Case Study Solving Breakfast Organization and Service of Hotel Du Lac MS. Waratchanok Satitthammajit
According to the case study of Hotel Du Lac, I have analyzed the case and adapted the tools, information, and material provided in the http://chrismercier.org/cases.htm. I have adapted 4 patterns of thinking to solve the case. The problem of the case is complaints on breakfast organization and service at Hotel Du Lac. 1. Situation Appraisal – What is going on? A 3 stars Hotel Du Lac, and is open only in summer from June to September has serious complains about breakfast service addressing the following problems: 1.1 The food is served cold 1.2 Non respect of service time (delivery too early or too late) 1.3 Mistakes in orders 1.4 Noisy food service elevator
Current breakfast organization service is illustrated on a diagram as below:
- Guest Rooms
orders
Food delivered to set up tray
Level 3
orders
Level 2 - Room Service - Guest Rooms
Level 1 - Breakfast Room - Guest Rooms
breakfast tray returned returned cup, sauces, glasses cutlery to wash
Level O Central Breakfast Station - Hot food & beverages done - Order will be picked up tea & coffee pots returned to wash tea & coffee pots returned to wash tea & coffee pots returned to wash
breakfast tray returned cup, sauces, glasses
2. Problem Analysis – Why did this happen? I have applied Cause & Effect or called Ishikawa diagram to find causes, and factors that creates the problem in the Hotel Du Lac. Based on the diagram in the head of the fish, effect of the case is complaints on breakfast organization and service at Hotel Du Lac which have the following problems; food is served cold, non respect of service time (delivery too early or too late), mistakes in orders, and noisy food service elevator. The problems are from many factors which can be grouped in 4 main causes that are process & procedures, people, place, and material. Factors in the four main ca uses can be explained as follows: 2.1 Process & Procedures
- The process and procedures of food delivery is too complicated. For example, hot food is done at level O and delivered via food service elevator to level 2 to set up the tray, and then tea and coffee pots are back for cleaning at level O again but cups, saucers, glasses and cutlery go to level 2 for washing. It goes back and forth process. In addition, this complex process also creates noisy sound from food service elevator that disturb guest who is staying in the hotel. - All verbal communications between central breakfast station and the room service station, including all guest calls are done by telephone only. The verbal communication only can create mistakes. For example, staff is receiving orders from guests through telephone while food service elevator is working loudly, staff can hear order incorrectly and if staff is not repeat the order from guest, there will be mistakes in orders.
2.2 Place - There are too many levels for food delivery process before serving to guest room. It makes the food cold. For example, the production of hot beverages and hotel food are done at the central breakfast service station at level O, then it must be delivered to room service station at level 2 every time to set up the tray but if guest is staying at level 1, food must be delivered back to level 1 again which it is waste of time and makes the hot food and beverage cold. - Also, the production of hot food and beverages are done at different level from the breakfast room which is on level O and level 1. This can cause slow service and the food will be cold before serving. 2.3 People - Too long hours break for staff lunch and they have the break at the same time on 11.30-13.00 p.m. (one half-hour). Normal lunch break in a hotel should be one hour or 45 minutes. To work more effectively and serve the guest’s demand, lunch break should be adjusted to suite the work. - Too early morning shift at 6.30 a.m. According to my experience on the UK internship the suitable morning shift is on 7.00 a.m. because most guests are come for leisure and to take rest in summer especially this hotel opens from June to September. Normally, guest will not wake up too early
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morning. Therefore, morning shift can be adjusted to compensate with the lunch break in return.
2.4 Material - Using only food service elevator for food delivery to guest room. It must pass almost every floor to get to the guest rooms which create noisy sound and disturb guest who is staying in the room. - Material used at the central breakfast station is obsolete. It may reduce working efficiency to produce food and beverage.
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Cause & Effect Diagram
People
Process & Procedures Too long hours break
Too complicated
Complaints on breakfast organization & service at Hotel Du Lac
Verbal communication only via telephone
Too early morning shift at 6.30 a.m.
