Congratulations... you're the Office Manager, responsible for the smooth hassle-free running of all aspects of your office. Problem is, you seem to be spending your day dealing with staff complaints because of the cleaning at your office. You'd love to change cleaning company, problem is, you've got a contract with the current cleaners. This is one of the 8 key mistakes office managers make - so today, we're going to show you how to avoid them...
Mistake #1 - “It’s Part of the Tenant’s Agreement”
You are unhappy with the cleaners your building provides but you think you have to stick with them (and a poor quality work). This is a myth that many building managers tell Tenants in order to make life easier for themselves. If you’re not happy, get the cleaning component taken out of your lease. Businesses do it everyday. There, I said it. Your landlord would much rather make you happy and keep you longer. It can be done. Then hire a commercial office cleaning service who will meet your needs.
Mistake #2 - “It’s in the Contract”...
Your current cleaner isn’t doing quality work, but you have a 12 month contract with them so you can't change. Wrong. You don’t have to put up with bad service and poor performance. Office or Strata cleaning service contracts allow for a customer to break the agreement if they are unsatisfied just by giving (normally) 4 weeks written notice. Don’t fall for the bullying tactics many companies will use to keep your business.
Mistake #3 – “It’s in the Specification”...
Having a cleaning specification that doesn’t meet your needs is futile. Yes, you want a good price, but you also want value. Don't go for the cheapest quote when what your business really needs is a premium service. Be realistic, the only reason the quote is cheap, is because they haven't allowed enough time to do deliver value. They can't skimp on the wages, but they can skimp on the time dedicated to your site.
Mistake #4 – “Changing Circumstances”...
Not having your office cleaned frequently enough. Is once a week going to be enough when there’s 10 of you using 1 bathroom? If you do the math, probably not. So consider increasing the number of cleans per week. It usually won’t cost much more for additional services, but your office and bathrooms, will look and feel much fresher. It also doesn't make any sense at all to have Staff members doing the cleaning. Unless they were hired to clean, let them do what they were hired for, and leave the cleaning to a professional cleaner.
Mistake #5 – “You Just Need a Mop and a Bucket”...
Hiring inexperienced cleaners. There’s nothing worse than coming into your office after you’ve hired a new cleaning company and it isn’t clean and fresh the way it should be. People who buy a mop and bucket and advertise themselves as cleaners are rarely professional in the way that they clean and treat your offices, and as for correct insurances and legitimate workers, remember, if there are any problems, it will be your company paying for it..
Mistake #6 – “But it’s the Cheapest Quote”...
Hiring a cleaning company based on the lowest price. As with all things in life, you get what you pay for. If you don’t want a steady stream of different, inexperienced students who may or may not have working Visas, or Workers Compensation, then steer clear of companies who offer bargain basement prices, because you will end up with low value and a very unreliable service.
Extremely low prices tend to be offered by individual cleaners who may have no insurance, are not bonded, have not been screened for background checks and they often don’t carry insurance such as Public Liability. Beware. If you hire a company like this and something goes wrong - your business will be 100% culpable and responsible. Don't risk it!
The other thing to watch out for is the bait-and-switch tactic. A very low price is offered, then once they get into your office, the pressure begins for higher priced services.
Mistake #7 – “Not "Bundling" Your Cleaning Services”...
Your business has multiple sites and you all have different cleaning companies. Noooooo! This is the fast-track for paying way more for your cleaning than you have to. Negotiate for all your sites with a National Cleaning Service . Your business will love you for it. One invoice, one point of contact, one company and BIG savings... !
Mistake #8 – “But I Though I Made Myself Clear…”
You can’t understand your cleaner as they don’t speak English very well. Good cleaning companies understand the importance of working in partnership with your business, providing extra services when they are requested is part of the service description.
If you and your team are unable to easily communicate with your cleaning provider, it’s going to be very difficult to get these extra things done. Also, make sure your cleaning company offers a Communication Journal so if you don’t see your cleaner each visit, you can write comments, suggestions, complaints or compliments for them.
NEED MORE INFORMATION?
Here at Cleancorp, we take the hard work out of hiring an office cleaning service because we use the “POV” principal – we look at things from your Point Of View, the Office Manager. Everyday our Team Members work hard to ensure you don’t have any cleaning hassles when you come in of a morning – you just come in to a clean, fresh business space – guaranteed.
How do we make sure everything works? Firstly, it’s our team of dedicated professional cleaners, and secondly, our internal processes and systems. We’re triple ISO Certified to the International Standard in Quality: AS/NZS ISO 9001:2008, Environmental Management AS/NZS ISO 14001:2004 and; OH&S AS/NZS ISO 4801:2001...
Ready to make the switch to a better cleaning service? Call us today 1300 211 944.