Smart Cleaning, the Art of More With Less

Have you heard the joke about reduced budgets? The Facility Managers we talk to sure have. In fact, a study of economics usually reveals that the best time to buy anything was last year. Ba dump bump! Budget cuts seem to be a recurring theme in many facilities. As the economy shifts faster that most of us can keep up with, individuals and businesses alike look to protect themselves against financial crisis by reducing spending and trimming costs wherever they think they can.

Regardless of the justification, the burden often ends up on you as a Facility Manager to get more work done for less money. Sometimes the numbers work out and sometimes they don’t and you simply have to live with being under resourced. That being said, commercial cleaning companies have come a long way in technological and logistical improvements and if they understand what you need and what you are up against, many of the bets Detroit cleaning companies can provide you a more efficient, more wallet friendly commercial cleaning service.

With the right commercial cleaning company, you can make sure that your facility is getting cleaned by skilled professionals while still working around significantly reduced budgets. Finding the right commercial cleaning company is the trick. Doing more with less is by no means a beginner’s game. This level of skill and professionalism to maximize your cleaning dollars is imperative and in staggeringly short supply. Many companies will try to make up for this lower level of competence by offering low prices. Don’t be fooled into partnering with such companies. If the work you need isn’t getting done, it doesn’t matter what your paying for it. To best maximize your budget, your commercial cleaning company is certainly going to have to make some cuts but they have to be smart cuts and that is where Smart Cleaning comes in.

Smart Cleaning, What It Is & Why You Are Going To Want It

Smart cleaning is a method of cleaning that strategically targets high traffic areas in your facility and prioritizes them while reducing service to areas that aren’t often use to create a more effective, less expensive cleaning plan. To effectively Smart Clean your building, your commercial cleaning company needs to have a comprehensive understanding of how your employees and tenants use your facility. Without this information, it is impossible to design a Smart Cleaning plan that will be any more effective than a cleaning service basically winging it. Smart Cleaning requires careful planning, customization and taking advantage of different industry innovations as well as a strong commitment from your commercial cleaning company. Those less critical services can be reduced and staggered in frequency reducing the total janitorial hours needed to maintain your facility, the goal being to cut back on non-essential services without the perception that your maintenance is suffering.

Technology's Impact on Smart Cleaning

The first tool your commercial cleaning company has to implement Smart Cleaning in your facility is the numerous innovations in the cleaning industry has to offer. Breakthrough techniques and equipment have cut down on overall cleaning times thereby reducing janitorial labor hours (the largest single cost in the industry), improved the quality of cleaning preformed and reduced the price of resources needed to do said cleaning. Such quality improvements like Boost floor cleaning machines, team cleaning, and HEPA filtration vacuum backpacks are all forward-minded innovations that will both save money and time allowing your cleaning company to reduce their own costs passing cost savings on to you the customer. These technological advances don’t happen by accident, however, you have to partner with a company that actively invests in themselves in order to provide their customers with the best possible cleaning experience regardless of budget.

Detroit Cleaning Companies That Are Up to the Challenge

If the words “Smart Cleaning” are not coupled with a detailed and well thought out plan, then they are little more than words. It is also important to recognize that you can’t just tell your commercial cleaning company to Smart Clean your facility and expect different results. Only you know what areas in your facility are high traffic and what can be implemented periodically and what cannot. When setting up a Smart Cleaning program there are a couple of factors to consider. First, will a Smart Cleaning program actually improve the quality and cost of cleaning in your Facility? Likewise, what things in your facility can be improved and what cannot without dramatically raising the cost of cleaning? Finally, with the number of companies of varying size in the market, which company is best suited to provide you with a professional cleaning service?

Transparent Pricing Is A Necessary Starting Point

When looking at prospective janitorial companies to partner with in order to secure a price range that fits your budget, you have to know exactly what service your getting and what said services will cost. This may seem like a straightforward thing, however, many companies will try to present you with not entirely clear pricing in order to make it tougher to compare prices or to obscure hidden upcharges. Either way, companies that present this type of pricing are inexperienced at best or malicious at worse and you won’t get the level of cleaning and responsiveness that you need out of them. A clear, detailed pricing plan is an indication that the company you are planning to partner with is professional and ready wiling and able to make your cleaning budget go further. It takes a level of competence that you simply won’t find in a company that quickly throws together a rough estimate of the cost of cleaning your facility.

