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF HOUSEKEEPING SERVICE AT GRAND TOURANE HOTEL Major : English for Tourism SUPERVISOR : BÙI THỊ KIM PHỤNG, M.A STUDENT : PHẠM THỊ THU LÀI CLASS : K23 NAD5 STUDENT CODE: 23203212422 DA NANG, 2021 Graduation Thesis Supervisor: Bui Thi Kim Phung, M.A ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This graduation paper could not be finished without the invaluable help, advice, and encouragement of my supervisor, the teachers in the Faculty of English as well as people who help me directly or indirectly First and foremost, I would like to express my sincere gratitude as well as appreciation to all the teachers at Duy Tan University for assisting me with their knowledge, guidance, and encouragement during my studies Teachers at Duy Tan University have created a chance for me to enhance my soft skills and learn many useful lessons Secondly, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to Ms Bui Thi Kim Phung for her enthusiasm, dedication, support, and guidance throughout my thesis Her patience and support helped me overcome many crisis situations and finish this study I really appreciate the invaluable advice that she has given me I would also like to thank all the excellent staff and managers from the Grand Tourane Hotel, mainly thanks to the executive housekeeper (EH) and all employees of Room Attendant (RA) Working with the experienced staff has helped me a lot, not only in learning a wide range of useful information but also in approaching the real work of the housekeeping closely Without them, this research study would not have been completed Last but not least, I wish to give special thanks to my family for their great help as well as encouragement I also send my sincere thanks to many other friends who supported and helped me a lot in collecting surveys and during my studies Yours sincerely Pham Thi Thu Lai Student: Pham Thi Thu Lai Code: 23203212422 Graduation Thesis Supervisor: Bui Thi Kim Phung, M.A STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP I hereby certify that I wrote the current thesis independently, and that I have indicated all parts of the work in which sources are used based on their wording or meaning The thesis contains no material previously published or written by other people except where the reference is made in the text of the thesis I further declare that I have not submitted this thesis to any other institution in order to obtain a degree Danang, May 30th, 2021 PHAM THI THU LAI Student: Pham Thi Thu Lai Code: 23203212422 Graduation Thesis Supervisor: Bui Thi Kim Phung, M.A LIST OF TABLE, IMAGES AND DIAGRAMS Table 1: The room systems of Grand Tourane hotel .15 Image 1: An overview of Grand Tourane hotel .13 Image 2: Superior Room .17 Image 3: Deluxe Room 18 Image 4: Premier Deluxe Room 20 Image 5: An Overview of Grand Tourane Suite Room 21 Image 6: Presidential Room 22 Image 7: Sitting Area of Presidential Room 23 Image 8: An Overview of Bella Vista Restaurant 24 Image 9: Foods of Bella Vista Restaurant .24 Image 10: Le Rendez Vous Lobby Bar 25 Image 11: Serenity Salon & Spa’s room .28 Diagram 1: Organization Structure of Housekeeping Service Diagram 2: Diagram Organization Structure of Grand Tourane Hotel 29 Diagram 3: The Organization Structure of Housekeeping Department at Grand Tourane Hotel .32 Diagram 4: Guest’s Evaluation of the Bedroom Equipment 41 Diagram 5: Guest’s Evaluation of Internet Speed 42 Diagram 6: Guest’s Evaluation the Bathroom equipment .43 Diagram 7: Guest’s Evaluation of the level of cleanliness 48 Diagram 8: Guest’s Evaluation of the level of cleanliness in the bathroom 49 Diagram 9: Client evaluation of housekeeping staff service attitude 54 Diagram 10: Guest’s Evaluation about Staff’s Working Style 55 Diagram 11: Guest’s Evaluation of Staff Feedback Time .56 Student: Pham Thi Thu Lai Code: 23203212422 Graduation Thesis Student: Pham Thi Thu Lai Supervisor: Bui Thi Kim Phung, M.A Code: 23203212422 Graduation Thesis Supervisor: Bui Thi Kim Phung, M.A LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS HR: Human Resources AC: Air Conditioning COVID-19: Coronavirus disease Student: Pham Thi Thu Lai Code: 23203212422 Graduation Thesis Supervisor: Bui Thi Kim Phung, M.A TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS i STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP ii LIST OF TABLES, IMAGES AND DIAGRAMS .iii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS iv CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1 Rationale Aims and Objectives 2.1 Aims 2.2 Objectives Scope of the Study Method of the Study Organization of the Study .3 CHAPTER 2: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 2.1 Hotel Business 2.1.1 Definition of Hotel Business 2.1.2 Classification of Hotel Business 2.2 Housekeeping Service 2.2.1 Definitions of