Front Office TerminologyAAAAAmerican Automobile Association.AARPAmerican Association of Retired Persons.accidentterm used to describe employee injuries.accounting equationAssets = Liabilities +Owners Equity.accounting transferused when a charge orcredit needs to be sent elsewhere within theguest ledger.aging statementwithin the city ledger, theaging statement tracks how long each receivablehas remained uncollected.all suitehotel type that offers suites as the primaryroom type.ancillaryhotel revenue sources outside of sleepingrooms or food/beverage.anticipated usage amountcash deposit requiredcovering the estimated use of hotel facilitiesand services (e.g., in-room phones, in-room movies,room service, etc.).arrival chronologythe term used to categorizethe stages a transient or group guest go throughupon arrival to a hotel.arrival/departure reporta night audit reportthat summarizes all the check-ins and checkoutsthat occurred in the course of a day.arrivals reporta front office report that listsevery guest due to arrive that day; a front officereport that lists only those check-ins yet due toarrive at that specific time. This report can be runat anytime during the day.assetan economic resource.audit trailserves as documented history of transactions.automated call distributor (ACD)routesreservations calls to available agents.automatic postingthe transfer of guest chargesto an account as they are incurred.average daily rate (ADR)an average of all therates sold at a hotel on a given night.Bback of the househotel departments with traditionallylow amounts of guest contact.bag deliveryterm used when a groups luggageis delivered to individual rooms at some point afterthe group has checked into the hotel.bag pullat a predetermined time in the day(usually when all group attendees are in session),the bellstaff go into each room and pull eachattendees luggage. This luggage is then stored untilthe group is ready to depart.balance sheetserves to summarize a hotelsfinancial situation on a given date.banka cash reserve assigned to individual frontdesk employees/managers to handle daily transactions.bellcaptainthe leader of the bellstaff.bellcarta large metal cart on rollers that bellstaffuse to carry luggage to and from a guestroom.blockingprocess of holding or reserving a specificroom based on room preferences and otherfactors.brand loyaltythe institutionalized preferencesof a consumer for a product or service based on abrand name or logo.bundlingthe process of combining one or morehotel products or services together to make thenew entity more attractive; most commonly usedwith package rates.business transienttransient market subsetcomprised of guests traveling on business.buyer confidencea hotel guests predetermineddesire to book a room at a hotel at almostany cost.Ccaptive audiencecustomers who are staying atthe hotel and will, for convenience and lack ofother options, partake in the outlets the hotel hasto offer.card approvalprocess to ensure that eachcredit card is valid and that a sufficient amount ofcredit is available on the card.central reservations system (CRS)providesthe consumer with an avenue to locate a hotel ofchoice in a certain location.charge/credit slipsused when the entry in theguest account menu has a net effect on the overallguest ledger.chief engineercoordinates the day-to-day maintenanceof the hotels physical structure.city ledgertracks revenues due to the hotel.closed to arrival (CTA)a useful restriction inslowing demand on one night while increasingdemand on the prior night.commission(usually 10 percent of the rate forhotels) paid to travel agents by hotels, airlines, andother travel related suppliers to induce furtherbookings.common areashotel spaces where most, if notall, guests may walk through.comp rooms reportthe night auditors mustverify each room that has no rate posted to it. Thisreport will include a reason for the complimentarystatus (e.g., per group contract, VIP, distressedguest, etc.).competitive sethotels of similar product type,location type, and size.compression of demandthe theory that theneed for hotel rooms in a city or geographicalregion will remain static and fairly constant inspite of what the occupancy level is. In effect, ifone part of an area is sold out, the demand forrooms will compress in such a way as to drivethose looking for rooms elsewhere.connecting roomshave doors between themthat can be opened.contract roomsa block of rooms set aside foran organization each and every night, whetherthey are occupied or not.controllerperson in charge of the hotels financialreporting and cash flow management.convention centera locally funded, or privatelyowned structure that caters to large groups andconventions for meetings of all kinds.conversion ratiothe number of transient bookingsmade versus the number of calls received.core competencyan organizations strengths.correction entryis used to correct a mistake inthe posting process.cost rate formulamethod of determining initialhotel rates based on construction costs. Thisformula determines the average room rate by allocating$1 towards the rate for each $1,000 spent inconstruction.credithas a negative effect on the total balanceof a guest account.credit card transaction reportconducted sothat accounts receivable can verify the allowancesand revenue due from each credit card companyon the city ledger.credit limit reportThis report is run to verifythat guests within the hotel have not exceededtheir credit card limits or cash balances on hand.The information from this report should be sharedwith accounts receivable and the front officemanager.credit riskcredit extended to an individual ororganization that may be unable to pay.crosstrainingemployees learning other jobswithin the hotel.cutoff datethe last possible date the hotel canhold contracted rooms for a group before releasingthem.