Lowball Prices Should Come With Big Red Flags

We live in the land of the big bad basement bargain price, and it is often against our nature to turn down ever enticing low low prices. However, companies that consistently lowball their prices will not give you adequate coverage and the cleaning of your building needs. A good value is one thing, but very low prices, lower than most quotes are a large red flag for a couple of not so enviable problems. The first is cutting corners with your facility to reduce prices. Another is illegal hiring and subcontracting to overall reduce the price of their service by partaking in illegal staffing and payment processes. Finally, low prices are often a sign that you will be billed with hidden charges at some point during your partnership to make up for lost revenue. Remember, when you see a bid come in well below others, the first thing you should ask is how are they doing the work for so much less.If the math just doesn’t add up, move on.

Price & Value Are Not the Same & Cheap Isn’t Always the Bargain You Hope For

Price and value are not the same word. Real value stems from a commercial company that provides superior cleaning at an affordable price. If your building isn’t being adequately cleaned and serviced, it doesn't matter what your paying for it. Cheap cleaning is often ineffective cleaning and with your facilities reputation at risk, it is better to stay away from the cheapest cleaning bid and overly low janitorial bids that seem too good to be true. By Smart Cleaning and partnering with the right commercial cleaning company for your facility, you can have effective cleaning without destroying your budget. Steer away from the companies that offer the cheapest price and instead look for the company with the most experience so that they can help you optimize your budget and provide you with the best possible cleaning service.

You Can Have Reliable Cleaning Even on Reduced Budgets

As many Facility Managers are, you might be working with a less than ideal cleaning budget. That doesn't mean, however, that you can’t have an effective, professional, and reliable commercial cleaning service. The most experienced cleaning companies will always offer transparent pricing and can find ways to reduce the cost of cleaning while continuing to maintain a standard of cleaning in your facility you can not only live with but take some pride in. They will not use illegal subcontracting to artificially deflate prices and they will make use of innovative new processes and technologies to reduce cleaning time and price. Find a company that offers you solid service while working with not against your issues and you can limit the hit on both your budgets and your facility’s overall cleanliness.

Getting Clear & Reasonable Office Cleaning Pricing

Getting an office cleaning price point that is in line with what you are paying for can be a tall order. Not only is the office cleaning company marketplace a crowded one, but many of these companies aren’t experienced enough to accurately price their services. Hard as they may try, they don’t even know what they don’t know yet. Second, many commercial office cleaning companies will lowball their bid for your contract and then slam you with upcharges and hidden fees. Finally, for an office cleaning company to give a well-informed quote in an RFP (request for proposal), you as the Facility Manager need to give them good information about your specific requirements to work off of.

Giving Your Commercial Cleaning Company Good Intel

The best office cleaning bids or responses to a RFP start with good information. So, what information should you be providing? First, you are going to want to provide accurate numbers on the square footage, and not just total square footage but footage broken down by different type of flooring. Each floor type has its own needs and can significantly change your price point. Similarly, you should also provide an estimate if the number of people that work in and pass through your facility. This will give your prospective office cleaning company an idea of how much cleaning your facility will likely need as well as a rough count on the number of consumable items like toilet paper, paper towels, and trash can liners needed to keep your facility adequately stocked.

Site Visits Are Key To Accurate Office Cleaning Pricing

If your prospective Detroit office cleaning company provides a quote without doing a site visit, you should be concerned. A site visit will help pin down aspects of your facility's cleaning that you may not have thought to bring up before. Further, a site inspection can help to identify ways to Smart Clean, do more with less, as well as keep you on budget and your facility on track. Finally, the site inspection isn’t just an opportunity for your prospective Michigan cleaning company to learn about you, it will provide valuable insight on how they plan to handle your account and gives you a chance to ask specific questions that will help you select a future partner in your facility maintenance.

Communicate Your Pain Points to Prospective Office Cleaners

No one wants to relive past cleaning company drama or dwell on what wasn’tworking, but make sure you tell prospective commercial cleaning companies you are seriously considering contracting with your pain points. Most experienced, professional companies can put their years of experience to work and come up with real, workable solutions to whatever problems were particular thorns in your side. Similarly, if you’re last cleaning service provider seemed to have a revolving door of employees due to high cleaning staff turnover, tell them. Take advantage of this opportunity and see how your future partner addresses these issues (hopefully) differently. Finally, if your prospective Detroit office cleaning company knows what’s important to you, they can work proactively to address it.

