Front desk lead vs guest services agent

The differences between front desk leads and guest services agents can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a front desk lead has an average salary of $29,851, which is higher than the $29,063 average annual salary of a guest services agent.

The top three skills for a front desk lead include reservations, patients and guest service. The most important skills for a guest services agent are reservations, computer system, and hotel services.

Front desk lead vs guest services agent overview

	Front Desk Lead	Guest Services Agent
Yearly salary	$29,851	$29,063
Hourly rate	$14.35	$13.97
Growth rate	-	-
Number of jobs	74,010	94,858
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 39%	Bachelor's Degree, 50%
Average age	37	37
Years of experience	-	-

What does a front desk lead do?

A front desk lead acts as the face of an organization, being the first point of contact for visitors. To be a front desk lead means you are responsible for administering and managing workers who work in the front office or reception area, as well as welcoming and taking care of visitors. As a front desk lead, you must possess good communication skills, have good composure, be friendly, be computer literate, have problem-solving skills, along with organizational skills to handle guests.

What does a guest services agent do?

Guest services agents are the ones who communicate with hotel guests who want to reserve or cancel bookings. Their job includes welcoming guests upon arrival, assigning them their rooms and suites, issuing their room keys, and collecting payment information. They organize housekeeping, transport providers, porters, and kitchen staff to meet the requirements of guests. They also resolve issues and deal with disappointed guests' complaints and coordinate third party services, including taxis, rental cars, tour guides, and airport transfers.

Front desk lead vs guest services agent salary

Front desk leads and guest services agents have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Front Desk Lead	Guest Services Agent
Average salary	$29,851	$29,063
Salary range	Between $19,000 And $46,000	Between $23,000 And $36,000
Highest paying City	New York, NY	Seattle, WA
Highest paying state	New York	Washington
Best paying company	Microsoft	East-West Center
Best paying industry	Retail	Hospitality

Differences between front desk lead and guest services agent education

There are a few differences between a front desk lead and a guest services agent in terms of educational background:

	Front Desk Lead	Guest Services Agent
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 39%	Bachelor's Degree, 50%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Front desk lead vs guest services agent demographics

Here are the differences between front desk leads' and guest services agents' demographics:

	Front Desk Lead	Guest Services Agent
Average age	37	37
Gender ratio	Male, 28.5% Female, 71.5%	Male, 33.6% Female, 66.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 6.8% Hispanic or Latino, 22.3% Asian, 9.9% White, 50.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5%	Black or African American, 10.4% Unknown, 7.0% Hispanic or Latino, 20.3% Asian, 10.3% White, 50.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.6%
LGBT Percentage	13%	13%

Differences between front desk lead and guest services agent duties and responsibilities

Front desk lead example responsibilities.

Manage VIP clientele by delivering exceptional customer service while using creative conflict resolution, when necessary.
Manage confidential information and documentation, including financial data, and credit card information and payroll checks.
Conduct in-person and telephone customer service, including guest check-in and booking reservations.
Perform PBX duties in the absence of an operator
Operate hotel PBX switchboard system and handles professional execution of guest calls, messages and amenities.
Collect co-payments when necessary and answer any necessary questions if ask by patients.

Guest services agent example responsibilities.

Train new associates to Hyatt standards and the most efficient way to accomplish the day's tasks.
Assist customers with booking hotel rooms and handling on-site complaints about rooms, service or billing issues.
Execute strong customer service by facilitating reservations, room amendments on an individual and corporate level, including agencies.
Process special reservation requests in the LMS database.
Maintain room booking lists and directly provide guests with the requested information concerning the facilities locations and surrounding area.
Operate the PBX equipment by accepting incoming calls, assisting outgoing calls, scheduling wake-up calls and supporting room service departments.

Front desk lead vs guest services agent skills

Common front desk lead skills

Reservations, 17%
Patients, 8%
Guest Service, 8%
Phone Calls, 8%
Guest Satisfaction, 5%
Booking, 5%

Common guest services agent skills

Reservations, 24%
Computer System, 10%
Hotel Services, 9%
Cash Handling, 7%
Room Reservations, 7%
PBX, 5%

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Front Desk Lead
Front Desk Lead vs Guest Services Agent

Updated January 8, 2025

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