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2#Posted: 2-13-2009 02:11|All replies by this memberDdate rollhotels must designate a certain pointin the night to establish a change in date.debithas a positive effect on the total balance ofa guest account.deep cleanthe process of completely cleaning aroom.department headsmanagers who are mostdirectly involved in an areas day-to-day operations.departures reporta front office report that listseach guest who is due to check out that day; afront office report that lists only those checkoutsyet due to leave the hotel at that specific time. Thisreport can be run at anytime during the day.direct billinga process in which payment of aportion or all of a groups or guests charges aredeferred in some way.direct billing applicationa form requestingsome level of credit from a hotel.director of cateringresponsible for the cateringside of the hotel sales effort.director of engineeringinvolved in the physicalaspects of the hotels operation.director of food and beverageruns eachdepartment that sells, buys, or prepares food andbeverage products for hotel guests.director of groundsunique to the resort hotel,the director of grounds is in charge of landscapeand the surrounding area.director of human resourcesin charge of allhotel personnel.director of loss preventionmain priority isthe safety and security of all hotel guests andemployees.director of marketingoversees the hotelssales and marketing operation, directing the groupand transient sales efforts to maximize room revenue.director of operationsis in charge of the fundamentaloperational functions of the hotel in arevenue-based deployment structure.director of recreationis in charge of a resortssignature attraction.director of servicesresponsible for the hotelshousekeeping and laundry operations.disabled access configurationsleeping roomsthat are ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act)compliant.discrepant codeexists when housekeeping andthe front desk have different information on thestatus of a guest room.displacementoccurs when lower-rated grouprooms are booked in place of higher-rated transientrooms.diversity trainingteaches employees that theymust understand and appreciate the differences inpeople.double occupancytwo occupants in a guestroom.driving ratewhen demand dictates, a hotelmay never even begin selling discounted rates,and thus have them restricted from the start. Thispractice attempts to maximize revenue when demandis known to be forthcoming.

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3#Posted: 2-13-2009 02:12|All replies by this memberEemployee shift closing reportoutlines eachtransaction a front desk agent completed withinthe guest ledger.empowermentthe ability and authority tosatisfy guest complaints/requests within presetparameters.enhanced configurationunderstood to includemore amenities and/or services than thestandard guest room configuration.entriesupdate the guest accounting menu.executive chefresponsible for the hotels overallfood production.extended stayhotels that provide their guestswith services, amenities, and facilities that theywant or need to facilitate a long-term stay in onelocation.FFF&Efurniture, fixtures, and equipment.food and beverage potential reportreconciliationof what was sold in the outlets to what priceit was sold at.food/beverage audit reporta night audit reportthat summarizes the outlet/ancillary reportand the F&B potential report.food costthe cost of a particular food item inrelation to the price for which it is sold.forecastingthe task reservations performs ofproviding information on forthcoming occupancylevels.franchise companyacts as an agent on behalfof the owner and implements the franchise agreementbetween the owner (franchisee) and thehotel chain (franchiser).franchisedhotels that are independentlyowned hotels and affiliate themselves with achain. In a franchise agreement, the owner (franchisee)pays a franchise fee to the chain (franchiser)in exchange for the rights to use their name.frontterm used to alert the bellstaff that a guestis ready to be escorted to the room.front log sheetrecord kept at the bellstand ofall