Receptionist and Cabin Crew free essay sample

Jobs in the tourism sector are all different and all of them follow with different duties and responsibilities, in this assignment I will be comparing two different jobs in the tourism sector, I will be focusing on receptionist at a hotel and air cabin crew. To compare these jobs I will be focusing on their duties and responsibilities of both jobs, I will also compare entry requirements for receptionist and cabin crew and also if both jobs could progress what can they promote to and what is the difference and similarities in both. Being a receptionist at a hotel is completely different to a air cabin crew member, their job may involve several similar skills such as having good communication skills or having skills to work in a team, but however their roles and duties are different, a receptionist is based at front of house in a hotel and they are the main key feature of the accommodation service as guests will be approaching them first when they visit the hotel, whereas cabin crew staff’s main location is on the aircraft and this is where they will be providing service to passengers on board. The difference between the duties and responsibilities of a receptionist and cabin crew is that a receptionist deals with guests through different method and this can be through face to face, telephone, email and on some occasions fax as well, using these methods the guests will contact the receptionist, and they will be responsible to book the guests services they need such as rooms or the venue of the hotel where as being a cabin crew is completely different as their roles and responsibilities will include only meeting and greeting passengers on board and providing customer service throughout the flight. Being a receptionist will also come with responsibilities such as checking in the guests and checking them out as well, upon arrival the receptionist will greet the guests and identify their needs and also checking the guest in with the key to their room and when the guest’s stay is over the receptionist will have to check them out and ensure that they hand in the key back, comparing this responsibility to a cabin crew is very different and this is because a cabin crew staff do not have any responsibility such as checking the passengers in as this will already be done at the airport,  cabin crew staff also do not have the responsibility to check passengers out as this will be done at the airport as well, the similarity in this responsibility will be meeting and greeting as both roles requires the responsibility of meeting and greeting their guests and passengers upon arrival and when leaving. A receptionists duty is to work their shift at front of house at all times and while working they will have the responsibilities to use computers and fill in paperwork, and this could be for various reasons for example when guests checks in they will have to put in their information on their database, however a cabin crew’s responsibility is different to being a receptionist as they will not need to use computers during the flight at any time, also they will be provided with the passengers information already in order for any emergencies. Within this responsibility there is a similarity and that is that both roles will require filling in paperwork, however the receptionist will fill in paperwork for the guests whilst the cabin crew will have the responsibility to fill in paperwork at the end of each flight to record how the flight went and if there was any emergencies. A cabin crew’s role and responsibility includes three stages such as before the flight, during the flight and after the flight, each of these stage comes with different steps that needs to be completed as a routine on every shift and these stages include duties and responsibilities that needs to be carried out before a flight which includes attending meeting with cabin manager or senior manager, checking that there are enough supplies on the aircraft and also being positioned in different cabins, the difference between cabin crew and receptionist within this role is that the receptionist will not need to perform anything such as the above responsibilities but however if there are any changes the receptionist will also have to attend certain meetings with their manager or senior co-worker. During a flight cabin crew staff will also have the responsibilities and duties of serving food and beverages to passengers, where as being a receptionist their role will not involve this res ponsibility as the hotel have separate section for this such as their restaurant where the guests can purchase their food or if wish to do so they can call for room service as well. However, the different in this will be that receptionist’s do not have a three stage routine as they shift will always be based at front of house and they will be carrying out the same work pattern at all times. It is a cabin crew’s responsibility to carry out a safety and emergencies procedure before the flight in order to make the passengers aware of what they can do during an emergency situation, also the cabin crew’s duty and responsibility will also involve them to ensure that the passengers are familiar with the procedures, where as a receptionist will not need to carry out this responsibility as guests will be provided with a safety and emergency guide in their room, however at some hotels the receptionist will tell their guests where to go during a fire and what to do when there is a emergency situation. A apart comparing the difference between a receptionist’s responsibilities and a cabin crew’s responsibilities there are also several similarities that both candidates will need to carry out and one of these similarities include selling, both cabin crew and receptionist will have the responsibility of selling products services to their passengers and guests, for example at some hotels receptionists will have the duty of selling products and services within the hotel for example they may ask the customer