Get the Most Out of Your Cleaning Service Even with Tight Budgets

Facilities with nearly unworkable budgets for office cleaning are commonplace in our industry. While cleaning will never be easy or optimal with this type of budget, an experienced office cleaning company does know how to do more with less and at the very least make deep cuts livable in the short term. Through a site inspection and careful analysis, we can construct a cleaning plan that will meet your facilities needs and fine tune so that your employees and customers barely notice a shift in service. Ideally, we would all love to have a meaty budget that addresses all facility needs at an optimal level but, unfortunately, sometimes life has different plans. But rest assured, the right office cleaning company can work with you to get your facility cleaned even with tight budgets. Don’t labor under the impression, however, that every company can do this for you. Only the most experienced companies can take advantage of innovation and extensive knowledge to trim work in areas that won’t negatively impact the cleaning of your facility or your facility’s reputation.

Communication Is Essential

Marriage counselors and Facility Managers alike agree, communication is key. Take, for example, your office vacuuming. If you communicate to your building occupants that it takes place every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday then odds are you won’t receive an irritated call on Tuesday complaining about a lack of service. Likewise, by clearly communicating a reduction in office cleaning service as a result of specific cuts to help with budgeting, the better said cuts will go over. Finally, as a Facility Manager, consult with your office cleaning company and building occupants to target specific areas of the building that need to get cleaned and areas that are most important to your employees.  

Reduced Budgets Don’t Mean You Have to Settle

If your facility is getting dirty to the point that complaints are piling up, your budget optimization is either not working or it is too far gone to help your facility. To get the most out of a slashed cleaning budget, talk with your office cleaning staff often to set out a plan with realistic goals. The key to doing more with less is ‘Smart Cleaning’ as it takes thought and planning for a janitorial company to use their resources in a way to help you net the best value for your dollar. A commercial cleaning company does exist that will work with you to come up with a Smart Clean plan and deliver on their promises to you. With a little finesse and due-diligence, you can come up with a work schedule that works for your facility on a drastically cut budget.

Using CIMS to Your Advantage

It takes planning, innovation and experience to offer effective service on reduced budgets and a solid value no matter what price you are paying. The office cleaning companies that can help you effectively are few and far between. To find these companies that actively strive to innovate and work around unique situations in facilities as well as your budget, you should look to tools like CIMS certification. The ISSA (International Sanitary Supply Association) provides a rigorous, high level certification that said company performs at the highest level in the industry repeatedly demonstrating cleaning excellence and a commitment to their customers. Any medical office cleaning company or general office cleaning that meets these standards has demonstrated that they provide an effective, consistent service and is demonstrably more likely to work with you and your budget to make sure that your facility gets cleaned and looks its best while minding your bottom line.

The Budget Forecast

At Stathakis, we know that many southeastern Michigan businesses are dealing with reduced and even razor thin budgets in your facilities. We also know that the last thing you need is your janitorial company causing problems, creating issues and generating extra work for you. After all, the entire purpose of outsourcing janitorial services is to reduce your workload not add to it. As the budget constricts, the number of things you have to do balloons. Aside from supervising your facility, it is likely you are in charge of lease management, managing space and people, as well as understanding all the pertinent regulations that go with those tasks. Not only do you have to go above and beyond, but it is entirely possible you may also be required to figure out how to do all of this more effectively on a significantly reduced budget. Juggling more objects at an increasing speed, it would seem, is no longer just a circus act.

How Budget Reductions Impact You & Your Facility

The metaphoric hole in your budget isn’t going to go away. In fact, increased competition and economic pressure may actually make it larger as businesses try to go farther on less. While this may not be bad news for you, your job as Facility Manager is likely becoming, if it hasn’t already, a lot more complex and demanding than previously. That being said, challenges and competition in industry is what drives the American economy and just like other businesses, the janitorial industry is changing to meet the needs of an evolving marketplace. Working with less, professional janitorial companies and suppliers are working to cut down on waste and optimize processes to work cheaper and more effectively. Now the task for you as the Facility Manager is finding which commercial cleaning provider is going to do this best. While the current climate may necessitate working leaner, it is a sink or swim situation for a lot of companies. Partnering with a commercial cleaning company that approaches these challenges with a plan and action to back it up is what will lead to a successful partnership.