activity by each bellperson; used to ensure parityin all assignments.front office managerresponsible for a largeportion of the most visible aspects of a hotels dayto-day operations. He or she directs the day-to-dayactivities of the front desk, the bellstand, and theconcierge staff.front of the househotel departments with traditionallyhigh amounts of guest contact.full servicehotels that by definition providetheir guests with services, amenities, and facilitiesthat they want or need to complete a total hotelexperience.Ggateway citiestraditionally those located in anarea that makes them the first practical stop for aninternational flight coming in to a country.general cashieran accounting employee whomaintains the cash supply inside the hotel. Thecashier audits each bank to ensure that properaccounting procedures are adhered to and to avoidfraud.general managerthe person ultimately responsiblefor the hotel.group arrivaloccurs when a large number ofguests from the same group arrive at once.group basethe measurement of how manygroup rooms are on the books on a given night.group blockthe number of rooms the hotel iscontractually required to provide a group.group cateringfunctions such as meetings,events, and meal functions tied to a block of groupguest rooms.group catering contributiondefined as thecatering business acquired by a hotel that has all,or a major portion of, the attendees staying at thehotel itself.group functioncan be a meeting, meal, dance,or any other gathering of more than one person.In addition, a group function must have at least 10sleeping rooms per night associated with it.group roomsoriginate from reservations thatare made to bring more than one guest into thehotel (usually 10 or more rooms per night).group rooms worksheeta tool the reservationsdepartment uses to aid in forecasting.group rsuma hotel document that communicatesto all vital departments any aspect of agroup that may affect them.guaranteed no-show (GNS)guaranteed reservationthat is not occupied.guest accounttracks all the data that pertainsto an individual guest in a PMS system.guest accountingthe tracking of debits andcredits within the front office.guest accounting menua PMS menu used totrack all credit/debit transactions related to aguests stay.guest history accountrecords details of a hotelguests stay. Room preferences, rates paid, outletand ancillary usage, and other details are trackedfor future marketing and guest service uses.guest ledgeran all encompassing term used totrack hotel transactions primarily before and duringa guests or groups stay.guest registration menua PMS menu thatcontains all the pertinent information garneredfrom the initial reservationi.e., name, arrival/departure, room preferences, method of payment,and other miscellaneous information.guest room buyback processallows housekeepersto purchase guest rooms over and abovethe number assigned to them in their initial section.guest supply usage per occupied roomthemeasurement of housekeeping supplies used in aguest room averaged over time.

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4#Posted: 2-13-2009 02:13|All replies by this memberHhard goodsguest room items that are difficultor expensive to replace, such as TVs or furniture.historythe documented record of historicaldata.house accountserves as a perpetual account totrack recurring transactions that occur within thehotel.house countlooks at how many rooms are inhouse,how many are due to arrive, and howmany are due to check out. That number, less anyOOO rooms, yields a house count.housekeepers caddiea handheld carryingcase that can be easily brought into a guest room.Each caddie will consist of glass cleaner, bathroomcleaner, multipurpose cleaner, bath amenities(shampoo, conditioner, soap, etc.).housekeeping cartcart that holds the caddie,towels, linens, glasses, vacuum, and miscellaneousitems needed to clean a guest room.housepersonthe housepersons role is to supportthe housekeepers and maintain the cleanlinessof guest hallways.hybrid marketscombined target markets.IIATAInternational Association of Travel Agents.incident reportreport used to make documentationof any calls made