WHAT DOES A HOUSEMAN DO?

Published: Jul 11, 2025 - The Houseman is responsible for cleaning all public and back-of-house areas, maintaining organized housekeeping facilities, and ensuring sufficient stock of supplies and clean towels. This role involves promptly reporting maintenance issues, supporting room attendants and laundry operations, and completing special cleaning projects such as carpets and upholstery. The houseman also plays a key role in upholding safety, security, and guest satisfaction by following hotel procedures and monitoring for hazards or suspicious activity.

A Review of Professional Skills and Functions for Houseman

1. Houseman Duties and Roles

  • Guestroom Cleaning: Clean assigned guestrooms following company standards (changing bed linen, cleaning bathrooms, vacuuming, dusting, etc.)
  • Amenity Replenishment: Replenish amenities and supplies in assigned guestrooms
  • Cart Stocking: Stock and maintain the Housekeeping cart
  • Maintenance Reporting: Report maintenance issues to the Supervisor immediately
  • Guest Interaction: Greet guests in hallways and public areas in a pleasant and friendly manner, and offer assistance
  • Special Request Handling: Ensure special requests are noted and fulfilled
  • Hotel Knowledge Sharing: Answer questions about the hotel and the hotel-brand standards, such as art travel and related topics, as well as the unique characteristics of the hotel
  • Local Information Sharing: Answer questions about local area attractions and things to do
  • VIP Communication: Communicate with all departments regarding in-house VIPs and any special requests/needs
  • Guest Service Information: Provide information regarding property events, outlets, amenities, and directions, and ascertain which services could enhance the guests’ stay
  • Guest Delivery Support: Deliver guest newspapers, messages, packages, amenities, or other items requested by guests or team members

2. Houseman Roles and Responsibilities

  • Floor Cleaning: Keeps floors swept and mopped.
  • Carpet and Furniture Care: Vacuums carpet, shampoos carpet, and furniture
  • Waste Disposal: Empties and cleans all wastebaskets
  • Linen Removal: Removes all soiled linen from the hallways and transports it to the soiled linen storage area
  • Trash Removal: Removes all trash from the hallways and transports it to the trash room
  • Radio Response: Answers the radio and responds to any guest/supervisor requests
  • Closet Stocking: Stocks housekeeping closets with all necessary linen, guest supplies, and cleaning supplies, keeping the closet clean and organized
  • Inventory Reporting: Reports any inventory concerns to the supervisor
  • Area Tidying: Tidies all employee areas and housekeeping closets, keeping things in their correct location.
  • Linen Preparation: Prepares all soiled linen for pick-up by the Linen company and moves all clean linen to the appropriate location for storage
  • Housekeeping Assistance: Assists Housekeepers and notifies the Maintenance Department of any necessary repairs or concerns

3. Houseman Responsibilities and Key Tasks

  • Residence Operations: Maintaining the day-to-day operation of the residence
  • Guest Services: Providing excellent service to principals and all guests
  • Household Maintenance: Acting as a household handyman and assisting with facilities and household maintenance tasks
  • Gatekeeping: Acting as the gatekeeper for principals, liaising with staff, as well as vendors and contractors
  • Vendor Coordination: Overseeing vendor calendars and providing prior notification to the family and the Director of Residents of estate maintenance/repair activities
  • Inventory Management: Conducting inventory and procuring household supplies
  • Houseman Duties: Hands-on houseman duties
  • Facility Maintenance: Maintaining all indoor and outdoor facilities, including a fleet of vehicles, pool, ballroom, spa, gym, garage, wine cellars, elevator, etc.
  • Pet Transportation: Driving the principal's dogs to and from engagements
  • Errand Handling: Handling special requests, errands, and related duties

4. Houseman Roles and Details

  • Equipment Preparation: Pulling event equipment required for events as stated on Equipment Pull Forms, ensuring cleanliness and count accuracy, before departing for the event location
  • Equipment Substitution: Making logical equipment substitution/replacement selections and noting
  • Rental Equipment Readiness: Ensuring rented equipment is ready and accurate for the event
  • Equipment Handling: Loading and unloading equipment and other items as stated on Banquet Event Orders
  • Event Support: Performing services during the event, including barback and any other assigned tasks
  • Event Breakdown: Performing event breakdown duties to include breaking down, loading, accounting for, returning, and storing equipment to the warehouse and rented equipment appropriately
  • Team Cooperation: Maintaining a congenial and cooperative attitude toward co-workers and guests throughout events
  • Light Maintenance: Performing light repair and maintenance, cleaning, and side work

