Executive Housekeeper in London

The Executive Housekeeper is a critical member of the shipboard management team, responsible for the management of all Housekeeping functions and team members onboard. The Executive Housekeeper possesses a dynamic outgoing demeanor with a passion for ‘Delivering the Wow’ through exceptional service while demonstrating exemplary leadership skills. He/she continually strives to exceed hospitality industry cleanliness and presentation standards, while ensuring complete guest and team satisfaction. He/she establishes and maintains a positive working environment of transparency, fairness and consistency, with clear performance expectations and open and frequent communication. He/she focuses on operational goals where training, leadership development and recognizing overall team performance are paramount.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Ensures cleanliness, maintenance and presentation standards are managed to brand standards in all Housekeeping areas, including all guest staterooms and balconies, guest corridors, officer cabins, laundry, lockers and storage areas in both the front and back of house.
• Spends at least 50% of working day in front-of-house operations to set tone and oversee inspection processes, ensuring feedback is delivered in constructive and appropriate manner with emphasis on positive reinforcement.
• Ensures all administrative and back of house functions are completed on time, accurately and are maintained to standard.
• Reports to the Hotel Director and takes an active role in all hotel division activities.
• Educates fellow division heads on cleanliness standards.
• Develops and maintains strong rapport and frequent communication with the Facilities Manager, the Deck Department and Marine Department to ensure timely completion of ongoing and preventative maintenance in an organized and well planned manner.
• Provides preventative maintenance reporting to enable maintenance to be planned and executed appropriately to improve stateroom, balcony and corridor appearance.
• Responsible for leading, motivating and coaching a team of empowered individuals who will strive to deliver exceptional guest service, taking ownership and accountability for reacting to guest feedback and requests effectively and efficiently.
• Responds to guest complaints and concerns in prompt, empathetic, and customer centric manner, ensuring appropriate resolution and using every guest issue as an opportunity to coach and mentor the Housekeeping management and team.
• Practices sound business sense in an ethical manner at all times.
• Mentors, develops and provides both classroom-style and on-the-job training to team members to strengthen their current performance and preparation for succession planning.
• Ensures team communication is maintained at highest levels, through activities such as morning line up, etc. to constantly keep team informed and aware of relevant information.
• Evaluates and tracks development on an individual and team level, ensuring every team member receives frequent, open and honest feedback about his/her performance, individual strengths and improvement opportunities.
• Reviews and ensures compliance with the training matrix for all positions.
• Oversees, coordinates, and administers the Housekeeping Division schedule in conjunction with the shoreside support group.
• Actively identifies and monitors the scheduling needs of the Housekeeping division.
• Effectively manages all Laundry Operations onboard ensuring that the Laundry Master has all necessary skills, training, tools, information and support to enable delivery of services and products flawlessly and on a consistent basis.
• Maintains an accurate inventory of all linen, terry, crew linens and other items par levels, ensuring that at all times purchases are made to maintain sufficient par to meet the business demands.
• Reviews regularly the quality control and discard sheets and provides root cause analysis.
• Completes daily walk through of the laundry operation and completes a formalized laundry inspection each week with the Laundry Master.
• Actively manages and reviews yearly budgets for Housekeeping and Laundry cost centers/expenses and revenue streams.
• Leads division in taking a proactive approach to achieving and exceeding quantitative and qualitative goals and targets set for Housekeeping guest satisfaction ratings, GOLD Anchor Quality Reviews, employee satisfaction scores, Public Health inspections and audits, and Housekeeping Operational Reviews.
• Maintains and communicates current knowledge of all ship’s regular events and special functions in order to provide guests and housekeeping team with accurate and updated information.
• Attends department and division head meetings. In addition, facilitates divisional crew and management meetings, training activities, courses and all other work-related activities with the Housekeeping Team.
• Ensures frequent and consistent updates of clear and concise handover notes to eliminate any possible miscommunication that compromises the efficiency of set processes.
• Oversees the Stateroom Attendant Performance Management Tool, ensuring system is maintained per the system’s Standard Operating Procedures document.
• Identifies career path opportunities for Management team and crew members and assists accordingly to reach career goals as a coach and mentor.
• Oversees the allocation of Support team resources for luggage and turnaround duties in conjunction with the Hotel Director.
• Fully owns any guest concern in line with onboard problem resolution guidelines to ensure maximum guest satisfaction and oversees the entire division and trains and coaches responses for effective problem resolution.
• Maintains safe, secure, and healthy environment by enforcing organizational standards.