AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE REAL SITUATIONS AND SOME SOLUTIONS TO IMPROVING THE SERVICE QUALITY OF THE RECEPTION DEPARTMENT AT DANANG TRADE UNION HOTEL

TABLE OF FINGURES Tables: Table 1: The survey result of Guest’s Arrival at Danang Trade Uinion Hotel ...23 Table 2: The business result of Danang Trade Union Hotel...24 Table 3: Tourist

DUY TAN UNIVERSITY

FACULTY OF ENGLISH

GRADUATION THESIS

BUI THI PHUONG NGA

AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE REAL SITUATIONS AND SOME SOLUTIONS TO IMPROVING THE SERVICE QUALITY OF THE RECEPTION DEPARTMENT AT DANANG TRADE

DUY TAN UNIVERSITY

FACULTY OF ENGLISH

GRADUATION THESIS

BUI THI PHUONG NGA

AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE REAL

SITUATIONS AND SOME SOLUTIONS TO

IMPROVING THE SERVICE QUALITY OF THE RECEPTION DEPARTMENT AT DANANG TRADE

In fact, there is no success without support and help In the process ofcompleting this graduation paper, I have received a lot of help, guidance andencouragement from teachers, colleagues, friends and family

Firstly, I would like to express my deep gratitude to my guidance advisor fromthe Faculty of Foreign Languages of Duy Tan University, M.A, Mai Lan Thi forhis guidance and encouragement in doing this research I am truly grateful for hisadvice and suggestions right from the first step

Secondly, I would like to express my gratitude to all the teachers who gave meuseful knowledge and materials Not only that, they also inspired and facilitated meduring my study and practice at Duy Tan University That is the importantfoundation for me to complete this paper in the best way

Finally but not least , Members of my family give advise and useful life lesson

to me

STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP

I declare that this graduation paper has been composed myself, and described

my own work, unless otherwise acknowledged in the text Except where reference

is made in the text of the graduation paper, this graduation paper contains nomaterial published elsewhere or extracted in the whole or in part from thegraduation paper by which have qualified for or been awarded another degree ordiploma No other person’s work has been used without due acknowledgement inthe graduation paper This graduation paper has not been submitted for award ofany degree or diploma in any other tertiary institution

In this graduation paper investigates the real situation and provides solutions toimprove the service quality of the Reception Department at Danang Trade UnionHotel This case study is conducted on the basis of theory and practical data Inorder to get results, I have gathered all the main relevant information about hotel,tourists, etc from primary and secondary sources, such as textbooks, the Internet,

as well as receptionist data and customer reviews of the hotel through my surveys,findings and observations Based on this information, I will outline some of thecharacteristics of the staff, the service, the organizational structure and then proposesome suggestions to improve the service quality of Reception Department at thehotel

FO : Front Office

Sqm: Square meters

TABLE OF FINGURES Tables:

Table 1: The survey result of Guest’s Arrival at Danang Trade Uinion Hotel

23

Table 2: The business result of Danang Trade Union Hotel 24

Table 3: Tourist statistics according to Nationalities of Danang Trade Union Hotel In the period 2018-2020 25

