The Wake-Up Call Standard
Five steps so every wake-up call is made, answered and checked. One missed call can cost a flight, so a person and a printed list back every automated call.
- Who
- Front desk and night agents, checked by the night manager
- When
- Every wake-up request, by phone, at the desk or in the app
- You need
- The PMS wake-up list, the phone system, a printed backup list
- Measured by
- Time and day read back every time
- Second call 5 minutes after no answer
- Someone at the door within 10 minutes
5 steps
01
Read it back
Repeat the time with the day, and offer a second call ten minutes later. Ask whether there is a flight or a meeting, so the night shift knows what is at stake if the call goes unanswered.
Say this
“That’s 05:30 tomorrow, Thursday, Mr Okafor. Would you like a second call at 05:40?”
Common mistake Writing “5:30” on a note at midnight. The night shift can’t tell whether the guest meant today or tomorrow.
02
Enter it twice
Set the call in the phone system and write it on the printed wake-up list. At 23:00 the night agent compares the two, line by line, and corrects any difference before the first call is due.
Say this
“412, Thu 05:30 and 05:40, Mr Okafor, flight 08:15, taxi booked 06:15.”
Common mistake Trusting the system alone. Phone systems restart at night, and the paper list is what remembers.
03
Call in person
For any guest with a flight, and for every VIP, an agent makes the call at the set time instead of the recording. Greet by name, give the time and the weather, and offer coffee or tea to the room.
Say this
“Good morning, Mr Okafor. It’s 05:30, 14 degrees and dry. Shall I send up coffee or tea?”
Common mistake Letting the recording speak to everyone. Half-asleep guests put the phone down and close their eyes again.
04
No answer
No answer: call again after five minutes. Still none: a colleague knocks and announces the front desk within ten minutes. If the door stays closed, the duty manager decides whether to enter, with security.
Say this
“Good morning, Mr Okafor, it’s the front desk. This is your 05:30 call.”
Common mistake Marking the call done after one unanswered ring. The guest misses the flight and the log says “completed”.
05
Keep the list
Tick each call on the printed list with the time it was answered. At handover the morning agent reads the list and follows up any call marked without an answer. Keep the list for thirty days.
Say this
“412 answered 05:31. 518 no answer 05:30 and 05:35, knocked 05:42, guest awake.”
Common mistake Throwing the list away at 07:00. When a guest says the call never came, there is nothing to check.
When Nobody Answers
What happens after an unanswered wake-up call. A guest asleep through the ring is usual; a guest who is unwell is rare, and both get the same check.
Brief it to every night agent and bell attendant this week. On one quiet night, the night manager walks it through with an empty room, from the first call to the knock, and times each row.
The Standards Library.
No. 26 · Front Office
The Shift Handover Standard
Five steps for handing the desk to the next shift. A promise made to a guest at 14:00 still belongs to the hotel at 23:00, whoever made it and whoever is on.
No. 01 · Luxury Concierge / Front Office
The Guest Request Standard
Five steps that turn any guest request (reasonable, awkward or impossible) into a moment the guest remembers. Print it. Put it where your team can see it.