to police, fire, or ambulanceservices and a summary of the circumstancessurrounding said incident.incidentalsnonroom and tax charges.independentIn these hotels, the owner has norole in management or day-to-day operations. Anindependent group of managers are responsible tothe owner for the hotels performance.individual booking cyclethe time betweenwhen an individual reservation is made and whenthat reservation is due to arrive.individual market potentialthe number ofrooms a hotel has for sale within a give timeframe.in-house reporta front office report that listseach room that was occupied and not due to checkout.intermediaryperson or entity that acts as a liaisonbetween a guest and the hotel.Jjourney segmentis the maximum reasonabledistance traveled in one day along trade or travelroutes using the transportation of the day.junction pointsAreas where different tradingroutes intersected also became favored stoppingpoints.Kkey control systemsensure guest safety bychanging the access to a guest room betweenguests.Lliabilityan economic obligation.limited servicehotels that do not offer foodand beverage outlets as well as meeting space.local cateringnon-group catering.location typesclassified by physical positioningin relation to the customers in the area and to theirtangible locale.lodging management associationthe relationshipbetween ownership and management.Mmanagement contractis similar to a franchisein that it is supplied with standard operating proceduresas well as quality and service level targets.However, these hotels differ in that they are actuallyoperated by the company that supplied thosestandards.management feefee paid by a hotel owner to achain or management company in return for operationaland management services.manual postingoccurs when an individualmust apply a charge to an account by hand.market segmenta portion or segment of theactual or potential business mix at any given hotel.market sharea hotels occupancy performancein relation to other hotels within a predeterminedcompetitive set.market tolerancemethod of determining averageroom rates by surveying rates offered by otherhotels in the competitive set.marketing plana document put together by ahotels senior management to chart a course forthe next year. It summarizes departmental goals,advertising schedules, financial targets, and marketconditions. A marketing plan is sometimesreferred to as a budget.master accountencompasses registration/accounting information for an entire group, notindividual attendees.message reportprints out all the reports thatwere delivered via the PMS message system in theday. It is a backup document that serves as a permanentrecord.mid-marketlisted as being part of both thelimited- and full-service hotel classifications becausethese hotels can vary from one place to the other.minimum length stay (MLS)a restriction thatmandates that all new reservations stay at thehotel for a minimum number of nights.MODmanager on duty.MOD reporta summary of all guest interactionand general hotel conditions during a given shift.This report serves as documentation for the generalmanager.MSDSMaterial Safety Data Sheet.Murphy bedbed that is stored in the wall of aguest room and pulled out when needed.Nnational accountspreapproved direct billingcan be extended to large accounts a hotel chainmay do business with. These accounts do not haveto go through the billing approval process at eachindividual hotel they wish to do business with.needs analysisthe process where hotel ownersand senior managers determine the required scopeof a potential large purchase.night audita department of the front office thatassumes the role of reconciling a hotel=s dailyactivities and transactions.night audit reportdata compiled by the nightaudit team for management review.no-show reportThis report is also run for thebenefit of the accounts receivable department. Theverification of who had a guaranteed reservationand did not show up will assist in determiningwho needs to be billed.nonaffiliated management companiesorganizationswith no tie to a chain, but who also offerhotel management and operational expertise inmuch the same way a chain would.

