Virtual Reality Evokes A Day in the Life of Hotel Housekeepers

Virtual reality (VR) is becoming a more popular training tool to help workers gain skills in technical or risky jobs. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. is using VR training to show corporate employees how hard hotel housekeepers work, ZD Net reports.

Hilton trainers want corporate leaders to understand the complexity of hotel operations and the vital role housekeepers play. So, they are having leaders perform hotel immersion simulations, in which they clean guest rooms, set up room service trays, and perform other tasks essential to guest comfort.

Hilton’s senior leaders were always welcome to visit hotels and tag along with workers in all the hospitality chain’s departments, including housekeeping and laundry. But setting up a shadowing process has been time- and cost-restrictive.

The VR program has enabled thousands of corporate employees to walk in the shoes of housekeepers over the past 18 months. The hope is once corporate employees understand how hard those jobs can be, they will be more mindful of how their decisions impact service teams. For instance, a task that adds five minutes to cleaning a single room will add up to significantly more work for a housekeeper by the end of the day. 

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