If you enlist the help of a janitorial services company to help you maintain your facilities, how are you feeling about the service you are getting? Is your janitorial company hitting the mark with responsive service? Or are you less than satisfied but your fear of what else is out there is keeping you from making a change? Or are you at the point where you are ready to cut your current janitorial company loose because of service issues that have gone unresolved?
If your current cleaning and maintenance services are not hitting the mark, know that great janitorial services are out there. You just need to know where to look and how to identify the companies that will deliver the kind of service you need and you deserve.
What You Should Reasonably Expect From Your Janitorial Company
Cleaning services are made up of people and people make mistakes. That being the case, mistakes are unavoidable but how a janitorial company identifies and responds to mistakes and issues is key. When your cleaning company doesn’t hit the mark, do you know who to call or contact? And does this person respond back timely? What is timely for you, fifteen minutes later, the same day, a week later? A solid janitorial company will seek to quickly handle little problems before they become big problems. When there is an issue, does a manager get back to you to figure out what went wrong and how to fix it? While very few janitorial companies get back to you within minutes, any janitorial service worth their salt will get back to you the same day. They might not be able to address the problem the very same day but at the very least they should get back to you to assess the issue.
Does Your Janitorial Company Staff Good People?
A janitorial company relies on good products and equipment but truly great service comes down to great people. Is your current cleaning company doing its best to find, screen and train people who you feel safe in your building? The right janitorial company will work very hard to find the kind of people who will fit right in at your facility and make you feel comfortable when they are in your building, even after hours. A solid janitorial contractor will also have developed strategies for finding and developing great employees who care as much about your business as they do about their own. The safety of your employees and customers is paramount. Does your current janitorial service carefully screen and test employees? Does your janitorial company hire legally, every single time? Many subpar janitorial companies rely on illegal hiring to cut corners on pricing but illegal hiring can cost you your reputation and it’s never worth it. A worthy janitorial company will find, screen and train great team members and then utilize a wide range of benefits and rewards for stand out performance that keep their team on their toes.
Does Your Janitorial Company Price Their Services Fairly?
Do you have a full understanding of what you are paying for and exactly what is and is not included? Often we have found that janitorial companies quote prices that make it very difficult for customers to understand precisely what it is they are getting. Likewise, when you are not sure what you are paying for what services, it can be difficult to compare other janitorial company prices, which you should be able to do. The best janitorial companies utilize transparent pricing so that customers know exactly what they are paying for. This can be really helpful too when customers have had to ramp up or dial back services to meet budget needs or respond to increased tenant volume and such. Is your current janitorial company providing you with fair and clear janitorial pricing?
Is Your Janitorial Contractor A Leader in Their Field?
How do you run your company? Do you get a few things, set up shop and hope for the best or do you put some real elbow grease into figuring out how to do what you do very well? Because of the perceived low cost of entry into the janitorial industry, the industry is flooded with start-ups each year, most of whom disappear as quickly as they appeared. We aren’t knocking the new guys, every business has to start somewhere, however, most facility managers would prefer they cut their teeth elsewhere. In order to find the kind of janitorial company that will deliver consistent, proactive service, you need a company that has worked out the kinks and established the procedures and systems to guarantee the job gets done right. Perhaps you think this experience costs more. Because janitorial pricing so often comes down to efficiencies, an experienced janitorial service can often cost less than smaller less experienced contractors. Why? The more experienced janitorial companies often benefit from their larger purchasing power. Likewise, they understand how to price their services and where they have room should you need to meet very specific budgets. Often, smaller fly-by-night operations will price themselves low to get a contract and then quickly realize their ship is full of holes. At that point they have no choice but to ask for more money or abandon a contract.
Finding these experienced, professional, reputable janitorial companies can be challenging. There are thousands of cleaning services out there, and each one claims to be the best. Referrals from other facility managers are always a plus. Barring that, you can ask a lot of questions to try to discern which janitorial companies really get it. It can also be helpful to consider industry certifications. The ISSA offers a CIMS certification for janitorial companies and other building service companies. Choosing an ISSA CIMS certified company provides you with a select pool of cleaning professionals to choose from. When you choose a janitorial company that meet the Cleaning Industry Management Standard (CIMS), you know you are going to get a quality of service above and beyond what you would expect from an ordinary cleaning company.
CIMS is a rigorous, consensus-based standard put forward by ISSA, the World Cleaning Industry Association, that's applied to a company's management, operations, processes and general performance. ISSA CIMS certification sets out a series of stringent requirements and benchmarks for a janitorial company to reach. It measures their compliance in areas such as management, quality of service, human resources, and health and safety, and ensures that they are committed to excellence in every level of their business. ISSA CIMS certification means a company is run effectively and efficiently, with a solid management system and a competent staffing plan, allowing it to keep its own costs down, which translates directly into savings to you, without sacrificing the level of service you deserve.
The Right Janitorial Company Makes Life Easier
We know it can be exhausting trying to find the right janitorial company. The appointments, questions, reference checking and more can make it all seem overwhelming or even impossible. Yet, if your current janitorial service isn’t hitting the mark, it’s work that will pay off in the long run with both financial and non-financial returns. If you are paying for janitorial services, you deserve to be satisfied and if your current janitorial company isn’t doing that, there are a number of reputable, solid performing janitorial companies that are willing and able to give you the kind of facility services you can count on.