5. Houseman Key Accountabilities

  • Floor Maintenance: Maintain designated floors according to the hotel’s standards of cleanliness.
  • Trash Removal: General removal of trash and debris from floors.
  • Vending Area Cleaning: Maintain vending areas (sweep, mop, wipe ice machines, and doors).
  • Service Area Maintenance: Maintain service landings, stairwells, and storage closets.
  • Stairwell Cleaning: Remove debris from stairwells or elevator tracks, maintaining a clean appearance.
  • Furniture Cleaning: Dust and clean all furniture in designated areas as well as the floors.
  • Fixture Dusting: Dust pictures, frames, mirrors, fire extinguisher boxes, exit signs, air vents, and lamps in designated areas.
  • Door Cleaning: Remove dirt, smudges, and grease from doors/door frames.
  • Area Cleaning: Clean, sweep, and mop trash rooms, stairwells, guest laundries, and similar areas.
  • Supply Restocking: Restock supply items in designated closets and storage areas.

6. Houseman General Responsibilities

  • Public Area Cleaning: Ensure that the lobby, hallways, public areas, including the sidewalk, brass awning poles, signage, entrance, and alley, are kept clean.
  • Meeting Room Setup: Clean and set up the meeting room functions according to the function sheets.
  • Deep Cleaning: Deep cleaning of areas, including the shampooing of rooms and public spaces.
  • Lobby Function Maintenance: Set up and maintain complimentary hotel lobby functions, including the morning coffee service and nightly concierge events.
  • Guest Item Delivery: Deliver housekeeping items (hair dryers, ironing boards, irons, etc.) to guest rooms upon request from the front desk.
  • Shift Preparation: Get assignments, keys, a pager, and special guest requests from the supervisor at the beginning of the shift.
  • Supply Check: Check and replenish the supplies and cleaning tools.
  • Guest Request Response: Quickly respond to guest requests in a friendly manner.
  • Lost and Found Handling: Return lost items with proper documentation to the Housekeeping Department.

7. Houseman Role Purpose

  • Exterior Cleaning: Maintain the cleanliness of the exterior structures within the property.
  • Window Cleaning: Maintain and clean windows throughout the property.
  • Walkway and Patio Cleaning: Maintain and clean all walkways, patios, and parking areas.
  • Pool Deck Maintenance: Clean, maintain, and organize the Pool Deck and all furniture and umbrellas.
  • Bathroom Sanitization: Maintain, clean, and sanitize bathrooms.
  • Furniture Maintenance: Maintain exterior furniture, including pressure washing, sanding, and oiling.
  • Tennis Court Maintenance: Maintain a clay tennis court.
  • Professional Conduct: Maintain a professional appearance and demeanor in all situations involving guests, associates, and vendors.

8. Houseman Essential Functions

  • Minibar Restocking: Ensure minibar items in the rooms are restocked on time and efficiently
  • Guest Item Delivery: Deliver all requested items from guests received via HotSOS and REX to the guest rooms quickly and correctly
  • Guest Interaction: When delivering items, have a pleasant and friendly disposition
  • Guest Service: Conduct their duties courteously and respond to all guest requests professionally and respectfully
  • Issue Reporting: Report any faults/damage to hotel equipment/fixtures and any irregular sightings promptly via the proper channels
  • Housekeeping Support: Carry out the duties of a Housekeeping Attendant and/or Laundry Attendant
  • Additional Task Support: Undertake additional duties as requested by the Assistant Executive Housekeeper/Executive Housekeeper, or their designate
  • Task Flexibility: Undertake any other responsibilities/tasks/shifts as instructed by the management or the Executive Housekeeper

9. Houseman Additional Details

  • Training Completion: Responsible for completing required brand training.
  • Public Area Cleaning: Perform daily cleaning of all public areas and the back of the house, and ensure there is adequate stock of supplies.
  • Maintenance Reporting: Report any maintenance issues located in guestrooms or public areas immediately to maintenance to ensure guest satisfaction.
  • Work Area Organization: Maintain a clean and clutter-free work environment through the ongoing cleaning and organizing of the housekeeping closets, the housekeeping and laundry facility, the break room, and the houseman cart.
  • Lost and Found Procedures: Follow all hotel lost and found reporting and storage procedures.
  • Trash Removal: Ensure trash and debris are continually removed from the property and out of the sight of the guests.
  • Facility Monitoring: Continually monitor the pool and fitness facility, ensuring the prompt removal of used towels and providing an appropriate stock of clean, dry towels.
  • Operational Support: Assist with any room attendant or laundry operations as hotel and staffing demands dictate.
  • Special Project Completion: Complete special projects such as carpet cleaning, upholstery cleaning, tile and grout cleaning, etc.
  • Safety Hazard Correction: Assists in recognizing and correcting potential safety hazards (broken doors, fire hazards, etc.) and security problems (locking doors after hours, etc.)
  • Suspicious Activity Reporting: Remain watchful and report any suspicious activity to ensure the safety of guests, associates, and hotel assets.

