Hiring an office cleaning service for your business allows you to keep your space neat and sanitary, while also improving health conditions in your office and potentially even increasing employee productivity. However, not all services are going to have the same impact.
If you want your investment in an office cleaning service to achieve all those benefits, you need to choose the right provider. Here are some of the top things to look for in any of the office cleaning services you hire.
Characteristics of Good Office Cleaning Services
Experience with Commercial Customers
Not just any office cleaning service will do when it comes to your business. A crew may be very qualified to handle residential properties. But that doesn’t mean they have the skills, training, and supplies to work with commercial spaces. Make sure the company you go with has experience dealing with actual businesses before you go any further.
Schedule Flexibility
You need your office cleaning service to work around your team’s schedule. You can’t have them interrupting your operations or getting in the way of customers. So you need a team that can come at the time that you specify, not the other way around.
Consistency
However, consistency is also important. In all likelihood, you need your cleaning crew to come at least once a week, probably at the same time. You also need them to provide consistently solid service each time.
Affordability
Budget considerations are always important when hiring any type of service for your business. You want to choose a company that fits within your budget. But you don’t necessarily want to choose an option that’s considerably cheaper than the others, either. Make sure you get a good value for your dollar.
Extensive Services
Your facility likely needs more than just a quick clean every few weeks. You may need window washing, floor buffing or even extensive disinfecting. Before you hire a company, make a list of the services you need, even if it’s only occasionally. Then make sure the company you choose offers all of them.
Customizable Plans
You should also be able to customize your plan to maximize your budget and get the most possible value. For example, you may want to select just a few services for your weekly cleaning, but get your buildings windows washed a few times per year.
Experience in Your Industry
In some industries, a more specialized type of cleaning is required. For example, if you work in the food service industry or medical industry, you may need to hire a company with specialized tools and experience cleaning the equipment you use on a day to day basis.
Set Communication Procedures
How are you going to communicate with your office cleaning service to ask questions or share feedback? If you want to have a successful ongoing relationship with your cleaning service, you need to choose a company that makes communication simple.
Safety Training
Safety is important in every industry — even cleaning. Before hiring a service, make sure that the team has received workplace safety training and can maintain those standards in your facility.
High Employee Standards
You should also ask about the company’s hiring practices. Do they hire their own team or use subcontractors? Do they perform extensive background checks? Their cleaning crews will be in your building on a regular basis. So they need to be trustworthy and reliable around your property and proprietary data.
Low Turnover Rates
It’s also beneficial to have a cleaning crew who understands your specific business and is comfortable working in your facility. So it is in your best interest to hire a company that doesn’t have a high employee turnover rate. This means you’ll have a consistent team working for you again and again.
Licenses and Insurance
Whatever company you choose needs to be licensed to operate in your state or community. They should also have liability insurance to cover any potential issues that may arise while they’re in your facility.
Access to Quality Supplies
The supplies and equipment that a cleaning company uses can make a major impact on their finished work. Ask about the tools they use and how often they’re replaced so you know you’re getting access to the latest and highest quality products.
Green Cleaning Options
It may also be beneficial to choose a company that uses eco-friendly cleaning products. This lowers the amount of potentially harmful chemicals in your building, can help to lessen allergy symptoms among your team and lower your company’s carbon footprint overall.
Positive Customer Reviews
All of these qualities can make an impact on the overall customer experience. To get a feel for how other customers have felt about their experience, read reviews online or ask the company for testimonials. If there are customers willing to share positive thoughts, it’s a good sign for the experience you may have with them as well.
