SOPs

CORE HOTEL OPERATIONS & MANAGEMENT

Staff Writer

July 10, 2025
5 min read

📚 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction to Hotel Operations
Structure of Hotel Departments
Front Office Operations
Housekeeping & Laundry
Food & Beverage (F&B) Operations
Sales & Marketing in Hospitality
Revenue Management
Finance & Accounting
Engineering & Maintenance
Interdepartmental Coordination
Training & Performance Management
KPIs for Each Department
Guest Experience as an Operational Driver
SOP Templates & Best Practices
Future of Hotel Operations in India

1. 🏨 INTRODUCTION TO HOTEL OPERATIONS

Hotel operations refer to the systematic functioning of all departments within a hotel to ensure excellent guest service, efficient resource management, profitability, and regulatory compliance. In Indian hotels, operational challenges vary by scale (budget vs. luxury), location (urban vs. tourist), and guest demographics (domestic vs. international).

Table of Contents

2. 🧭 STRUCTURE OF HOTEL DEPARTMENTS

Division	Key Departments
Rooms Division	Front Office, Housekeeping, Concierge
Food & Beverage	Restaurant, Bar, Banquet, Kitchen
Commercial Division	Sales, Marketing, Revenue Management
Finance & Admin	Accounts, HR, IT, Legal
Engineering Division	Maintenance, Safety & Security

Each department must align with the hotel’s mission, vision, and brand standards.

3. 🛎️ FRONT OFFICE OPERATIONS

3.1 Key Responsibilities

Guest check-in/check-out
Room assignment and blocking
Reservation handling (walk-ins, OTAs, GDS, website)
Billing, folio management, guest inquiries
Night audit and shift reporting
VIP guest handling
Concierge and travel desk support

3.2 Technology

PMS: Opera, IDS, eZee, Hotelogix, Cloudbeds
Key Cards & Biometrics
CRM Integration for loyalty

3.3 SOP Highlights

Guest ID verification and data protection
Handling no-show and early check-in
Wake-up call logs
Petty cash disbursal protocol
Handling overbooked situations and walk-in guests

3.4 KPIs

Average check-in time
Guest satisfaction score
Upsell revenue per shift
Night audit variance

4. 🧽 HOUSEKEEPING & LAUNDRY OPERATIONS

4.1 Housekeeping Functions

Daily room cleaning
Deep cleaning schedules (weekly/monthly)
Linen management and inventory
Turn-down service for luxury hotels
Minibar refilling (if applicable)

4.2 Laundry Operations

Guest laundry (wash/fold, dry clean)
Linen laundry (bedsheets, towels)
Staff uniforms
Steam pressing and stain management

4.3 Safety & Hygiene Protocols

Chemical usage SOP with MSDS sheets
Infection control (post-COVID SOPs)
Pest control logs
PPE for housekeeping attendants

4.4 Housekeeping Technology

Mobile housekeeping apps linked with PMS
RFID linen tracking systems
Laundry billing via POS

4.5 KPIs

Room turnaround time
Housekeeping complaints per 100 stays
Linen damage rate
Laundry delivery time

5. 🍽️ FOOD & BEVERAGE OPERATIONS

5.1 Department Areas

Main restaurant
Bar and Lounge
Banquets and Events
In-room Dining
Coffee shop or casual dining
Kitchen/Stewarding

5.2 Operational Elements

Menu engineering (costing, variety, layout)
Guest service SOPs (greeting, order taking, feedback)
Bar operations & beverage stock control
Inventory control and spoilage monitoring
Event planning and buffet setups
Handling dietary restrictions (Jain, Vegan, Gluten-free)

5.3 Hygiene & Food Safety

HACCP implementation
Kitchen sanitation schedules
Cold chain management
Hand hygiene SOPs

5.4 Tech Tools

POS software (Toast, eZee, POSist)
Kitchen display systems (KDS)
Table management apps

5.5 KPIs

Food cost %
Table turnover rate
Guest satisfaction for food & service
Average check per cover

6. 💼 SALES & MARKETING

6.1 Sales Channels

B2B: Corporates, Travel Agents, MICE
B2C: Direct bookings, OTAs, walk-ins

6.2 Marketing Tools

Digital: SEO, PPC, Meta Ads
Email campaigns and CRM workflows
Social media marketing with influencers
Content & blog strategy
Offline: Brochures, print media, travel fairs