10. Houseman Roles

  • Safety Compliance: Understand the Health and Safety regulations and fire procedures.
  • Equipment Knowledge: Understand the housekeeping equipment and its use.
  • General Cleaning: Carry out spring cleaning and daily cleaning of all areas of the hotel as directed by the Director of Housekeeping, the Assistant Director of Housekeeping, and the Floor Managers.
  • Surface Cleaning: Clean elevators, windows, furniture, lighting, fixtures, drapes, vents, and plants.
  • Floor and Carpet Care: Sweep and mop stairwells, floors, vacuum guestroom corridors, and shampoo carpets.
  • Balcony Cleaning: Clean guestroom balconies as needed and requested by Housekeeping Floor Managers.
  • Sidewalk Cleaning: Assist with the cleaning of sidewalks, sweeping, and power washing.
  • Mat Handling: Place/remove/clean hotel floor mats.
  • Exterior Cleaning: Clean the front of the hotel, including planters.
  • Back-of-House Cleaning: Clean/maintain BOH areas, including lockers and loading dock.
  • Storage Maintenance: Clean, maintain HSK storage and inventory items as per the manager’s direction.
  • Vacuum Maintenance: Clean vacuum cleaners daily.

11. Houseman Tasks

  • Furniture Handling: Move any furniture in the rooms.
  • Shower Curtain Assistance: Assist in removing and installing the shower curtain in the guestrooms.
  • Linen Removal: Remove dirty linen from Room Attendant carts and linen closets and take it to the laundry.
  • Linen Sorting: Count and sort linen.
  • Laundry Preparation: Count, sort through, and separate the dirty items to be collected by the laundry company.
  • Guest Item Delivery: Deliver and remove cribs, high chairs, baby bathtubs, and rollaway beds.
  • Cart Storage: Unload and store all unused items from caddies/carts, and store caddies/carts correctly.
  • Guest Information Support: Understand property facilities, services, hours of operation, in-house events, conferences, and amenities to proactively assist guests.
  • Guest Assistance: Assist guests in finding locations within the property by escorting or giving clear directions.
  • Outlet Promotion: Promote property outlets to guests.
  • Complaint Resolution: Resolve guest complaints using property procedures.

12. Houseman Details and Accountabilities

  • Staff Communication: Maintain positive and professional communication with all staff.
  • Employee Recognition: Provide recognition to others, including co-workers, supervisors, managers, and directors.
  • Team Collaboration: Work as a team, helping all employees to complete the required activities that ensure the company delivers Amplified Service.
  • Positive Work Environment: Create a positive environment in which all employees can maximize their potential.
  • Shift Participation: Participate in Sound Check meetings on each shift.
  • Program Engagement: Participate in meetings to learn about global programs, new products and procedures, and to discuss areas of opportunity, special events, and other activities.
  • Department Coordination: Coordinate operations with other departments.
  • Duty Communication: Communicate with supervisors and managers to ensure that assigned duties are completed to standard.
  • Feedback Listening: Listen to comments, criticisms, and feedback from guests, employees, and managers to gain an understanding of strengths and opportunities to improve personal/property performance.
  • Workplace Safety: Ensure a healthy and safe work environment for co-workers and guests.

13. Houseman Overview

  • Guest Greeting: Always smile and offer a warm greeting to all.
  • Proactive Assistance: Take initiative and offer assistance throughout the property.
  • Brand Knowledge: Know, understand, and practice (with energy and enthusiasm) the mission, values, mottos, culture, and spirit that make Hard Rock unique.
  • Ethical Conduct: Operate ethically to protect the Hard Rock brand.
  • Sustainability Participation: Utilize programs designed to help save the planet.
  • Professional Appearance: Present a professional image to employees, guests, clients, owners, and investors.
  • Confidentiality Maintenance: Maintain the confidentiality of guest, employee, and company information.
  • Policy Compliance: Perform duties following company standards, policies, and guidelines, and applicable laws and regulations.

14. Houseman Job Description

  • Common Area Sanitization: Sanitize and clean common areas.
  • Room Sanitization: Sanitize rooms before check-ins.
  • Closet Stocking: Stock the storage closets.
  • Guest Request Response: Respond to guests' requests, such as delivery of housekeeping supplies (e.g., linens, cots, etc.) in a timely and efficient manner.
  • Public Area Cleaning: Clean other designated areas such as public restrooms, fixtures, vending areas, storage areas, and other public areas.
  • Guest Interaction: Maintain a friendly and courteous demeanor at all times.
  • Closet Organization: Maintain housekeeping closets in a neat and organized fashion.
  • Inventory Maintenance: Keep inventory and maintain housekeeping closets to ensure adequate supplies are available.
  • Trash Removal: Be in charge of the removal of trash.

