In-House OUTSOURCE OPERATIONS
A wonderful Moot Court session with Irandi Wijegunawardane, The Consultant of Aitken Spence Hotel Management Sri Lanka, as senior petitioner, Akshi Singh, Cluster Director, Housekeeping, IHG Hotels, Kuwait, as the senior defendant, Sanjeev Tandon, Hospitality Consultant, India as the junior defendant, Mohammad Ibrahim-Accommodation Manager, Gitam University, Hyderabad as the bailiff and Ram Chena, Director of Housekeeping, Park Hyatt Abu Dhabi Hotels & Villas, UAE, as the judge, simulating a great show with the coaching of Prof. Avril Sule, the veteran hospitality guru.
Bashir Vandana Rawat, HOD- Rooms Division, Institute of Hotel Management, Catering Technology and Applied Nutrition, Jaipur moderated a session with housekeeping heads across segments to find out the ‘secret sauce’ to achieve a balance between family and professional lives amidst housekeepers.
Amit Kumar Singh, Executive Housekeeper, Holiday Inn, Lucknow Airport highlighted taking advantage of latest innovations in technology and automation to adopt robust Work Optimization Tools (WOT) and utilize modern cleaning techniques to save time. These salient features help housekeeping staff remain organized and have good time management skills at work. This enables staff to complete work within scheduled work hours and devote adequate time for family.
Pancham Narkar, Senior General Manager- Housekeeping, Jio World Centre, Mumbai pointed out flexible rostering as an efficient method to stave off burnout among staff. Hemant Kumar Singh, Head of Housekeeping and Laundry, Medanta Hospital, Lucknow shares that the flexibility of shifts and creation of a system- oriented rather than a person-oriented working style ensures housekeeping staff in healthcare are well supported and receive a conducive environment to carry out their duties. Overall, a healthy work-life balance in housekeeping promotes better job performance, employee retention, and overall organizational success.
Housekeeping in healthcare is crucial for maintaining a safe and hygienic environment for patients, staff, and visitors. By keeping surfaces clean and sanitized, managing waste effectively, and maintaining a clutter-free environment, housekeeping helps to minimize the risk of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) and contributes to overall patient safety.
Effective disinfection of guest touch points and toilet bowls should be incorporated in SOPs and checklists opined Abdulla Rasheed, Executive Housekeeper of Conrad, Maldives. This helps ensure hygiene in hospitality.
