Hotel, Motel, and Resort Desk Clerks
Overview
Salary
Demand
Core Tasks
Technology Skills
Tools Used
Top 10 Knowledge Required
Top 10 Skills
Top 10 Abilities
Top 10 Work Activities
Detailed Work Activities
Work Context
Education
Interests
Top 10 Work Styles
Work Values
Related Careers
Overview
Job Zone Two: Some Preparation Needed
Experience
Some previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is usually needed. For example, a teller would benefit from experience working directly with the public.
Education
These occupations usually require a high school diploma.
Job Training
Employees in these occupations need anywhere from a few months to one year of working with experienced employees. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.
Examples
These occupations often involve using your knowledge and skills to help others. Examples include orderlies, counter and rental clerks, customer service representatives, security guards, upholsterers, and tellers.
Accommodate hotel, motel, and resort patrons by registering and assigning rooms to guests, issuing room keys or cards, transmitting and receiving messages, keeping records of occupied rooms and guests' accounts, making and confirming reservations, and presenting statements to and collecting payments from departing guests.
Salary Salary
Salary at 10th Percentile: $18K
Salary at 25th Percentile: $21K
Median Salary: $25K
Salary at 75th Percentile: $30K
Salary at 90th Percentile: $36K
Demand
Core Tasks
Greet, register, and assign rooms to guests of hotels or motels.
Contact housekeeping or maintenance staff when guests report problems.
Issue room keys and escort instructions to bellhops.
Make and confirm reservations.
Verify customers' credit, and establish how the customer will pay for the accommodation.
Keep records of room availability and guests' accounts, manually or using computers.
Post charges, such as those for rooms, food, liquor, or telephone calls, to ledgers, manually or by using computers.
Record guest comments or complaints, referring customers to managers as necessary.
Review accounts and charges with guests during the check out process.
Compute bills, collect payments, and make change for guests.
Answer inquiries pertaining to hotel services, guest registration, and travel directions, or make recommendations regarding shopping, dining, or entertainment.
Transmit and receive messages, using telephones or telephone switchboards.
Advise housekeeping staff when rooms have been vacated and are ready for cleaning.
Perform bookkeeping activities, such as balancing accounts and conducting nightly audits.
Plan, schedule or supervise the work of other employees.
Clean and maintain lobby and common areas, such as restocking supplies and watering plants.
Prepare for basic food service, such as setting up continental breakfast or coffee and tea supplies.
Date-stamp, sort, and rack incoming mail and messages.
Arrange tours, taxis, or restaurant reservations for customers.
Deposit guests' valuables in hotel safes or safe-deposit boxes.
Technology Skills
Technology
Example
Hot Technology
Tools Used
Tool
Example
Top 10 Knowledge Required
Customer and Personal Service
87%
Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
English Language
84%
Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
Public Safety and Security
74%
Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Clerical
73%
Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.
Computers and Electronics
67%
Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Administration and Management
64%
Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Mathematics
61%
Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Sales and Marketing
58%
Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
Economics and Accounting
57%
Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
Telecommunications
52%
Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
Top 10 Skills
Social Perceptiveness
75%
Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Speaking
75%
Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Service Orientation
73%
Actively looking for ways to help people.
Active Listening
68%
Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Coordination
63%
Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
Complex Problem Solving
60%
Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
Judgment and Decision Making
60%
Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Management of Personnel Resources
60%
Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
Monitoring
60%
Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Reading Comprehension
60%
Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
Top 10 Abilities
Oral Comprehension
78%
The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Oral Expression
78%
The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Speech Clarity
68%
The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
Speech Recognition
68%
The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
Near Vision
65%
The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
Problem Sensitivity
65%
The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
Category Flexibility
60%
The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
Deductive Reasoning
60%
The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
Information Ordering
60%
The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
Written Comprehension
60%
The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
Top 10 Work Activities
Interacting With Computers
91%
Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.
Getting Information
90%
Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
Performing for or Working Directly with the Public
89%
Performing for people or dealing directly with the public. This includes serving customers in restaurants and stores, and receiving clients or guests.
Making Decisions and Solving Problems
86%
Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
85%
Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
Resolving Conflicts and Negotiating with Others
82%
Handling complaints, settling disputes, and resolving grievances and conflicts, or otherwise negotiating with others.
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships
79%
Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events
79%
Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
Processing Information
75%
Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or verifying information or data.
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge
73%
Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
Detailed Work Activities
Greet customers, patrons, or visitors.
Report maintenance or equipment problems to appropriate personnel.
Distribute materials to employees or customers.
Make travel, accommodations, or entertainment arrangements for others.
Verify accuracy of financial or transactional data.
Maintain financial or account records.
Discuss account status or activity with customers or patrons.
Refer customers to appropriate personnel.
Calculate costs of goods or services.
Execute sales or other financial transactions.
Collect deposits, payments or fees.
Operate communications equipment or systems.
Discuss goods or services information with customers or patrons.
Provide information to coworkers.
Clean facilities or equipment.
Arrange food for serving.
Sort mail.
Store items.
Supervise clerical or administrative personnel.
Prepare employee work schedules.
Work Context
Contact With Others
How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it?
Telephone
How often do you have telephone conversations in this job?
Face-to-Face Discussions
How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job?
Indoors, Environmentally Controlled
How often does this job require working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions?
Work With Work Group or Team
How important is it to work with others in a group or team in this job?
Deal With External Customers
How important is it to work with external customers or the public in this job?
Electronic Mail
How often do you use electronic mail in this job?
Frequency of Decision Making
How frequently is the worker required to make decisions that affect other people, the financial resources, and/or the image and reputation of the organization?
Spend Time Standing
How much does this job require standing?
Freedom to Make Decisions
How much decision making freedom, without supervision, does the job offer?
Education
Interests
Conventional
86%
Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.
Enterprising
77%
Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business.
Social
58%
Social occupations frequently involve working with, communicating with, and teaching people. These occupations often involve helping or providing service to others.
Realistic
34%
Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.
Artistic
19%
Artistic occupations frequently involve working with forms, designs and patterns. They often require self-expression and the work can be done without following a clear set of rules.
Investigative
15%
Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally.
Top 10 Work Styles
Dependability
93%
Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
Attention to Detail
92%
Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
Concern for Others
92%
Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job.
Integrity
91%
Job requires being honest and ethical.
Self Control
91%
Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.
Stress Tolerance
90%
Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high stress situations.
Cooperation
86%
Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
Adaptability/Flexibility
83%
Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.
Independence
82%
Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.
Achievement/Effort
81%
Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.
Work Values
Relationships
86%
Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment. Corresponding needs are Co-workers, Moral Values and Social Service.
Support
53%
Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees. Corresponding needs are Company Policies, Supervision: Human Relations and Supervision: Technical.
Independence
43%
Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy.
Achievement
34%
Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement.
Recognition
34%
Occupations that satisfy this work value offer advancement, potential for leadership, and are often considered prestigious. Corresponding needs are Advancement, Authority, Recognition and Social Status.
Working Conditions
31%
Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions. Corresponding needs are Activity, Compensation, Independence, Security, Variety and Working Conditions.