Table 4: Evaluate the Modern Level of Hotel Facilities 28

Table 5: Evaluate the uniform of the receptionist 29

Table 6: Evaluation about the reception solve guest’s complaints 31

Table 7 : Evaluation about attitude of the receptionist 32

Table 8 : Evaluation about Professional of the receptionist 32

Table 9 : Evaluation about Foreign Language of the receptionist 33

Table 10 : Evaluation about Waiting time 33

Table 11 : Evaluation about service of the receptionist 33

Table 12 : Evaluation about Procedures of registering rooms 35

Table 13 : Evaluation about the Payment procedures for guests 36

Figures: Figure 1: FO Department Organization Chart 11

Figure 2: Organization Structure of Danang Trade Union Hotel 17

Figure 3: Organization Chart of FO Department at Danang Trade Union Hotel 18

Figure 4: Service process at Danang Trade Union Hotel 20

Charts: Chart 1: An assessment chart of the modern level of facilities 28

Chart 2: Evaluation of the Receptionist's uniform 30

Chart 3: Evaluation about the reception solve guest’s complaints 31

Chart 4: Evaluation about Service Quality of the Receptionist 34

Chart 5: Evaluation about procedures of registering rooms 35

Chart 6: Evaluation about Payment procedures for guests 36

TABLES OF CONTENS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT i

STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP ii

ABSTRACT iii

ABBREVIATIONS iv

TABLE OF FINGURES v

PART A: INTRODUCTION 1

1 Rationale 1

2.Aims and objectives: 2

2.1 Aims 2

2.2 Ojective 2

3 The scope of study 2

4 Method of study 3

5 Organization of the study 3

PART B: DEVELOPMENT 4

CHAPTER I: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 4

1.1 An overview of the Hospitality Industry 4

1.1.1 Tourism 4

1.1.2 Tourist 4

1.1.2.1 Domestic tourists 4

1.1.1.2 International tourists 4

1.1.3 Hotel 5

1.1.3.1 Definition of hotel 5

1.1.3.2 Classification of hotel 5

1.1.4 Hotel Business 8

1.1.5 Quality of service in hotel 8

1.1.5.1 Definition 8

1.1.5.2 Criteria for evaluating service quality 9

1.2 General introduction about Front Office department 9

1.2.1 Definition of Front Office department 9

1.2.2 Mission of the Front Office department 10

1.2.3 The Front Office department organization chart 10

CHAPTER 2: CASE DESCRIPTION 12

2.1 An Overview of Danang Trade Union Hotel 12

2.1.1 Guest room and facilities 13

2.1.2 Organizational Structure of Danang Trade Union Hotel 17

2.2 Introduction about FO department at Danang Trade Union Hotel .17 2.2.1.The Organization Structure of FO department at Danang Trade Union Hotel 17

2.2.2 Customer Service Process of Reception Department 19

CHAPTER 3 ANALYSIS AND EVALUATION 23

3.1 The business result of Danang Trade Union Hotel in the year 2020 .24 3.2 Analysis about the Real Situation of Guest’s Arrival at Danang Trade Union Hotel 25

3.3 Analysis about the real situation of the service quality of Reception Department at Danang Trade Union Hotel 26

3.3.1 Facilities in Reception area 26

3.3.2 Reception staff 26

3.3.3 Service style of staff 27

3.4 Evaluation of Reception Service Quality at Danang Trade Union Hotel 27

3.4.1 Evaluation about facilities 28

3.4.2 Evaluation about the Uniform of Receptionist 29

3.4.3 Evaluation about the reception solve guest’s complaints 31

3.4.4 Evaluation about Service Quality of the Receptionist 32

3.4.5 Evaluate the Procedures of Registering Rooms 35

3.4.6 Evaluation about the Payment procedures for guests 36

PART C CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTIONS 38

4.1 Conclusion 38

4.2 Some solutions to improving the service quality of Reception Department 39

4.2.1 Upgrading Facilities 39

4.2.2 Improve the service process of the reception and improve the quality of staff 40

4.2.3 Improve and enhance the quality of management at the reception deparment 40

4.2.4 Strengthening the coordination of work between reception and other parts of the hotel 41 REFERENCES

APPENDIX QUESTIONAIRES

SUPERVISOR’S COMMENT

PART A: INTRODUCTION

1 Rationale

More recently, the speed of development of science and technology togetherwith the developed economy has helped improve people's material life Besides,tourism has made great development steps in Vietnam Tourism is widely promoted,because it offers potential and employment opportunities, creates revenue for thecountry and becomes a source of revenue for the government This requires allbusinesses, to give high priority to the provision of high quality services, to meetgrowing demand

The growth of Vietnam's tourism industry in recent years has contributedsignificantly to the hospitality industry With the increasing number of hotels today,the hotel must take measures to attract and thereby assert its competitive position inthe market Vietnam has a stable economy, rich culture, beautiful natural landscapesand world cultural heritages capable of attracting high tourists In addition,Vietnam also has many opportunities to attract investors around the world, creatingfavorable conditions for hotel business - developing tourism in the future

In the hotel business, reception and other services are important factors tocreate the image of the hotel in the minds of customers Customer care is a difficultand complex task, but it is very important and can affect product quality