Housekeeping Service 2.2.2 Organization Structure of Housekeeping Service 2.2.3 Functions of Housekeeping Service 11 2.2.4 Housekeeping Staffing 12 CHAPTER 3: CASE DESCRIPTION .13 3.1 General Introduction to Grand Tourane 13 Student: Pham Thi Thu Lai Code: 23203212422 Graduation Thesis Supervisor: Bui Thi Kim Phung, M.A 3.1.1 Introduction and Foundation .13 3.1.2 The Services and Facilities of Grand Tourane Hotel .14 3.1.2.1 Accommodation Services 14 3.1.2.2 Catering Services 21 3.1.2.3 Additional Services 23 3.1.3 The Organization Structure of Grand Tourane Hotel .26 3.2 Housekeeping Department at Grand Tourane Hotel 29 3.2.1 The Organization Structure of the Housekeeping Department 29 3.2.2 Functions of Housekeeping Department at Grand Tourane Hotel .30 3.2.3 The Serving Process of Housekeeping Department at Grand Tourane Hotel .31 CHAPTER 4: ANALYSIS AND EVALUATION 36 4.1 The Real Situation of Facilities at Grand Tourane Hotel .36 4.1.1 The Real Situation of Facilities at Housekeeping Department 36 4.1.2 Guest’s Evaluation of Facilities at Housekeeping Department 38 4.2 Analysis of the Services Quality at the Housekeeping Department 41 4.2.1 Evaluate the Housekeeping Services Process 41 4.2.2 Guest’s Evaluation of the Housekeeping Services Process 45 4.3 The Real Situation of Staff at Grand Tourane hotel .46 4.3.1 The Real Situation of Staff at Housekeeping Department .46 4.3.2 The Real Situation of Staff Qualifications at Housekeeping Department 49 4.3.3 Guest’s Evaluation of Staff at Housekeeping Department 51 CHAPTER 5: DIFFICULTIES AND SOLUTIONS 55 5.1 Difficulties 55 Student: Pham Thi Thu Lai Code: 23203212422 Graduation Thesis Supervisor: Bui Thi Kim Phung, M.A 5.2 Some Solutions for Improving the Quality of Housekeeping at the Grand Tourane Hotel .56 5.2.1 Solutions for Improving the Quality of the Facilities at Grand Tourane Hotel .56 5.2.1.1 Additional technical equipment facilities at the housekeeping department 56 5.2.1.2 Maintenance technical equipment facilities at the housekeeping department 58 5.2.2 Solutions for Improving Housekeeping Staffs 59 5.2.3 Solutions for Improving the Management at the Housekeeping Department 62 CHAPTER CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS 64 6.1 Conclusions 64 6.2 Suggestions 65 REFERENCES SUPERVISOR’S COMMENT Student: Pham Thi Thu Lai Code: 23203212422 Graduation Thesis Supervisor: Bui Thi Kim Phung, M.A CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION Rationale The tourism industry has developed in recent years, resulting in an increase housing requirements A number of hotels were upgraded to meet the needs of visitors and designed to offer many short-term accommodation options Economic development increases and increases people's lives They are prepared to neglect cheap but poor quality products and services, in spite of the high price, to choose between high quality products and services Modern, the point changes and makes an impression The quality of customer service is the main attraction for clients A great need is attention to quality of service and constant improvement of service quality, particularly during the time of Vietnamese tourism, which integrates itself into international and regional tourism The hosting business is an industry which plays an important role in the hotel business and is important to the quality of room service The hotel industry has grown rapidly in recent years As a result, hotels compete to attract more and more customers, especially those with a high financial ability Furthermore, as the economy has progressed, material life has become increasingly better People are increasingly in a position to care for their spiritual lives As a result, people expect higher and higher service quality, as well as facilities, equipment, and service personnel, especially in the housekeeping department With rising customer demand, hotel requires solutions to improve and expand its current and future role As a result, I hope that by choosing the subject “INVESTIGATE THE SITUATION AND MAKE SOME RECOMMENDATIONS Student: Pham Thi Thu Lai TO IMPROVE THE Code: 23203212422 Graduation Thesis 57 Supervisor: Bui Thi Kim Phung, M.A However, employees still need to practice and improve professional skills to improve professionalism, shorten the time for customers to wait, and lower the normal rate to the lowest possible level Student: Pham Thi Thu Lai Code: 23203212422 CHAPTER 5: DIFFICULTIES AND SOLUTIONS 5.1 Difficulties Although the quality of room facilities has improved, there are still many weaknesses that need to be raised in order to find out the weaknesses, detect the causes and find ways to overcome them The first is an objective reason due to the weather in Da Nang The hot weather in the summer and the heavy rain have caused difficulties and caused the housekeeping staff to face many obstacles