Smart Cleaning can be Your Solution to Tighter Budgets

At Stathakis, Smart Cleaning is the name of the game when it comes to helping Facility Managers with their janitorial budgets and prevention of service drop offs. “What is Smart Cleaning?”, you may ask. With Smart Cleaning, we work with suboptimal janitorial budgets in a given facility and strategically choose which services are most beneficial to the cleanliness and function of the facility. Services can then be ranked and delivered at a frequency that helps better manage your budget and makes sure your facility is still well-maintained from the perspective of your building’s occupants and visitors. Our complete analysis asks the questions:

• “What tasks are we performing that might be unnecessary?”
• “What tasks and duties are must haves that need to be included regardless of reduced budgets?”
• “What are we doing currently and does it make sense given your maintenance and budget needs?”
• “Where are the areas we might be able to get by with less?”
• "How can we use janitorial industry innovation, products, equipment & processes to better meet our customer's needs?
• “What better, more efficient ways might there be to complete those things that are necessary?”

Partnerships Make Smart Cleaning a Success

You can’t just ask your commercial cleaning company to start Smart Cleaning and expect the problem to be solved. If only it was as simple as asking our service providers to do better work for cheaper right? Many companies don’t have the capability to further optimize their cleaning practices and asking them to do more for less is a great way to create problems with the work that they do. Smart Cleaning means that you need to sit down with your janitorial cleaning company and discuss which services are important and which are not while looking out how they can be better fitted to your facility. As a janitorial company, we need to know the ins and outs of your building to best customize our service for you. We need to know exactly what your priorities are and what things can be given less attention. Smart Cleaning is based on upfront communication between you and your commercial cleaning company. It is nuanced and in order to work, must be customized to your particular facility. While it may be more work, in the long run, it offers a lot of benefit to yourself and your facility.

What is Smart Cleaning?

Smart Cleaning isn’t just a word, its ideas, processes, and knowledge that when combined together, give you better service for less money. Many companies may dismiss it because its seems complicated, but in actuality its a simple, common sense approach to cleaning. There are a couple of key, general components that apply to your facility and the planning process no matter what:

The Smart Clean approach requires:

• Site visits a must in order to look well beyond simple square footage in determining work and pricing.
• A complete review of your needs to be able to put the focus where it is needed most.
• Getting a real sense of your facility and how you use it
• A thorough understanding of your pain points, whether with former janitorial services or within your own company so we can provide solutions that will actually help you.
• A complete review of services and how they can be condensed and scheduled to minimize the appearance of less by employees or tenants.
• Leaner approaches to cleaning through improved staff training and time saving tools like Team Cleaning, where appropriate.
• Clear, effective communication in order to catch problems early and adjust in real time.
• Establishing efficiencies with the use of better, high tech equipment that reduces labor hours while still delivering effective service.

It is important to remember, however, that Smart Cleaning isn’t about just doing less cleaning. Rather it is the deliberate transition focusing on the most critical services that have the largest impact on the functioning of your facility. Smart Cleaning comprises the processes and implementation of targeting waste and inefficiencies by eliminating overlap or unnecessary work and taking that saved time and using it somewhere more meaningful. This is the only way a janitorial company can try reduce cost while keeping a professional, effective cleaning service. For that reason, Smart Cleaning can only be done by companies that are veterans in their industry. The amount of work and knowledge and training that goes into Smart Cleaning means that only the best of the best in the trade can make it all come together.

Could your facility benefit from Smart Cleaning? Are you working with a less than ideal building maintenance budget?

Here at Stathakis, we have over thirty years experience developing a standard of service and working hard to create lasting relationships with our customers and offer the businesses of southeastern Michigan the solutions and services they deserve. In a perfect world there would be healthy budgets to care for your facility without thought to livable cuts and efficiencies but we know the pressure Facility Managers are under.

If you are a Facility Manager in Ann Arbor, Detroit, Royal Oak, Farmington Hills, Farmington, Dearborn, Livonia, Troy, Auburn Hills, Novi, Plymouth, Downriveror surrounding areas and you are looking for janitorial services that deliver without breaking the bank, please contact us to learn more about how we can assure you get the service you and your facility require.