The reception department provides all information about hotel services andsales of products and services to guests This is the first and last part to interact withguests, making a first and last impression on the quality of the hotel In other words,

"Show Case Window" reflects the image of the hotel This is also the place wherebusinesses can receive and resolve customer complaints and questions From there,

it is possible to explore the different needs of customers, to meet and meet theirmaximum needs

Therefore, improving the service quality of the reception is very necessary.Moreover, the hotel and tourism business is becoming increasingly fierce This fact

requires businesses to implement measures to improve service quality to turn it into

2.Aims and objectives:

2.2 Ojective

• Determining the factors affecting the quality of service of the reception

department at Danang Trade Union Hotel

• Assessing the satisfaction of guests with the quality of the reception

department at Danang Trade Union Hotel

• Proposing some solutions to improve the service quality of the reception

department at Danang Trade Union Hotel

3 The scope of study.

Focus on competence, work and service related elements In addition, there areissues such as Labor structure, Hotel facilities, Business area, situation arrivals ofguests To explore these issues, I will look directly at the Reception Department atDanang Trade Union Hotel In order to have stale data, I will collect information bydoing some surveys with the guests of hotel

Next, the research data will assess the quality of hotel services and analyze theactual situation of the hotel through the data I gathered

Finally, provide practical solutions to improve and advance the service quality

of the reception

4 Method of study.

- Data collected: Directly observe the activities and working processes ofreceptionist at Danang Trade Union hotel to collect data These data are processedand analyzed for inclusion in the thesis

- Questionnaires and interviews: I designed a questionnaire to give to tourists

in Danang Trade Union hotel to get their information and ideas when they are at thehotel

- Survey and observe productivity

- From the data and information I have collected, analyzed, compared,combined with practical theory to evaluate the quality of service at the reception

5. Organization of the study.

This study consists of the following three parts:

Part A is an introduction to the graduation paper covering the rationale,

goals and objectives, scope of the study, research methodology and researchorganization

Part B talks about development; It consists of three chapters:

- Chapter 1 is the theoretical basis of the hotel industry,

reception department and service quality in the hotel

- Chapter 2 is a description of the general of Danang Trade Union hotel,

Reception and Organizational Department at this hotel

- Chapter 3 is analyzing and evaluating the problem

Part C talked about some solutions to improve the service quality of the

Reception Department at Danang Trade Union hotel

PART B: DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER I: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 1.1 An overview of the Hospitality Industry.

1.1.1 Tourism

When it comes to tourism it is almost varies by each person and each source.There is no consensus Nearly every organization defines "Travel" differently Butwhen it comes to explaining it we refer to the following definitions:

The World Tourism Organization defines tourism more generally, in termswhich go "beyond the common perception of tourism as being limited to holidayactivity only", as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usualenvironment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure and not less than 24hours, business and other purposes

Tourism can be domestic (within the traveller's own country)

or international, and international tourism has both incoming and outgoingimplications on a country's balance of payments

Tourism Law of Vietnam (2005) defines: "Tourism is activities related tohuman travel outside of their regular residence to meet the needs of sightseeing,study and entertainment, vacation for a certain period of time”

Thus, the group of international tourists is divided into 2 specific categories asfollows:

- Inbound tourist: Foreigners and Vietnamese residing overseas to travel toVietnam

- Outbound tourist: Vietnamese and foreigners residing in Vietnam travel

Morcel Gotie, a travel and hotel researcher, defined: "The hotel is a temporaryaccommodation for visitors Along with the bedrooms, there are restaurants withmany different categories

In the handbook of wod travel have note: “Hotel is high-rise buildings, provideservices such as sleeping, eating and additional services for tourists aimed atprofiting”

1.1.3.2 Classification of hotel

Hotels can be divided into many different criteria depending on the scale,location and travel form of the passengers

1.1.3.2.1 Size- Or number of room

-Using the size parameter, hotel can be classified into:

