Introduction

The front office is often the first point of interaction between customers and the organization. Customers at hotels, restaurants, hospitals or customers looking for customer service, or advisory services are greeted primarily by the front office staff. Employees engaged in integrating sales are also a part of the front office.

The front office is the customer-facing department of any organization and is often responsible for making or breaking the reputation of a business as their operations are visible to the customers and they have direct contact with the customers. It would be apt to call them the revenue-generating division of any firm.

Course Objectives

This Certificate Course in Front Office Management aims to achieve the following objectives:

• Enable the organization to “put their best face forward” and ensure consistent customer service excellence on part of the front office
• Motivate front office professionals to do their best while performing their duties with customized training
• Inculcate organization, administrative and clerical skills within the participants
• Ensure those front office professionals are instilled with extremely useful problem-solving and communication skills
• Highlight the importance of front-office management in different industries
• Teach handling of monetary transactions at the front office
• Explore the range of job roles engaged in front-office management
• Ensure systematized office operations along with smooth coordination with back-office operations

Course Methodology

This collaborative Certificate Course in Front Office Management will comprise the following training methods:

• Interactive sessions and lectures
• Presentations
• Management games
• Roleplaying/modeling
• Case studies
• Group discussions
• Problem-solving sessions

Organizational Benefits

Successful completion of a Certificate Course in Front Office Management will benefit an organization in the following ways:

• The organization will be able to witness the smooth flow of work through front office management. The front office will successfully synchronize its operations with that of other departments
• The front office is recognized as revenue generating section of a business; thus, the course will train the personnel with the best practices towards the same
• Organization can become more dynamic as front office management allows collecting information from the ever-changing business environment and implementing those changes in the daily functioning of the office
• Efficient office management training will provide clarity of authority and responsibility within the staff. This will create an orderly mechanism that will develop managers into leaders. Thus, it will promote leadership

Personal Benefits

Successful completion of the Certificate Course in Front Office Management will benefit the participants at a personal level in the following manner:

• Participants will be able to enhance their communication skills- verbal, written as well as non-verbal
• The course will develop analytical and problem-solving skills within the participants
• Develop a demeanour that will help the participants conduct themselves in a calm manner in stressful and pressured situations

Target Audience

• Front Office Managers
• Receptionists
• Office Administrators
• Office Assistants
• Cashiers
• Sales Personnel
• Customer Care Staff
• General Managers

Course Outline

Day 1

General Office Management

• Introduction to office management
• Overview of modern office
• Front office management as a part of office management
• Coordinating back office and middle office functions with the front office
• Qualifications of an office manager

Day 2

Planning of Front Office Operations

• Division of work
• Front office budgeting
• Scheduling skills
• Planning the layout

Day 3

Organization Skills Required at Front Office

• Front office procedures
• Office organization
• Records management
• Delegation and authority
• Office supervision

Day 4

Staffing the Front Office Department

• Staffing management plan
• Skills needed for front office personnel

Day 5

Evaluation of Front Office Functions

• Work measurement
• Benchmarking
• Daily operations report

Day 6

Communication Skills in Front Office

• Elements of communication
• Means of written communication
• Verbal communication
• Importance of non-verbal cues

Day 7

Use of Technology in Front Office Management

• Data processing
• Computer applications for the front office
• Word processing
• Use of spreadsheets

Day 8

Front Office Cost Cutting

• Minimizing waste
• Sharing of resources
• Digital operations