The Final Look Standard
Five steps for the two-minute check before leaving every room. Seen from a seated guest’s height, chrome and mirrors show spots nobody notices standing up.
- Who
- Room attendants, then the floor supervisor on inspection
- When
- Before leaving every room, occupied or vacant
- You need
- A dry microfibre cloth, a small torch, the room’s hanger and amenity count
- Measured by
- Two minutes in every room, timed
- No water spots on chrome or mirrors
- Hangers and amenities at full count
5 steps
01
From the door
Step back to the doorway and look at the room as the guest will first see it. Check that the drapes hang evenly, lampshades are straight, the bedspread is square and nothing is left on the floor.
Say this
“Door view: drapes even, shades straight, floor clear.”
Common mistake Checking from the middle of the room. The guest’s first look is from the door, and so are most first impressions.
02
Sit down
Sit on the bed, then on the desk chair. From there, look at the mirrors and chrome at an angle, with the torch. Spots, smears and hairs show from low down and from the side, where the guest sits.
Say this
“Sat on bed and chair: one spot on the mirror, wiped.”
Common mistake Checking the mirror standing square in front of it. The spots show at an angle, which is how the guest sees it from the bath.
03
Test it all
Switch every light on and off, wardrobe and bathroom included. Check the TV, the coffee machine’s water and pods, the kettle and that the minibar fridge is cold. Report any fault before you leave.
Say this
“506: bathroom spotlight out. Engineering called 10:15.”
Common mistake Assuming the coffee machine works because it is clean. The guest tries it first thing in the morning, when nobody can fix it.
04
Count
Count the hangers (our standard is eight per wardrobe, all facing one way), glasses, towels and amenities. In a vacant room, open every drawer and the safe and check that they are empty.
Say this
“Hangers 8, glasses 4, towels full, safe open and empty.”
Common mistake Leaving six hangers because the last guest took two. A short wardrobe is one of the first things an inspector counts.
05
Smell and close
Breathe in at the door before you leave: the room should smell of nothing. Check the temperature is at the standard setting, switch off the lights you used and close the door until you hear it lock.
Say this
“506 complete 10:22. No odour, 21°C, door checked.”
Common mistake Spraying room fragrance over a smell. The guest notices both, and trusts the room less.
The Two-Minute Final Look
Fourteen checks in two minutes, in the order you walk the room. Each one is a fault guests and inspectors report, and each takes seconds to put right.
- Drapes even, sheers closed to the same line
- Bedspread square, no creases at eye level
- Floor and under the bed clear
- Mirrors checked at an angle with a torch
- Taps and shower chrome dry, no spots
- Every light switched on and off once
- TV tested, remote in its place
- Coffee machine filled, pods at full count
- Minibar fridge cold and closed
- Eight hangers, all facing the same way
- Drawers and safe open and empty (vacant room)
- No odour at the door
- Temperature at the standard setting
- Door closed and heard to lock
Brief it on Monday and time each attendant once that week with a stopwatch. The supervisor picks one item in every inspected room and checks it first. Repeated misses go into Friday’s briefing.
The Standards Library.
No. 51 · Housekeeping
The Pressing and Laundry Standard
Five steps from the laundry bag to the wardrobe, with pressing back within an hour. A shirt that comes back late is usually the shirt for the meeting.
No. 52 · Housekeeping
The Bathroom Standard
Five steps for cleaning and setting up a bathroom in a fixed order, top to bottom and dry last. One hair on a white tile makes a guest doubt the whole room.