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5#Posted: 2-13-2009 02:14|All replies by this memberOoccupancyis the measurement of how manyrooms are sold each night versus how many roomsthe hotel has available to sell.occupancy drivenmanagement philosophythat may forgo a higher average rate for greateroccupancy levels.opportunity costSleeping rooms at a hotel areconsidered a perishable commodity. Each night,when a room goes unsold, the hotel loses thatopportunity to ever sell it again. A hotel cannotregain that opportunity.out of order rooms reportAny room that cannotbe sold must be listed. The reason for the OOOstatus (e.g., leaky shower, renovation) should belisted and an indication of action taken (notifiedengineering) should accompany it.outleta food and beverage point of sale.outlet/ancillary reconciliation reporta reportincorporated into the night audit report thatmust match the total sales reports of each outlet/ancillary venue.outsourcingutilizing an outside vendor forproducts or services.oversellinga hotel may sell more rooms thanare actually in inventory.owner-managedconsist of hotels where theowner has hired additional (nonfamily) personnelto help run the property.owner-operateda hotel that is run by anowner and the owners family.owners equitythe level of ownership theowner has in the operation.Ppaid out slipdebits an account (charges) inreturn for cash paid out on the guest=s behalf.paran inventory of supplies.pass on logguest information that requires indepthexplanation or other hotel issues that mayimpact the desk are often communicated via thepass on log.per diemtypically applies to governmental employeestraveling on business. Usually covers hotel,meals, and other out-of-pocket expenses.perfect sellreached when every room is occupiedand no guest was walked.petty cash slipslip used for nonguest-relatedexpenses incurred by the hotel.pleasure transienttransient market subsetcomprised of guests traveling for pleasure.PMSproperty management system.PMS summary-posting reportall the postingactivities conducted during the course of businessat the front desk is verified against individual bankouts and then included into the night audit report.PMS hierarchythe organization of specializedmenus within a Property Management Systemssoftware.PMS workstationsArea where a hotel employeeor manager can access the Property ManagementSystem. Each workstation includes thesoftware, hardware, and monitor.POSpoint of sale.postingthe act of applying a debit or credit to anaccount.pre-key/key packcheck-in system that beginsthe check-in process before guests arrive. To prekeyis to pre-assign guests a room and issue a key.The actual key pack is simply a document tohold the key.prime selling timethe specific hours during theday when the transient guests are most likely tocall in for a reservation.product typesdefine a hotels service level aswell as its target market.profit margindetermined by comparing the salesrevenue versus the costs incurred in providing aservice or product.Qquad occupancyfour occupants in a guestroom.Rrack rateunderstood to be the highest publishedrate a hotel can charge for a specific room.rate averagingsimply averaging the target ratesfor any multiple-night reservation.rate drivenmanagement philosophy that mayforgo occupancy levels for higher average rates.rate restrictionsyield management tools thathotels use by limiting options available to the hotelguest for transient reservations.rate spreadthe difference between the singleand double occupancy rates.rate structurecombination of all the rates offeredat a hotel.rate triggera signal programmed into the reservationcomputer system that instructs it to changethe rate based on preset criteria.readerboarda listing of meetings taking placeat the hotel. Often posted throughout the facilityand available on in-room closed-circuit TV channels.receivablesrevenue due to the hotel.receptive customerone who is more likely tobe interested in a product or service than the generalpopulation due to personal interest or need.referral organizationan association of nonchainaffiliated hotels who pool marketing andother resources for mutual benefit.registration carda preprinted card that summarizesmuch of the information contained in theguest registration menu of PMS. It is used to verifythe accuracy of the information.remote check-inusing signage identifying agroup, a separate table is set up to accommodatethe arrivals and check guests into the hotel; sometimesreferred to as satellite check-in.reservation avenuea means by which a guestis able to make a reservation at a hotel.reservation carda preprinted form that groupguests would fill out to make reservations.reservations mapused to determine whattypes of rooms are available and when they areavailable.resident managerin charge of all rooms-relatedfunctions.rev-parrevenue per available room.revenue sourceis the result of a product orservice a hotel makes available to guests for aprice.rightful market sharereveals how much ofthe total market potential is made up by its ownindividual potential.ROIreturn on investment.room costcalculation of fixed costs a hotelincurs in preparing a room for sale. Room cost isincurred whether the room is sold or not.room designationidentifies whether the sleepingroom is a smoking or non-smoking room.room rackprior to the integration of PMS systems,hotel rooms were laid out behind the frontdesk in a room rack. The room rack would identifyeach room type and configuration at a glance.room ratethe price of hotel accommodationunits.room rate designationthe term used to specifythe rate threshold within the overall structure.room rate posting reportgenerated for inclusioninto the night audit report that verifies therates for all the rooms within the hotel occupiednightly for management review.room status codedescribes a guest roomsreadiness for occupancy by combining both occupancyand cleanliness information.room status reconciliationensuring thatrooms are properly designated by their current status,and assigned a new status as it changes.room preferencesdefined as the individualguests choice of room type, configuration, anddesignation.room typesbased on the intended number ofoccupants.rooming a guestescorting a guest to the room.rooms controllerreservations employee taskedto block rooms for arriving group and transientguests.rooms inspectorperson assigned to a group ofeight housekeepers to inspect the cleanliness ofguest rooms at random.routingthe process where credits/debits incurredby one account are manually or automaticallytransferred to another account.run of house (ROH)another way of describingthe standard sleeping room configuration.