15. Houseman Functions

  • Housekeeping Support: Provide a support delivery service to all areas of the Housekeeping Department.
  • Supply Running: Act as a “runner” to maintain supplies for the room attendant, items for the room store, and laundry, to deliver guest supplies to guests.
  • Guest Request Delivery: Deliver all guest requests.
  • Department Assistance: Under the Laundry Supervisor, assist in all areas of the Housekeeping Department.
  • Linen Delivery: Ensure delivery of all linen directly to the maid room on each floor, and make sure the quantity is maintained for operation.
  • Minibar Service: Ensure that all minibar requirements and specifications on the guest floor are done, i.e., requisition, replenishment, pull-out, and upkeep of all records on revenue and losses.
  • Minibar Inventory Control: Ensure that all minibar-controlled stock, expiry dates, consumption, and loss are recorded.
  • Environmental Support: Support environmental and recycling programs.
  • Staff Assistance: Support housekeeping staff.

16. Houseman Accountabilities

  • Cart Organization: Loading and organizing the housekeeping cart, storing it properly at the end of each shift
  • Guest Request Handling: Responding to guest requests and reporting guest issues
  • Team Assistance: Assisting the Housekeeping team
  • Repair Reporting: Reporting any items in need of repair
  • Lost and Found Procedure: Following the proper lost and found procedure for items left behind in guest rooms/any other areas
  • Safe Work Practices: Working in a safe manner
  • Punctuality and Dress Code: Reporting to work on time and in proper uniform
  • Supervisor Feedback Listening: Listen to comments, criticisms, and feedback from the supervisor
  • Policy Compliance: Follow all safety and sanitation policies

17. Houseman Job Summary

  • Guest Greeting: Greet each guest with Good morning or afternoon, or evening
  • Room Preparation Support: Assist room care specialists in ensuring guest rooms are prepared efficiently
  • Inventory Maintenance: Maintain on-par inventory levels in housekeeping closets
  • Linen and Waste Collection: Collect soiled linen, garbage, and recyclables from room care specialists’ carts and closets
  • Maintenance Reporting: Report necessary maintenance opportunities
  • Interdepartmental Communication: Interact with hotel associates professionally, assisting other departments with necessary information
  • Complaint Resolution: Manage and resolve all guest complaints and compliments in a professional and courteous manner
  • Guest Inquiry Response: Listen and respond to guest inquiries using a positive speaking voice
  • Amenity Knowledge: Maintain an up-to-date working knowledge of all property amenities, as well as any special events, local area attractions, and things to do around the hotel.

18. Houseman Responsibilities

  • Luggage Handling: Store and retrieve luggage or packages for guests from the appropriate storage areas.
  • Guest Area Presence: Maintain presence during peak traffic periods
  • Linen Chute Management: Clear the linen chute and maintain the flow.
  • Room Attendant Assistance: When specifically directed (generally in the off-season), assist room attendants in stripping trash and linens from vacant/dirty rooms, cleaning balconies and related furniture, railings, etc.
  • Guest Request Response: Respond to guest and management requests and report guest issues and complaints in a hospitable manner to ensure guest satisfaction, and perform prompt response duties.
  • Crib and Bed Setup: Make up cribs and roll-away beds.
  • Issue Reporting: Report any missing articles, damage, or mechanical problems to the Supervisor or Manager.
  • Lost and Found Turn-in: Turn in articles left in a room to the Executive Housekeeper, the Assistant Executive Housekeeper, or MOD.
  • Guest Satisfaction: Exceed guest expectations at all times.

19. Houseman Details

  • Linen Handling: Sort, count, fold, mark, or carry linens.
  • Bed Making: Be in charge of making beds.
  • Supply Replenishment: Replenishes guestroom supplies such as coffee, glasses, shampoo, soap, and other amenities.
  • Area Cleaning: Clean corridors and stairways, and empty wastebaskets.
  • Maintenance Request Response: Respond to maintenance requests received from the Front Desk or Housekeeping.
  • Pool Chemical Testing: Be in charge of pool chemical testing.
  • Storeroom Maintenance: Maintain storerooms in a clean, neat, and organized state.
  • Staff Communication: Maintain positive and professional communication with all staff.
  • Time Management: Manage time effectively to accomplish all desired tasks, duties, and action plans.
  • Safety Reporting: Notify the supervisor of any workplace or safety concerns.
Relevant Information
What Does A Houseperson Do?