Front Desk Agent Birmingham, AL

Summary

GSAs ensure appropriate checking in and checking out of guests and providing services to these guests in a courteous and professional manner. Experience in Front Office, PBX, and Concierge preferred. Candidates must be able to work a flexible schedule including but not limited to evening, weekends, and holidays. Candidate must possess excellent customer service skills and effective written and oral communication skills, also a working knowledge of computers and facsimile machines.

Candidate should have the ability to multitask and the ability to handle stressful situations. Must be flexible to work in various capacities, which include PBX, Concierge, and Front Desk.

• Preferably 1 year’s experience in customer service, hotel, food and beverage restaurant administrative, human resources, legal, educational, training, financial, or business‑related field.

• Microsoft Word
• Excel
• Power Point
• Data entry
• Database management systems

• Serve as concierge (may make restaurant reservations, provide directions, recommend area attractions, etc.)
• Determine a guest’s reservation status and identify how long the guest will stay.
• Help guest’s complete registration and then assign rooms accommodating special requests whenever possible.
• Verify the guest’s method of payment and follow established credit‑checking procedures.
• Post guest and room information in the PMS, and communicate this information to the appropriate hotel personnel.
• Work closely with the housekeeping department in keeping room status reports up to date and coordinate requests for maintenance and repair work.
• Must be sales‑minded; use suggestive selling techniques to sell rooms and to promote other services of the hotel.
• Present options and alternatives to guests and offer assistance in making choices.
• Know the location and types of available rooms as well as the activities and services of the property.
• Assist in pre‑registration and blocking of rooms for reservations.
• Thoroughly understand and adhere to proper credit, check‑cashing, and cash‑handling policies and procedures.
• Know room locations, types of rooms available, and room rates.
• Understand room status and room status tracking.
• Coordinate room status updates with the housekeeping department by notifying housekeeping of all check‑outs, late check‑outs, early check‑ins, special requests, and part‑day rooms.
• Takes same day reservations and future reservations when necessary.
• Know cancellation procedures.

• Generate secure room cards.
• Know how to use front office equipment.
• Post Suite Shop purchases to guest folios.
• Posts and files all charges to guest, master, and city ledger accounts.
• Follows procedures for issuing and closing safe deposit boxes.
• Uses proper mail, package, and message handling procedures.
• Reads and initials the pass‑on log and bulletin board daily.
• Is aware of daily activities and meetings taking place in the hotel.
• Attends department meetings.
• Coordinates guestroom maintenance work with the engineering and maintenance division.
• Reports any unusual occurrences or request to the manager or assistant manager.
• Knows all safety and emergency procedures.
• Is aware of accident prevention policies.
• Maintains the cleanliness and neatness of the front desk area.
• Understands that business demands sometimes make it necessary to move employees from their accustomed shift to other shifts.

• Excellent communication; oral and written.
• Requires finger dexterity, grasping, writing, standing for long periods, sitting, walking, repetitive motions, hearing, visual acuity, and may on occasion have to lift and carry up to 40 pounds.
• Ability to stand at front desk for more than 6 hours during shift.

• Background screening for previous criminal history.
• Employment may be contingent upon at least 80% score on test on hotel’s reservations system after training.
• At least high school diploma or G.E.D.

• Mathematical; statistical.
• Social.
• Speaks in guests’ preferred language.
• Hotel is a smoke‑free property.
• Creativity.
• Organizational.
• Administrative.
• Sales.
• Curious about the world and people.