ROFL! We don't own the place, we manage it. The owner owns 3 other businesses and knew he wanted an Inn, but couldn't commit to the hours, so he started looking for a full-time live-in in manager and that ended up being us! I love to imagine a far off time when I can buy a place of my own, but I can't even imagine how much of a struggle it must be..
OK, easier to understand now! What parts of the day to day operations are you responsible for? I'm curious because several people are looking at being innkeeper-managers and I think they would be interested to know what all you are responsible for. Do you do 'everything' associated with running the business? Does the owner do 'some' of the things? How is that divided up?
Do you get a place to live along with a salary?
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Between the DH and I we do: the bookeeping and payroll, we make, serve, and set out breakfast if there are 10 rooms or less in house, we take all the reservations, do all the ordering, most of the handyman and maintenance stuff, all of the baking, product research, hiring/firing, employee management, menu development, housekeeping if the housekeeper isn't available, etc... I think we basically do everything but pay the mortgage! A lot of our decisions do go through our owner for approval though, since he's the one with the bank account.
One of the best perks of working here is that we do get to live in the Inn. Granted, our quarters are just like what seems to be the norm for most innkeepers:small, less than ornate, and out of the way. But it's cozy and warm. Plus, on the days when no one's here we can lounge on the sofa and start a fire in the main room and enjoy having all this space to ourselves.
Is it an uncommon thing to be an inn manager?
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No, I don't think it's uncommon to be the inn manager. In an establishment such as yours (very large) it's the only way to do it. Being the owner/innkeeper would require that all of the jobs you mentioned doing would need to be filled anyway. It's much easier to make the money in a larger place to hire on staff than it is in a smaller place. Does the owner ever come by to greet the guests? We've found that in a few places...innkeeper/manager does all the work and the owner stops by to get all the kudos!
I must say, tho, that the idea of cleaning and serving 10 rooms is beyond my abilities. Maybe if I were 21 again...but not now. 7 rooms is my upper limit and 6 would be infinitely easier. We looked at a place with 10 guestrooms and I thought, 'how hard could that be?' Well, now I know!
It seems the owner has assigned about 75% of the tasks to you. Not sure if that's a lot or what! How many staff are you allowed to hire to help you? You certainly will have a lot of experience when you are done.
And I do have a lot of innkeeper space to myself...3 bedrooms, living room, kitchen, dining room. I couldn't survive if I had to wait for guests to be gone to light the fire!
I know one innkeeper here who may be looking for the sort of establishment you have, which is why I asked. Good way for her to get an idea of what the requirements are for the manager.
Glad you are liking it so far! When is your 'season,' when you will likely be the busiest? Also, are you the first managers under this owner or has this person owned the property for awhile? Curious as to what the expectations are for you for the season? Are you required to book 'x' number of nights or have 'x' number of repeat guests? Sort of like, how does the owner know you are doing your job? How will you be evaluated for raises or even to keep the job?
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