during their working time In addition, finding a receptionist is easy, on the other hand, recruiting the number of housekeeping staff to take on the job is a great difficulty, because the nature of the work is arrangement, cleaning and the age involved limited work Secondly, the housekeeping staff are mainly women Therefore, the hotel will be understaffed at a time when the health of female employees is not enough to take on many jobs at the same time There is also leave for marriage and maternity leave That causes a lot of disadvantages for the hotel, especially during peak travel days In addition, the housekeeper is the one with the most limited language skills Because the nature of the job is to clean, arrange and decorate the room When guests have needs, they will serve to satisfy them, which leads to difficulties in communicating in languages However, the housekeeping staff at Grand Tourane has not been improved and improved in foreign languages, although there have been training courses in housekeeping, but there is still no trend of improvement There is no close inspection in the management, staff, and supervisors have not done their best, they only have inspections, they have not yet lost responsibility for quality preservation and improvement number of departmental technical facilities Due to the employees' awareness of the use of techniques, they are not trained to use and to clean procedures improperly, thereby making them degraded further Customer perceptions are different, so the use of technical installations is different If guests are damaged by the installations and facilities, the check-in staff will be charged for their bill of use in cases when guests find that they have damaged any item or other equipment in the room Last but not least, due to the Covid-19 pandemic that is raging around the world Not only Da Nang tourism in particular but also the world tourism industry in general is facing many difficulties Because the restriction on entry of foreign tourists is almost nonexistent, most of them are domestic tourists But the epidemic situation is extremely dangerous, forcing all hotels to suspend operations for a long time In addition, the staff in the hotel are isolated when they come into contact with guests infected with Covid-19 This has seriously affected the tourism industry a lot 5.2 Some Solutions for Improving the Quality of Housekeeping at the Grand Tourane Hotel 5.2.1 Solutions for Improving the Quality of the Facilities at Grand Tourane Hotel 5.2.1.1 Additional technical equipment facilities at the housekeeping department Facilities have a special role since the facilities used by guests directly reflect the scale of the Grand Tourane hotel, which is equipped with those facilities In order to prevent guests from checking in for the damaged equipment, the equipment must be replaced and refurbished in the room if it is showing signs of damage Grand Tourane Hotel always plans to buy equipment every year in the room to substitute damaged equipment without affecting the hotel's reputation for quality and service -Investing in equipment in a synchronous manner, choosing products with reputable brands, consultation will be high, but in the long run, it will be inferior to the repair and maintenance of quality products with high quality, long service life The number of service guests at the hotel is also quite large, so you should equip a machine or fax machine in some luxury rooms such as Grand Suite or Junior, as well as luxury apartments to the hotel, to serve the maximum service customers target -The hotel uses an air conditioner permanently mounted on the wall, which is inconvenient for guests who want to change their temperature while lying in bed Hotels can replace these controls with handheld controls, giving guests more flexibility in whether they want to change the temperature or turn the air conditioner on and off no matter where they are located If the cost of changing this device is too great, the hotel can also use another option, such as instead of installing a stationary controller at the corner of the wall near the door, it can be removed and reinstalled in place Fixed close to the bed or on the headboard so that guests can use it easily without having to move -Because the design from the beginning of the hotel was built with a soundproof system, if you want to upgrade, it will be very difficult and requires high costs, to reduce the cost of the hotel Some expensive rooms may only need to be upgraded by replacing windows or doors with doors with better sound insulation If guests require a quiet room, arrangements will be made for guests in those rooms -Besides, after many years of operation, the equipment seems to be old and needs to be upgraded, repaired or replaced From the curtains, decorative pillows on the sofa, the stainless steel