Smooth operator

Overlooking the smallest details when cleaning a hotel bedroom is enough to persuade a guest never to return. He or she is also likely to tell friends or business colleagues that a room was covered with dust, or the bath was far from clean.

If it wasn't for the housekeeper, frontline hygiene management of hotel bedrooms and public areas may well be neglected. But checking that every nook and cranny is thoroughly clean is just one of the many roles assumed by housekeepers.

Other responsibilities include: making sure room turnaround happens in time for the next guest - there is nothing worse than being told "your room is not yet ready"; good motivation skills; and financial management techniques.

After many years of obscurity, the job has recently assumed a higher profile, and housekeepers have finally gained the greater recognition which they deserve as one of the driving forces in hotel management. A well-run housekeeping department can make a considerable contribution to bottom-line profits.

The Housekeeper of the Year Award, sponsored by Kimberly-Clark, now enters its 10th year as part of the Caterer & Hotelkeeper accolades. It aims to honour shining examples of good housekeeping and last year's winner, Deborah Preston, is one such example.

As executive housekeeper at the London Hilton on Park Lane, she was chosen by the panel of judges for her professionalism, tact and resilience. She also possesses a sharp sense of humour which make colleagues respect and like her.

Preston's career has taken her from London's Strand Palace Hotel - where she became executive housekeeper at the early age of 24 - through to her current responsibility for 500 bedrooms and 140 staff.

She has also devoted herself to training and examining, at the moment as an OND assessor and previously as chief examiner for the HCIMA's graduate entry degree.

If you work with or know someone of a similarly high calibre, make your nomination now for this award. Write the reasons why he or she would make a worthy winner - in no more than 200 words - on a separate sheet of paper, and send it with the completed form to the address below by 18 March, and remember, the quality of your supporting statement could make all the difference.

The winner will be presented with the award during the Caterer & Hotelkeeper Awards dinner at the Grosvenor House on 5 July 1994. o