Does Surestay Hotel By Best Western specify initial and ongoing training programs?
Surestay_Hotel_By_Best_Western Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
We provide between 3 to 5 days of initial training at each System Hotel before it opens. Your General Manager (defined in Item 15), the sales manager (if applicable), and all front desk, housekeeping, and maintenance personnel must successfully complete initial training to our satisfaction before you may open and begin operating the Hotel. You must open and begin operating the Hotel within 2 years after signing the Franchise Agreement for a newly constructed System Hotel, and within 90 days after signing the Franchise Agreement for the conversion of an existing hotel to a System Hotel. You must provide accommodations for our trainers at no cost while they provide the initial training at the Hotel. We will use the Manual and various instructional handouts and online materials as we conduct the initial training program. If any of your required personnel do not
successfully complete initial training to our satisfaction, we may require you and/or your personnel to attend additional training programs at the Hotel or another location we designate in order to achieve the sufficient level of training we require. You also must pay for all travel and living expenses that you and your employees incur and for your employees' wages and workers' compensation insurance while they attend initial or additional training. (Franchise Agreement Section 4.1)
Additional people beyond the attendees we require may attend initial training, subject to our ability and capacity to accommodate these extra people in any training session.
As of the date of this Disclosure Document, the initial training program includes the following:
TRAINING PROGRAM
| Subject | Hours of Classroom Training | Hours of On-The- Job Training | Location | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Customer Service | 6 | 2 | The Hotel or another location we designate | |
| SureStay Brand Culture | 4 | 2 | The Hotel or another location we designate | |
| Guest Satisfaction | 4 | 0 | The Hotel or another | |
| Survey | location we designate | |||
| Operations Training: (i) Front Desk; (ii) Maintenance; and (iii) Housekeeping | 6 | 2 | The Hotel or another location we designate | |
| General Manager / | 6 | 2 | The Hotel or another | |
| Leadership | location we designate | |||
| Revenue Management | 6 | 0 | The Hotel or another location we designate | |
| TOTAL | 32 | 8 |
The initial training program will be conducted by members of our staff who have been employed by us since our inception in August, 2016; have between seven and 21 years of experience with our affiliates; and have between 12 and more than 34 years' experience in the hotel industry.
We may require that your General Manager or other employees complete ongoing training programs or refresher training to our satisfaction. We generally provide online refresher courses at no cost to you covering customer service, housekeeping, maintenance, front desk services, regional services, revenue management, proprietary revenue management systems, and operational consultative training. However, we may charge you a fee for additional training provided to your General Manager or other employees. (See Item 6) You are responsible for all related travel and living expenses and wages incurred in connection with employees attending these training programs.
Source: Item 11 — FRANCHISOR'S ASSISTANCE, ADVERTISING, COMPUTER SYSTEMS, AND TRAINING (FDD pages 53–60)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Surestay Hotel By Best Western's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, they do specify both initial and ongoing training programs. The initial training program lasts between 3 to 5 days and is required for the General Manager, sales manager (if applicable), and all front desk, housekeeping, and maintenance personnel. This training must be successfully completed before the hotel can open. The initial training program includes topics such as customer service, SureStay brand culture, guest satisfaction, operations training for front desk, maintenance, and housekeeping, general manager/leadership training, and revenue management.
The initial training program consists of 32 hours of classroom training and 8 hours of on-the-job training. The training locations are either at the Hotel or another location designated by Surestay Hotel By Best Western. Franchisees must provide accommodations for the trainers during the initial training period and cover all travel, living expenses, wages, and worker's compensation insurance for their employees attending the training.
Surestay Hotel By Best Western may also require the General Manager or other employees to complete ongoing training programs or refresher training. These refresher courses are generally provided online at no cost and cover topics such as customer service, housekeeping, maintenance, front desk services, regional services, revenue management, proprietary revenue management systems, and operational consultative training. However, Surestay Hotel By Best Western may charge a fee for additional training provided to the General Manager or other employees, with the franchisee responsible for all related travel and living expenses and wages.