The front desk associate responsibilities comprise greeting the incoming guests, directing them towards the concerned department or personnel, assisting the guests with their inquiries, concerns, etc. Therefore, this associate is the first person that the clients or the guests will be interacting with and thus the person needs to be capable of representing the organization well. The person who is able to meet and surpass the customer expectations and has strong communication skills will be in the best position to handle this role.
The front desk associate is a position that is commonly found in the hotels, insurance or legal companies, medical field, hotel and a wide variety of other industries. The individual is basically assigned the task of handling and managing the front office operations.
In some organizations, he/she may be responsible for permitting specific visitors inside the organization as per the instructions given to him/her. He/she is also responsible for routing all the phone calls and directing them to the concerned personnel and may handle the issues faced by the clients or the customers. He/she may be involved in checking all the mails and may handle some part of administrative duties as well.
The following points will throw more light and describe the key responsibilities handled by the front desk associate in the hotel industry in detail:
In addition to the above responsibilities,
To be successful as a front desk associate, it is crucial that an individual has excellent communication skills with good telephone etiquette. He/she must be detail oriented with good organization skills. He/she should be able to handle stressful situations and deal effectively with difficult visitors by interacting with them in a polite way. He/she should be comfortable working in a fast paced work environment and must be able to juggle different duties at a time. He/she should be flexible with good analytical skills and should be able to demonstrate a friendly and confident demeanor.
No formal education as such is required to make an entry in this field. However, the individuals who have completed a high school diploma or possess an associate degree from an accredited college or university will definitely be preferred by some employers.
The duty hours of this professional normally last for about eight to nine hours. But he/she may need to work overtime depending on the situation. Therefore, he/she needs to present himself/herself on duty whenever there is a demand.
The minimum average starting salary offered to this individual is close to $18,000, while the maximum can go up to $25,000. It may, however, differ depending on the type of industry he/she is employed in, its size as well as location. Equally important are some other factors like the skills, experience, and educational background of that person.
The job opportunities for this position will definitely continue to increase in the coming years as well and according to U.S.Bureau of Labor Statistics, it is expected to grow by about twelve to thirteen percent. Those with relevant experience and skills can move up to the higher managerial positions and establish themselves in that particular industry.
Thus, effective implementation of the front desk associate responsibilities will ensure you a bright career ahead and help you in developing your professional growth and enhancing your personality.
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