faucet was changed but not synchronized or yellowed, many toilets are too old and the shape is out of fashion Therefore, the hotel is also planning to upgrade equipment and furniture in the room to give customers a new feeling and regain the luxury and class like when the hotel was first established -Lastly, changing the carpet is extremely necessary The carpet was old and stained so much that the hotel also tried to hand wash it without cleaning This is a good factor causing unsightly and unsanitary conditions in the room The fact that guests see those stains will make them feel scared and unhygienic Because not all guests often wear slippers in the room 5.2.1.2 Maintenance technical equipment facilities at the housekeeping department During the cleaning process, there are places that not always be cleaned, such as under beds, corner curtains, under cabinets In addition, there is also polishing of foundation stone, lighting stainless steel Cleaning should be scheduled on a regular basis or during the off season to reduce the amount of error in the product or service that the hotel provides to its customers Such jobs are usually handled by male employees of the housekeeping department responsible In Standard and Superior rooms with bath tubs, it is necessary to design more drainage holes in the sides to avoid water always accumulating on the top and flowing to the ground or you can design bars at the ends to prevent reducing water overflow During the peak tourist season, the system of technical facilities often has to operate at full capacity, so damage is easy to happen, especially with electronic equipment As a result, during this time, the hotel must focus on maintenance and upkeep to ensure that this equipment is always operating at peak efficiency Furthermore, there is little use of technical facilities during the low season, which does not mean that maintenance work is neglected, but managers must urge the technical department to check the condition of the equipment in the room to be damaged, then quickly overcome the repair, to avoid affecting customer service In the process of equipment maintenance, there should be plans for the replacement of equipment which is about to expire or not be operated in the near future, during the handling of damaged equipment Thorn, if it not be repaired, it is necessary to hire outside companies with similar products to avoid reducing hotel business The head and supervisors should pay attention to the selection of chemicals used to clean equipment appropriately but still ensure hygiene and safety, which contributes to increased longevity of technical facilities 5.2.2 Solutions for Improving Housekeeping Staffs A skilled, professional, ethical and intelligent workforce is a valuable asset for a hotel because it is the source of creation Single products, creating competitiveness and meeting all business objectives Therefore, hotel operators must focus on improving the training and retraining of both staff as regards profession, profession and ethics in order to achieve the goals by satisfying clients with the quality of hotel services From the beginning, the staff should be introduced to the hotel, the job position they undertake The hotel should have a manual for the staff, and the room department also needs a manual department's own manual, to help employees have a comprehensive view and know what they can and can't After training for new employees, the department needs to organize to check what they have learned, who followed the right process and within the allotted time Those who meet the requirements will sign a formal contract Those who not meet the requirements will continue the probation process This will motivate new employees to actively learn and learn quickly also to categorize those who get the job and those who haven't Currently, the hotel only focuses on traditional training methods, which are less creative and boring Organize tours, exchange experiences for staff with other hotels; coordinate with other hotels to organize skills contests for employees with commensurate rewards, contributing to improving skills and working capacity Create opportunities for staff to develop careers: to send highly qualified and qualified young employees abroad to study professional courses, accumulate knowledge and experience from countries with guest business backgrounds world-class advanced hotel After each foreign training course, these staff will be responsible for imparting new knowledge they have gained to staff in the department Foreign training is a great encouragement for employees to constantly exchange and improve their hands It is important to equip the room staff with the necessary skills as well as the knowledge of the hotel Hotel knowledge is mainly about opening hours and information about restaurants, bars, or services and facilities