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6#Posted: 2-13-2009 02:17|All replies by this memberSseasonalityterm used to define the time of yearwhen a special attraction is open or at its peaklevel. (Terms also used to describe seasonality arein season and off-season.)sectionthe assignment of rooms to an individualhousekeeper.series groupsgroups who book several programsat one time.service levelis measured by the amount ofactual and perceived consideration a guest canreasonably expect to receive.service mission statementserves as the ruleand/or goal of the guest service philosophy of ahotel.sign all charges (SAC)this billing arrangementallows for each member of a group to sign alltheir charges to the group. The group will pay foreverything.sign room and tax (SRT)this arrangementallows for the group to pay the room and taxcharges for the attendees. The guest is responsiblefor their incidentals.signature attractionshotel features that areunique to the property.single occupancyone occupant in a guestroom.sleeping roomtraditionally the main productfor sale at any hotel.slippagethe term used when analyzing thegroup room performance. It is the differencebetween what is contracted and what actuallyarrives.SMERFmarket segment encompassing theSocial, Military, Educational, Religious, and Fraternalmarkets.soft goodseasily replaced and relatively inexpensiveguest room items, such as bedspreads anddraperies.special attractiona service or facility thatattracts guests for a reason other than the hotelitself.standard configurationdefined as the roomconfiguration that makes up the majority of thesleeping rooms at a particular hotel.state of cleanlinessa room status code describinga guest rooms cleanliness standing. Thosestates are (1) Dirty (applies to a room that has notbeen cleaned by housekeeping); (2) Clean (roomhas been cleaned but not yet inspected).state of exceptiona room status code describingthe reason a guest room is not available forsale. That state is Out of Order (room was removedfrom inventory for a specific reason such as repairsor renovation).state of occupancya room status code describinga guest rooms occupancy standing. Thosestates are (1) Occupied (applies to a room thathas been assigned to a guest and that guest haschecked in; (2) Vacant (the guest has checked outof the room); (3) Ready (room is available for newoccupancy).suburbana hotel location type identifying nonresorthotels that are not in the downtown or airportareas.suite configurationinvolves a larger room (interms of square footage) than the standard configuration.Ttarget ratean average rate goal a hotel sets toachieve for a certain day or market segment.target marketa (combination of) market segment(s) the hotel wants to penetrate.tariff sheetdocument posted on the back ofguest room doors that indicates what the rack rateis for that particular room.10x10 rulehas two parts. The first part statesthat a guest=s perception of the entire stay is, inlarge measure, instilled in the first 10 minutesupon arrival. The other part states that the frontdesk must greet a guest 10 feet before he/she approachesthe front desk.total market potentialthe total number ofavailable hotel rooms within the competitive set.transient roomsrooms that originate fromindividual reservations.triple occupancythree occupants in a guestroom.turnHousekeeping is said to turn a room whenit goes through the act of cleaning and preparing itfor resale.turndown servicethe process by which theguest room is made warm and inviting for theevening.Uupgradesthe process of offering a better roomtype than initially reserved.upsellingthe ability to move a guest from alower-priced product to a higher-priced product.USALIuniform system of accounts for the lodgingindustry.Wwalk-in reservationsmade by guests arrivingunannounced at a hotel looking for rooms.walked reservationa guest who must stay atsome location other than where they were initiallybooked to be.walkoutsthose who leave a hotel before properlysettling their accounts.Yyield managementthe pricing strategy managedby a hotels reservations department. Becausea hotel has a group base before the booking cyclestarts, the reservations department can charge roomrates based on how many rooms are available.