6.3 CRM & Loyalty

Custom guest engagement
Points-based loyalty programs
Pre-arrival and post-departure emails

6.4 KPIs

Direct vs OTA booking ratio
Conversion rate of website visitors
ROI on campaigns
RevPAM (Revenue per available marketing campaign)

7. 📊 REVENUE MANAGEMENT

7.1 Revenue Tools & Strategies

Dynamic pricing using RMS (e.g., Duetto, RateGain)
Demand forecasting and inventory allocation
Competitor benchmarking
Rate parity checks
Length of stay (LOS) and lead time management

7.2 Distribution Channels

OTAs: Booking.com, MakeMyTrip, Goibibo
Hotel Website with Booking Engine
GDS (for international corporate traffic)
Call center or WhatsApp bookings

7.3 Key Revenue Reports

STR Reports (benchmarking)
Pick-up reports (weekly/monthly)
Channel performance review
Displacement analysis

7.4 KPIs

RevPAR
ADR
Occupancy %
GOPPAR
Direct booking ratio

8. 📑 FINANCE & ACCOUNTING

8.1 Financial Functions

Budgeting & forecasting
Vendor payments & invoice verification
Tax compliance (GST, TDS)
P&L analysis
Payroll processing

8.2 Key Reports

Daily revenue report (DRR)
Department-wise P&L
Cash flow statements
Cost of sales (F&B, Housekeeping)
Balance sheet reviews

8.3 Compliance & Standards

USALI (Uniform System of Accounts for the Lodging Industry)
Internal audits
Statutory compliance (ESI, PF, Labour Law)

8.4 KPIs

Operating profit margin
AR aging
Food & beverage cost %
Utility expenses per occupied room

9. 🧰 ENGINEERING & MAINTENANCE

9.1 Core Responsibilities

Preventive maintenance schedules
HVAC, plumbing, and electrical upkeep
Room maintenance tickets
Energy management (meter reading, solar usage)
Fire safety checks and drills

9.2 Tools Used

CMMS (Computerized Maintenance Management System)
Guest complaint logbook
Asset depreciation tracking

9.3 Renovation & Emergency Work

Work orders approval
Guest inconvenience minimization
Vendor AMC contracts

9.4 KPIs

Preventive vs. reactive maintenance ratio
Downtime hours
Guest maintenance complaints
Cost of repairs per month

10. 🔄 INTERDEPARTMENTAL COORDINATION

Morning briefing and HOD meetings
Shared SOP documentation
Departmental handovers and shift summaries
Shared tech platforms (PMS, POS, CRM)
Interdepartmental audits (Housekeeping–FO; Kitchen–Service)

11. 🎯 TRAINING & PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT

Onboarding programs with departmental rotations
Monthly refresher training
SOP adherence tracking
Appraisal systems linked to KPIs
Training logs and certification for key roles

12. 📈 DEPARTMENT-WISE KPIs OVERVIEW

Department	Key KPIs
Front Office	Upsell revenue, guest feedback, check-in time
Housekeeping	Room cleaning time, cleanliness score
F&B	Food cost %, table turnover
Sales & Mktg	Direct booking %, campaign ROI
Revenue Mgmt	RevPAR, Occupancy %, ADR
Finance	GOP %, AR aging, cost per occupied room
Engineering	Maintenance response time, energy savings

13. 🌟 GUEST EXPERIENCE AS AN OPERATIONAL DRIVER

Service personalization through PMS and CRM
Cross-departmental guest profile sharing
Handling feedback and reviews with escalation SOPs
Guest preference tracking (allergies, birthdays, newspaper type)

14. 🗂️ SOP TEMPLATES & RESOURCES

Check-in checklist
Room cleaning SOP
In-room dining order flow
Emergency maintenance log
Fire drill participation sheet
Staff complaint register
F&B recipe costing sheet

(Available in Word/Excel formats upon request)

15. 🚀 THE FUTURE OF HOTEL OPERATIONS IN INDIA

AI-based guest service bots
Voice-activated rooms
Smart energy management
PMS with auto-learning algorithms
Cybersecurity as core infrastructure
Green housekeeping with sustainable practices
Integrated mobile apps for staff and guests

🏁 CONCLUSION

Hotel operations are the backbone of guest satisfaction and profitability. By mastering the core elements—front office, housekeeping, F&B, sales, revenue, finance, and engineering—a hotel can consistently deliver exceptional service while maintaining cost efficiency and operational excellence.