that staff can provide guests when they need it Situation handling skills as well as customer care skills must be strengthened Taking good care of customers is every employee's job and never say "I don't know, that's not my job" Employees must write to take advantage of their advantages so that when interacting with guests – these are the following virtues: -Patience -Courtesy -Joviality -Enthusiasm - hospitality -The ability to communicate fluently -Quick thinking -Sensitive -Honesty The Grand Tourane hotel has a majority of foreigners, so it requires staff with a certain language proficiency In general, the foreign language skills of housekeeping staff are not equal, so hotels should focus on encouraging and taking positive solutions to improve their language skills, such as opening classes for staff There are regular competitions in English and there are partyworthy rewards to motivate employees Last but not least, the department needs to establish rules and regulations for staff in the process of communicating with customers, under which these rules will apply and staff will be supervised It can include the following principles: whenever meeting guests, the staff should always be smiling, friendly and courteous Good manners are the key to the success of employees when communicating with customers Always give answers to customers' questions, not leave customers without specific answers or instructions, work quickly and professionally during the process of interacting with customers In the hotel business, most of the service is a product of labor, but that quality depends on the quality of the service staff directly created On the other hand, the quality of service depends on the qualifications, experience and consciousness of the serving staff So if you want to maintain and improve the quality of service in the hotel in general, the Housekeeping department in particular must pay attention to training and fostering to have a synchronous staff and a good sense of labor drunk with work, quality assurance, good service conditions Always promote the importance of the hotel's human resources team Owning a quality workforce will contribute to enhancing the competitive position of the hotel 5.2.3 Solutions for Improving the Management at the Housekeeping Department In addition to managing the staff, the manager must also pay attention to the equipment in the room to ensure that they are always in good working order, meeting quality standards, safety, aesthetics and customer satisfaction Management regularly monitors and monitors periodically to collect information from guests and their employees to promptly handle unforeseen situations, solve difficulties for guests, and bring them confidential information about service quality Next, regularly research the market, grasp the needs of the target market and have specific plans to meet the diverse high-end needs of customers Having sufficient records, statistical books, checking assets and facilities on a monthly, quarterly or yearly basis, promptly adding damaged equipment to avoid affecting the quality of the service In order for employees to comply with regulations regarding the preservation and use of equipment and tools, specific disciplinary action must be taken when violations occur Handling all acts of hiding, concealing, hiding in violation Provide a table of rules for employees in the use and preservation of equipment and tools, attaching tasks to the employee's interests in preservation to motivate employees to work better During the work shift, it is necessary to arrange team leaders and supervisors to work together with employees to easily control the process, limit the use of techniques and limit errors as well as promptly overcome effectively In addition, apply a policy of discipline and warning to employees who not comply with the preservation and use of equipment and tools Reward and motivate the staff to a good job in the form of salary increase in the meetings for the staff to learn and follow Strictly handle cases of intentional or accidental damage to facilities as in the internal rules, so that each employee is careful and does not dare to commit it again The issue of managing each relationship in terms of work, as well as managing the relationship between people and people, requires flexibility The voice of the leader must have weight and be respected by the employees Issues that arise must be dealt with fairly and without bias It is important to listen to the thoughts and opinions of employees, see what difficulties they have and need help By doing this, leaders will create trust and respect for subordinates CHAPTER CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS 6.1 Conclusions Currently, under pressure of increasing competition among hotels in Da Nang city, in order for business to be effective, each