of upgrading their room to a suit or selling of services within the room such as entertainment facilities on TV, whilst a receptionist will be selling these products and services a cabin crew staff will have the responsibility to try and sell duty free items to passengers on board and this can include items such as perfumes, jewellery, wine, cigarettes and many more, the products that will be selling might be different but however both roles will have the responsibility of selling products and services. Having the responsibility of selling, both roles receptionist and cabin crew will have similar responsibility of payments, billing and receipts. As both roles receptionist and cabin crew have the responsibility of selling, they will also have the duty to take payments of the guests and passengers, however a receptionist may also have to take payment of the guest when booking a room as well, cabin crew members will take payment when a passenger has purchased a duty free item, also this is where they will have the responsibility of processing their bill as well, a receptionist will also have the similar responsibility as they will need to be prepare the guests bill when they have made a payment or about to make a payment. When taking payment and preparing bills, both job roles will have the responsibility of giving the customer a receipt, this is important to carry out for both job roles as the customer will be expecting a receipt to verify their purchase. A receptionist and a cabin crew member will have the similar responsibility of providing a excellent customer service and looking after the guests and passengers, whilst working both job roles will require the receptionist and cabin crew to look after the guests and passengers within providing a excellent customer service and this can include meeting their needs, a receptionist will have to ensure that the passenger is comfortable with their flight and is feeling safe enough to fly, they will also have the responsibility to ensure that the passenger’s needs are being met and also exceeding their needs by providing extra customer service and their responsibilities is to approach them and ask them if there is anything else they need, similar to this a receptionist will also need to ensure that the guest is comfortable during their stay and that they are feeling safe whilst staying at the accommodation service, the receptionist will also need to be aware that they are meeting the ir guests needs and that they are providing them with a high standard of customer service. Both roles will also have the same responsibility such as listening to the guests and passengers and meeting their needs, as receptionist and a cabin crew member will be the first approach of the guests and passengers, they will need to be prepared to listen to them and identify their needs, whilst staying at a accommodation provider the guest will approach the receptionist if anything is needed and also passengers flying will approach the cabin crew staff if anything is needed, therefore both staffs will need to be prepared to listen to their guests and passengers and identify what they need, in some cases both roles will have the responsibility to deal with complaints, when there are any complaints to be made in a accommodation service the guest will approach the receptionist at first and it will be their responsibility to deal with it in a responsible manner, also similar with cabin crew staffs the passengers will approach the cabin crew staff if there are any complaints to be mad e and similar way they will have the responsibility to deal with it in a responsible manner. As both roles have the similarities of dealing with complaints, they will also have the responsibility to deal with it and if the complaint is not in their hand both roles will have to call a senior to deal with it for example a receptionist may call their managers to deal with it and a cabin crew staff will either call their cabin manager or tell the passenger to wait until they have landed to deal with it at the airport. When applying for a job, the employer will need entry requirements in order to process the employees application, a receptionist will ask for certain qualifications and experiences and skills that is needed in order to become a receptionist and also a cabin crew will ask the same but with more intense entry requirements. Entry requirements that a receptionist may ask for include; Entry requirements that a cabin crew may ask for include; As you can see from the academia entry requirements, both job roles require different qualifications; however they both require GCSE grades from their candidates, being a receptionist and cabin crew you will need GCSE’s and they will ask for the grades in specific subjects that they will need for example either English or Maths. Other entry requirements that a receptionist will ask on hospitality and this is because accommodation providers are a hospitality providers and therefore being a receptionist you will need a qualification on hospitality in order to become a receptionist because the qualifications will show that the receptionist has experience and knowledge of hospitality services. As a receptionist will ask entry requirements based on hospitality, being a cabin crew will ask for different qualifications which will mainly be based on aviation industry, as you can see they will ask for certificates in the aviation industry which will include general knowledge on the airports and airline industry. Comparing to receptionists a cabin crew staff will also need certificates for air cabin crew, which can be gained from educational units and they will ask for this as it will show that the candidate has knowledge about being a cabin crew. Both job roles will be asking for different entry requirements and qualifications that are needed in order to process with the job role, as receptionists are asking for qualifications based on hospitality, air cabin crew will be asking for qualifications based on aviation industry