Summer is just around the corner.  It's almost time to put on your out of office and start preparing for the holidays..

And, you’ll no doubt be counting the days until you can be relaxing with your family and friends.

Not only is this of year a time for making personal preparations (beach trips, BBQs, Christmas shopping…), but believe it or not, now is an awesome time to prepare your office for summer.

Whether your office will be closed down for a few weeks (#winning), or skeleton staff will be running the show, we’ve prepared a checklist for things to do so you can have your office ready for summer, and you can head off for a well earned break, knowing you’ve finished everything..

Between now and the last work day

Marie Kondo - Author

If you haven’t had a chance to spring clean your office yet, schedule some time to get this done before the summer break.  Remember to ask everyone to chip in and help with tidying things up, clearing out the storage room, and checking stationery inventory.

It’s kind of therapeutic too.  You know all those files that have been sitting in the “to be filed” pile for months?

Well it is super satisfying to have the time to actually put them away, knowing they’re done with for the year.

And don’t stop there.  While you’re on a role, why not go through that pile of papers on your desk and deal with them too:

“My basic principle for sorting papers is to throw them all away.”
– Marie Kondo, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up

That’s my girl.

Ok, some might say that’s a little drastic.

So just go through them.   Action and file or throw out..

Your computers can get filthy too so give these a wipe down while you’re at it.  Turn your keyboard over and give it a gentle tap to get any dust out.  Once everything is looking neat again, schedule a deep office cleaning with your business cleaning company so they can do a really detailed clean over the holidays.

Prepare skeleton staff

If you’re the business owner or office manager, you’ve probably been flooded with summer holiday leave requests.  Chances are, you'll need to have a few people available to man the phones or deal with some clients over the break, so you should get this finalized asap.

Perhaps you can have some staff come into the office for shorter hours or have them manage everything from a home office.   Either way, now is the time to get this finalised so everyone knows what’s expected of them.

Organize any maintenance or repair work that needs doing

If you’ve been meaning to get the walls repainted, the carpet replaced, or any other repair work done, summer is a great time to do it with fewer people in the office.

It’s a good idea to liaise with your office cleaning service, because these are the people who actually have keys to your building and office.  So if trades people need to be let in over the holiday season, the last thing you want to do is break your holiday vibe and head back into the office.

So don’t.

Get your cleaning company to do that for you and enjoy your holiday…

Check and clean the air conditioning system

Since it can be almost unbearable to sit in a stifling hot office during the summer months, you’ll want to make sure that your air conditioning system is in tip-top shape. Call a maintenance company to come in and check each unit and clean out filters, so everybody is able to work comfortably before and after the holidays.

Cancel any deliveries – milk/food/supplies

Our fave coffee, Nespresso

You don’t want a pile of milk or supplies building up at your doorstep while everyone is away, so notify any regular delivery companies that you need to put a hold on your orders. Just don’t forget to notify them when you need things back up and running again.

Contact your cleaning company

Whether you have a building cleaning service, or your own professional office cleaners, you should let them know that you won’t be needing them every day as usual if your office is closed down.You may want to book in a deep cleaning or carpet cleaning so you can come back to a sparkly office after the break.

On the last day of work

Photo by Roberto Nickson (@g) on Unsplash

<--- You'll definitely be feeling like this on the last day of work!   But before you leave, why not call a few clients.  It's their last day too (and just like you, they're probably counting down the hours till they get out of the office).  This is a great time to thank them for all of their business this year, all they've done for you this year, and line up things for the new year.  You could even book in a coffee or a lunch in the new year to reconnect...

Change phone messages

Phone messages should be updated to notify callers that the office is closed or that the office hours have changed for the holidays. This goes for all of your staff, as well as the reception phone.

Power down

There is no point having computers left on if no one is going to be using them…. and, it’s a waste of money too. Make sure all unused electronic equipment is turned off at the wall, and cords tucked nicely away.

Clean out the fridge and food cupboards

There’s nothing worse than coming back from holidays to a stinky fridge full of rotting food! Ask everyone to take their items out of the fridge so that your office cleaner can give it a good wipe down.  Same goes for the pantry too – you don’t want ants to take over while you’re gone.

And don’t forget to make sure your cleaners come and clean the office bins (including those bins in the kitchen) on your last day of work.

Close blinds or curtains as necessary

If you have a lot of sunlight coming into your office, then it’s probably a good idea to close curtains or blinds if you are going to be away for a while. This will help with keeping the office cool so that electrical equipment doesn’t overheat.

Prepare the office for the cleaning company

If you have organized a professional cleaning service to come in over the holidays, and do a detailed clean, make sure that they have access to all the areas that they need, and that they don’t need to wade through a ton of stuff to be able to clean desks.  PRO TIP:  Most cleaning companies won't move the 'stuff' on your desk... it's kind of a no no... So, if you want a full desk clean, be sure to tidy up your desk, get those papers put away, and you can look forward to returning back after the break to a clean, dust free desk...

Out of office

One of the very last things for everyone to do is to turn their out of office email message on – it’s such a great feeling!   Remember to provide an alternative contact should any emergencies arise while you are sunning yourself at the beach.

Our superb team at Cleancorp can take all care of all of your office cleaning needs - whether you need a thorough office cleaning over the holidays or someone to come in every day to keep the office looking clean and smelling fresh.

Give us a call today on 1300 211 944. Tell us what you need, and we’ll give you a no-obligation free quote and more information on our services.