hotel needs to have effective policies and strategies to attract more and more customers The improvement of the hotel quality, especially the service quality of the port housekeeping department, must be paid special attention through the process of understanding and performing analysis and assessment of service quality at the Grand Tourane hotel, we can see the benefits, drawbacks, and outstanding status that require solutions to overcome In addition, due to the effects of the Covid-19 epidemic, the hotel is also trying to overcome the pandemic and get better I found that the housekeeping department played a major role in providing clients the best quality service during my internship at Grand Tourane However, the requirement of the hotel to take action to tackle the deficiencies of this department remains notable So in my graduation article, I have analyzed and assessed the current situation of this department in detail, using the ratio of the housekeeping service quality I also offer a number of measures to solve household problems in the hotel and to attract more tourists to the hotel Since I have little experience and limited time for practicing, my graduation papers can still be weak and weak, looking forward to suggestions for completing my graduation papers Finally, I want to thank Teacher Bui Thi Kim Phung sincerely for the dedication she has shown to help me complete this graduate paper I also want to thank the Faculty of Foreign Languages teachers for providing me with a great opportunity to improve my ability to complete this project 6.2 Suggestions During my thesis work, I found that I lacked a lot in the tourism profession Therefore, in the essay I can’t present anything further about the topic that I am researching Essentially, Duy Tan University taught us about my major, tourism English The school has provided what is needed for the entire course of study, but I have not seen a specific direction of my major Therefore, I hope the school will read my proposal and work to improve and improve the quality of teaching Firstly, I find that students not have enough chances to practice English with foreigners directly when they are at the university Therefore, they partly lack confidence in communicating with foreigners So I think the university should hold an English-Speaking club for students to exchange knowledge and talk to foreigners Through these activities, students can be more confident and can speak English fluently This would provide opportunities for students to improve their ability of English in specific and their communication skills in general as well as create more chances for students to study and search information about Vietnam culture as well as the culture of other countries Secondly, putting actual lecture content brings in-depth knowledge for receiving students At the same time, put the disciplines into practice by giving students experience with their field of study For example, for students to experience field trips, travel to cities close to the study location, help students know more ideal tourist destinations and improve their geographical knowledge Lastly, the university should also hold many conferences on career and training for the students to help them clearly orientate their future life Graduation Thesis Supervisor: Bui Thi Kim Phung, M.A REFERENCES Vietnamese Books: [1] Vũ Thị Bích Phượng – Phan Mai Thu Thảo (2005), Giáo trình nghiệp vụ phục vụ buồng, NXB Hà Nội, Hà Nội [2] Nguyễn Văn Mạnh – Hoàng Thị Lan Hương (2008), Giáo trình Quản trị kinh doanh khách sạn, NXB Đại học Kinh tế Quốcdân, Hà Nội [3] ThS Nguyễn Thị Tú (2005), Ngiệp vụ phục vụ khách sạn, Đại học Thương mại, NXB Thống Kê Websites: [4] https://www.mollymaid.com/our-services/housekeeping-services/ [5] https://setupmyhotel.thehospitality.comhttp://www.hoteljob.vn/tintuc/dac-diem-vai-tro-va-chuc-nang-cua-nha-hang-trong-khach-san [6] https://setupmyhotel.thehospitality.com [7] http://www.grandtouranehotel.com [8] http://www.hoteljob.vn/tin-tuc/chuc-nang-nhiem-vu-cua-cac-bo-phantrong-khach-san [9] http://thuvienso.duytan.edu.vn:80/handle/123456789/50385 Student: Pham Thi Thu Lai Code: 23203212422 Graduation Thesis Supervisor: Bui Thi Kim Phung, M.A SUPERVISOR’S COMMENT Student: Pham Thi Thu Lai Code: 23203212422 ... M.A 5.2 Some Solutions for Improving the Quality of Housekeeping at the Grand Tourane Hotel .56 5.2.1 Solutions for Improving the Quality of the Facilities at Grand Tourane Hotel ... 236 377 88 88 reservations@grandtouranehotel.com Image 1: An overview of Grand Tourane hotel The Grand Tourane Hotel was built according to 4-star standard, in a prime location (Vo Nguyen Giap... Grand Tourane Hotel, and specific information about the Housekeeping Department at the hotel Chapter 4: Analysis and evaluation The collected of the real situation, and the customer’s evaluation of