Obsolete material used at central breakfast station which is not adapted to the needs of service
There are too many levels for delivery process before serving to guest room
Depends on only food service elevator to deliver orders to guest room.
Material
Place
1. The food is served cold 2. Non respect of service time 3. Mistakes in orders 4. Noisy food service elevator
The production of hot food & beverages are done at different level from breakfast room and guest room which makes food cold.
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3. Decision Analysis - Which action should we take? According to the cause & effect analysis diagram above, I would like to propose 2 alternatives which are applicable to financial capacities of a seasonal business. Alternative 1 Use Breakfast Order Card Using breakfast order card will reduce all the problems that guest complaints such as cold food, non respect service time, and mistakes in orders. Therefore, I have created breakfast card indicated clearly breakfast orders (hot-cold food & beverages), breakfast time, place, room number, guest names, and order date.
Date: ……….. Breakfast Order Card
1. Guest Name: …………………… / Room no.: ………… How to use 2. Breakfast Orders: (please tick and write your order) Hot food …………………… Cold food ………………..... Beverages ………………..... 3. Place: ………………………………………………….. 4. Time: ………………………………………………….. 5. Next Day Orders (please indicate, if any): ……………. ……………………………………………………………. 6. Special requirement: ……………………………………
How to use 1. Receptionist will be an important person to inform about how breakfast order card works and hand on the card to guest once they check in. 2. Receptionist will keep record of breakfast orders for every room and make one copy to chef in the kitchen and another one copy to food servers. It must be from the same source but two copies go to different working section. 3. All room service orders and enquires go directly to receptionist who will inform and write down in the paper to chef and to food servers. If staff can follow this procedure, the food will serve hot and fresh, no worries about delivery too late or too early because staff will have time to prepare orders in advance and respect the time, there will have no mistakes in orders because staff will cook and prepare food as per “breakfast order card”. To solve customer complaints on breakfast organization and service in the hotel, in my opinion, the preferred alternative is using “Breakfast Order Card” because it will cure all the problems directly to the points which are happening at the moment. However, it should be done along with the moving breakfast room to be the same floor as breakfast central station, and no more room service station, to keep fresh and hot food while serving to guest rooms. 5
Alternative 2 - Stop using food service elevator but using manpower to deliver food to guest rooms instead. - Also move breakfast room to be the same floor as central breakfast station, and no more room service station. This way will keep fresh food from the kitchen to central breakfast station directly to guest rooms or to breakfast room. Moreover, lunch break should be reduced to one hour or 45 minutes instead of one half-hour to create more efficiency work. So, to compensate with this issue, staff can come to work a little bit late at 7.00 a.m. to suite with customer characteristic as they come for leisure. Normally they will not wake up too early to have breakfast. 4. A new re-organized service
Level 3
Guest Rooms
Level 2 Food delivered to guest rooms
Guest Rooms
Tray returned, sauces, glasses, cutlery, cups including tea and coffee pots returned to wash
Level 1
Guest Rooms
Level O
Central Breakfast Station Breakfast Room Tray set up / Tray returned to wash The new re-organized service is less complicated and reduced delivery time because central breakfast station and breakfast room are in the same Level O. Also guest will get hot and fresh food right from the central breakfast station. When guest finished their breakfast, all sauces, glasses, cups, cutlery including tea and coffee pots will be returned to Level O for cleaning. And all hot, cold food and beverages will be done at Level O and delivered to each level according to the diagram. It is only two way delivery. Also, no more room service station but receptionist will receive and follow up orders from guest in the “Breakfast Order Card” instead. All orders go to receptionist who will make one order copy to chef to cook the food as per order card and another one order copy to food server who will prepare and set up tray before delivery. This solution will help the hotel staff to get fresh and hot food from the station, to serve on time as per the order card, to reduce mistakes in orders because they prepare orders as per the order card, and to reduce noisy sound from food service elevator because it reduces delivery times as the new reorganized working diagram. 5