which is very different qualifications to each other. Apart from academia entry requirements both job roles will also ask for skills and experiences, some of these skills and experiences will be similar for example both roles will ask for similar customer service skills which will include communication with the guest and passenger at all times, the similarity with this skill will be that when recruiting a receptionist or a cabin crew they will ask for experience with customer service and also both roles will require same level of customer service skills at all times. A cabin crew will also need skills such as dealing with money and also dealing with foreign currency and these are situations when they are selling duty free items, some passengers may pay with different currency, where as being a receptionist you will not need to handle foreign currency as most hotels will only take the country’s currency. Both job roles receptionist and cabin crew staff have similarities in skills such as being organized and on time, for example cabin crew member will need their staff to be on time in order to depart on time as they do not want to delay their passengers journey, on the other a receptionist will also need to be on time and organized as they do want to leave the reception area empty which can lead them to losing on guests and giving a bad company image. Some airlines also look for cabin crew staff that has experience and skills in working with special needs passengers because special needs passengers will always need help and assurance whilst flying, however a receptionist will not need this as much as they will have other members of staff working in the hotel that will help special needs guests such as housekeeping staff or concierge staff. Both job receptionist and cabin crew roles will also be provided with training and development on the role, however the training they will be receiving will be different, for example cabin crew staff will receive training out of house which means in a area specifically designed for training the cabin crew staff where as receptionists will be trained in house which mean within the accommodation service itself on daily bases whilst they will be working at the same time. Comparing the training of both roles is very different, a cabin crew will be provided with more intense training that will either take up to 4 to 6 weeks, where as receptionists will be provided with basic training to give them enough knowledge to use on daily routine. The different between the training a cabin crew to a receptionist is that airlines will provide their cabin crew members an out of house training usually taking up to 6 weeks and within this they train the cabin crew with enough knowledge about the job role and they will also go through certain tests such as physical tests, numerical and English tests, comparing to receptionists training it is very different, a receptionist will be trained in house and will be trained on how to use the computer system, how to book, how to take payment and also how to use switchboard, the receptionists will not need to go through any of the tests also comparing to cabin crews, receptionists training will also not take time as they will be trained on daily basis until they are familiar with the routine of the job. The similarities in training for cabin crew and receptionists is that they will both be provided with different qualifications that will be useful to them in future references for example a cabin crew will be provided with below qualifications, and these qualifications will be provided to them by the airline after completing the training successfully. A receptionist will also be provided with qualifications after getting used to the company and gaining enough knowledge about the accommodation providers, a receptionist will be provided with below qualifications after gaining enough experience within the hotel. Comparing both roles in progressing is similar as both job roles have the opportunity to progress within their roles and also both cabin crew and receptionist would have had to stay within the company for certain amount of period in order to progress within the company. Both jobs are similar in  being able to progress and promote within their positions however the roles that t hey can progress to will be different, a receptionist can progress to different roles for example head receptionist, this is the role where they will have the responsibility of ensuring all documentation is filled out accurately including registration documentations, and also to ensure that the reception area is being run properly at all times, they will also have to attend certain meetings as well with all the other managers, this responsibility will differ from being a normal receptionist as they will have more responsibilities, they may also ask for more qualifications from a receptionist and will also provide different training. Similar to progressing to a head receptionist a cabin crew member can also progress to a senior cabin supervisor where they will have some changes to the responsibilities and duties at this position they will be team leading, in charge of all cabin crew staff performance, dealing with medical situations, locating the cabin crew members in each cabin, responsible for team meetings before departure, leading emergency situations and medical situations, ensuring passengers are feeling safe and selling duty free and many more. In conclusion comparing a receptionist to a cabin crew will have several similarities and a lot of difference, both job roles is completely different to each other that requires different skills and qualities, both job roles comes with different roles and responsibilities that will need to be carried out regularly, however they are several similarities in the skills that the candidates will need in order to be successful at the job role. Comparing the progress and t raining of both job roles is also different as they are two different jobs that require different knowledge.