Small hotels: These are hotels whose number of customers rooms does not

exceed 25

Medium hotels: They include hotels with the number of guest room ranging

between 26 to 100

Large hotels: These are hotels whose numbers of customers rooms ranges

City Center

Located in the heart of the city near commercial area This type of hotel isbuilt in the heart of big cities, densely populated urban areas The object of thishotel is for business travelers, attending conferences, seminars, businessmen , stillactive and sports fans, visitors to relative

Motel

They are small hotels usually located on highways Transit guests use them.Highways to serve passengers traveling on national highways using motor vehiclessuch as motels accommodation, food service and transportation services such asrepair, fuel suppl

Suburban Hotel

They are located near urban area Budget guests use them The level offacilities and amenities of this hotel are adequate and luxurious at average level,providing the services also at average level of quality

Resorts

They are on the beaches, mountains, islands, or on the river banks Types ofresort hotels are often built in places of natural resources such as islands, forests

and mountains Architecture for construction of low-rise villas The object of thehotel guests to relax, scientists study the ecological environment

Rotels

They are hotels on wheels such as Deccan Odyssey train These are hotelsdesigned to rotate on wheels Some of them may be equipped with air conditioningfacilities and be attached to well-furnished bars and restaurants

Transient Hotels

These are hotels that provide services to en-route travelers They aredeveloped close to airports, seaports, and railway stations, operating around theclock to offer room and commercial services to transient travelers Being 5-starhotels, these hotels target business clientele, airline personnel, and passengerswhose flights have been canceled

1.1.3.2.2 Service level

Hotels with high-class services (according to international standards)

These hotels are also called luxury or upmarket hotels and mainly target theaffluent They provide high-end, personalized services with a keen emphasis onclass and excellence Luxury hotels offer exquisite décor, upscale lounge andrestaurants, opulent rooms, concierge services, and ample facilities Moreover, thesehotels have designer

swimming pools, tennis courts, golf courses, shopping arcades, health spas,beauty salons, as well as sauna and Jacuzzi

The hotel has an average service

They come after the Upmarket hotels, offering modest services to clients, most

of whom are travelers These hotels offer room services, as well as 24-hour railway

or airport commute services Most Mid-Range hotels have between 150 and 300guest rooms

• The hotel has limited service

This type of hotel mainly focuses on attracting groups of guests such asfamilies with children, groups of young guests, holiday visitors, associations These

customers

1.1.3.3 Definition of Boutique hotel.

Boutique hotel is small and costly hotels that mainly target the elite class.Each room in these hotels has a unique personality, and the decoration style of eachrestaurant carries a theme of the menu, the food served, and the staff uniform.Boutique hotels provide a lodging experience different from the offered by mid-range and large hotels Moreover, they have unique architecture, décor, size, andstyle qualities that make these hotels stylish, hip, relaxed and luxurious

1.1.3.3.1 Location.

Usually located in the trendiest crowded urban area In densely populatedplaces, fashionable, lively and upscale residential areas

1.1.3.3.2 Size- Or number rooms.

Small scale, not less than 10 rooms and no more than 100 rooms The feeling

of intimacy and privacy

1.1.4 Hotel Business

These hotels are the largest group of hotel types and they primarily cater tobusiness travellers and usually located in downtown or business districts Althoughbusiness hotels primarily serve business travellers, many tour groups, individualtourists and small conference groups find these hotels attractive Hotel business is abusiness based on the provision of accommodation, catering and othercomplementary services for guests to meet their needs for accommodation

1.1.5 Quality of service in hotel

1.1.5.1 Definition.

The quality of hotel service is an assessment drawn from a comparisonbetween the expected quality and the quality of customer service From the

perspective of service consumers, the quality of hotel services is the level ofcustomer satisfaction

Customer satisfaction is the internal feelings of every individual which may besatisfaction or dissatisfaction resulting from the assessment of services provided to

an individual in context to customer’s anticipation by an organization Hotels arecontinuously trying to improve the service just to satisfy their customer becausehigher customer satisfaction will leads towards customer loyalty

The quality of hotel services also needs to be modified and adjusted to suit theactual requirements

In short, we can understand the quality of services: the appropriate level ofservice of tourism suppliers that meet the requirements of the market tourist’starget

1.1.5.2 Criteria for evaluating service quality

Tangibles: This includes physical equipment and facilities

Reliability: This includes ability of delivering committed reliable service

Responsiveness: This refers to the service employees’ ability and desire to

help customers and provide them with rapid service

Assurance: This is the employees’ knowledge and humility and ability in

creating confidence and reliability among customers

 Empathy: This is refers to respecting and valuating customers

1.2 General introduction about Front Office department

1.2.1 Definition of Front Office department

The Front Office Department is the hotel representative, providing hotelinformation for guests It is the first and last area guests see and interact The FrontOffice department is the place to receive and resolve all complaints and complaints

of customers and is the department that understands all tastes of customers Inaddition, this department also has the task of collecting information and transferringinformation to other parts of the hotel

1.2.2 Mission of the Front Office department

• Greet guests as soon as they arrive

• Encourage guests to upgrade rooms, in order to maximize room revenue

• Control and distribution of rooms for guests

• Provide, introduce information about services inside and outside the hotel forguests

• Selling rooms and other hotel services

• Check-in, receive information about check out, check out early - late

• Registration of temporary residence, temporary absence for guests

• Making and maintaining records for guests

• Administering telephone service

• Receive and resolve complaints from guests

• Track, update, synthesize the cost of guests

• Making payments and billing

• Checking out guests

1.2.3 The Front Office department organization chart.

The structure of the Section of the Lobby Division depends on the size of the hotel business, the physical scale of the hotel, and the hotel management policy There is an appropriate personnel structure to ensure the best service for the guests The following is an outline of the FO department for some large hotels.

Figure 1: FO Department Organization Chart

Secretary Front Office Manager

Assistant Front Office Manager

Reservations Manager

Reception Supervisor

Comcierge

Telephone Supervisor

Chief Concierge

Assistant Telephone suoer

Revervations Supervisor

Assistant Reception Supervisor

Assistant Chief concierge

Telephone Operatoe

Revervatios Clerk

Senior Reception Assistant Chief

Concierge

CHAPTER 2: CASE DESCRIPTION 2.1 An Overview of Danang Trade Union Hotel

Danang Trade Union Tourist Operation Center was established in 2006 with

a full range of services such as bedroom, restaurants, halls, massage, sighseeingtours, entertainment services…Plus a team of staff with high professionalqualifications, dedication and professionalism

It Located in 02 Ong Ich Khiem Street, Danang City, near the internationalairport, near the commercial center of the city, convenient for tourists who want toenjoy the sightseeing night and shopping, which designed in style that combinesVietnamese tradition and modernity Cong Doan Hotel is 3-star internationalstandard with 140 room, one of the few large-scale hotels in Da Nang city Types

of room divide into 4 types: standard double, superior, deluxe, suite In each room isfull of basic facilities such as air conditioning, refrigerator, flat-screen TV with avariety of channels, bathroom with large bathtubs and hot water

Name of company: Danang Trade Union Tourist Operation Center

Address: 02 Ong Ich Khiem- Danang City- VietNam

Tel: 023633289139

Fax: 02363838444

Email: cdtb@codatours.com.vn

Webside: hotel84.com/da-nang/khach-san-cong-doan-thanh-binh.htmt

2.1.1 Guest room and facilities

Deluxe room view (25 smp)

-Deluxe Rooms are spacious and luxurious, with quiet space with window orbalcony and a comfortable sitting area

-Bed type: single or double

-Children and Extra bed: 0

All rooms are fully equipped with all facilities: air conditioning, wifi, hairdryer, fridge, kettle, LCD TV, slippers, safety deposit box, free spring water.



Standard Double/ Twin ( 20 smq)

- Standard double has each balcony overlooking to the park and townhouse,the room is spacious and airy, the interior decoration is uniform and luxurious withhigh quality brown colored wood combined with whitish color of the room wallscreating a harmonious and cozy space

-Bed type: double

-Direction: Park view

All rooms are fully equipped with all facilities: free wi-fi internet, electronickey system, air conditioning, hairdryer, desk phone free, TV, slippers, safety depositbox

Superior view( 15 sqm)

- Deluxe Rooms are spacious and luxurious, with quiet space with balcony

overlooking to the park and townhouse

- Bed room: 2 single beds

- Direction: Park view

- All rooms are fully equipped with all facilities: free wi-fi internet, electronic

key system, air conditioning, hairdryer, desk phone free, TV, slippers, safety depositbox

Suite Room view(40 smq)

- Suite room is the place to best enjoy life, the room is decorated warmly

and luxuriously

- Bed room: 01 large double bed

- Direcroom: Park view

- All rooms are fully equipped with all facilities: free wi-fi internet, electronic

key system, air conditioning, hairdryer, desk phone free, TV, slippers, safety depositbox

2.1.2 Organizational Structure of Danang Trade Union Hotel

House-Food &

Beverage Manager

Sales and Marketing Manager

Chief Accountant Manager

Human Resource Manager

Stafffff Staff Staff Staff Staff Staff

Figure 2: Organization Structure of Danang Trade Union Hotel

2.2 Introduction about FO department at Danang Trade Union Hotel

2.2.1.The Organization Structure of FO department at Danang Trade Union Hotel

The receptionist at the hotel is divided into 3 shifts:

Front Office Manager

Recetionn Supervisor Bell Captain Cashier

Introducing advice to guests using all hotel services

Receive feedback, requests from guests and solve quickly with

other departments

Answer all questions of passengers, if, outside their scope, they must

immediately contact the relevant departments

Payment, do the check out procedures for customers

Reservation Woker:

Receive and process booking requests

Processing information modification requests - the cancellation of the guest reservations

Handling complaints of guests booking

Summarize the list of guests expected to arrive, forward to the receptionist

to prepare guests Especially with VIP guests need to have early notice to deploy thework of thorough preparation, thoughtful

Update, manage records of guests' reservations

Collaborate with relevant departments to implement the marketing and

PR programs of the hotel

Perform other duties as required by superiors

Coordinate the relevant departments to carry out requests from the superior

2.2.2 Customer Service Process of Reception Department

Each hotel has a specific workflow to serve customers in the best possibleway At Danang Trade Uinion Hotel the customer service process is as follows:

Figure 4 : Service process at Danang Trade Union Hotel

 Before guests arrive at the hotel

Customers will select a hotel to stay with and make advance reservationprocedures The factors that determine the choice of a guest's accommodation may

be hotel advertising information, recommendations from relatives - friends, thereputation of the hotel, a good impression from the last stay In addition, thechoice of hotel guests is influenced by the reservation staff's persuasion

 Guest to the hotel

-To make the check-in procedure quick and accurate, the receptionist needs toprepare the registration file in advance for guests Based on the informationcontained in the reservation form transferred by the reservation staff, receptionistsare required to prepare the application in advance and assign guests to the room

- Specific tasks to serve guests during the arrival phase include welcome(welcome drink), check-in procedures and providing information for guests

- The receptionist needs to introduce and provide full information about theservice and the hotel policy notices so guests can know

- After guests have gone to the room, the front desk staff completes the file,procedures for declaration of temporary residence for guests.

- The cashier opens an account for the guest For small hotels, the receptionistwill also work as a cashier

 Customer to the hotel

- To make the check-in procedure quick and accurate, the receptionist needs to prepare the registration file in advance for guests Based on the informationcontained in the reservation form transferred by the reservation staff, receptionistsare required to prepare the application in advance and assign guests to the room

- Specific tasks to serve guests during the arrival phase include welcome(welcome drink), check-in procedures and providing information for guests

- The receptionist needs to introduce and provide full information about theservice and the hotel policy notices so guests can know

- After guests have gone to the room, the front desk staff completes the file,procedures for declaration of temporary residence for guests

- The cashier opens an account for the guest For small hotels, thereceptionist will also work as a cashier

 Guests staying at the hotel

-During this period, The Receptionist will coordinate with other deparments toprovides essential information such as local event, attraction,etc

- This is the period for the hotel to "score", creating an impression of thequality of service for guests to come back or introduce to friends and relatives tocreate potential guests for the hotel

 Guests leave the hotel

- The work in this phase includes: check-out procedures, off guests and guestrecords

- Mainly responsible at this stage: payment procedures for customers, delivery

of bills to customers, receipt of room keys and record-keeping of guests