Why Multitasking Can Diminish the Effectiveness & Consistency of Your Office Cleaning

Multitasking sounds like a good idea but research tell us it really isn’t. Humans don’t actually perform so great when we are juggling a number of tasks. Sure, sometimes we have to and the more skilled a job is, the more it is likely to require you to wear an ever-increasing number of hats (we are talking to you Facility Managers). But, wherever possible, specializing in a job or a specific set of duties is significantly more likely to result in consistent, quality work and fewer missed items and mistakes.

Studies show us again and again that that specialization is often more effective and productivity increases with task focus. So it isn’t any wonder that the old way of cleaning a large building, with one person working within a specific area or zone and performing a variety of different cleaning tasks with different equipment and products and methods is being set aside in favor of team cleaning.

What is team cleaning, what is zone cleaning and how do they compare when evaluating commercial office cleaning companies? In zone cleaning, each cleaner requires their own set of tools, equipment, cleaners and such, which often results in costly duplication, storage and maintenance/replacement issues. Zone cleaning simply takes more time and is significantly less efficient because cleaners are task switching and even multitasking, which is slower and requires more labor hours. A single individual handling all cleaning duties in a specific zone often results in a higher margin of error, specialized equipment requirements for every zone, and training that is more involved, costly and challenging to manage.

So what is the alternative? In team cleaning, each office cleaner on the team has specific assigned related duties. For instance, one person may do the vacuuming throughout the building, while another office cleaner is responsible for bathrooms and yet another office cleaner may collect all trash. When there is a team of cleaners responsible for cleaning a facility and each member knows precisely what needs to be done, how, and by whom, the job is completed fast and results are ultimately better.

Team Cleaning Outperforms Zone Cleaning In Commercial Office Cleaning

There are of course office buildings where it makes sense to have a single office cleaner but many times, especially in larger facilities, team cleaning may offer considerable advantages over zone cleaning. What kind of advantages will Team Cleaning offer?

• Specialists and generalists offer you a great mix of precision and flexibility.
• Faster, simplified training gives rise to office cleaners fully equipped to do THEIR job well.
• Streamlined training, ease of supervision, and absentee/team member replacement results in enhanced consistency for you.
• More cooperative attitude and team cohesion as workloads and responsibilities balanced.
• Achieving consistently high results much easier and more likely.
• A higher quality of cleaning performed in less time saving you labor hours and cost.
• Lower training costs of office cleaners passed on to you the customer.
• Is customized to the needs of YOUR facility.
• Reduced equipment costs/servicing resulting in lower costs for you the customer.
• Effectual use of labor hour means reduced overall costs.
• Directives and outcomes like Cleaning for Health & Smart Cleaning are easier to implement.
• Ultimately better on the bottom line for both janitorial companies and their customers.

When Cost Cutting Is a Necessity, Team Cleaning Comes Through

Nearly all of the Facility Managers we speak to are actively looking for ways to trim their building maintenance costs. Of course, cuts and trims can’t just be at the expense of an acceptable level of clean, they have to be done in smart ways that don’t sacrifice service. Team Cleaning can help you reduce office cleaning costs without completely disrupting or tanking your facility maintenance. With Team Cleaning, your office cleaners learn and perfect tasks, performing them throughout your facility. Take for example a light duties specialist, this individual typically dusts and cleans all surfaces, clean windows and doors, empties trash and stacks trash for pickup by different team member to collect. Office cleaning teams also typically include a vacuum specialist, utilities specialist, restroom specialist and more. With task specialists, you reap a number of tangible benefits in both the quality of cleaning and the efficiency. First, you significantly reduce the risk of cross contamination. Second, the office cleaning team members are specialized and thus more likely to clean the right way, every time. Third, quality assurance is simplified because there is a very clear understanding of who does what and who is ultimately responsible for the tasks at hand. This clear responsibility makes the tasks themselves easier and heightens an office cleaner’s awareness of accountability as there is no way to “pass the buck.”

Factoring Rising Janitorial Costs Into the Equation

Janitorial cost are rising and that is in part due to increases in the legal minimum wage. As the greatest cost in a janitorial services company is labor, changes to the minimum wage can be impactful. Major upticks in minimum wage, including here in the state of Michigan, as well as changes to health care requirements have resulted in a rise commercial cleaning costs soaring. After labor hours, equipment costs are very significant for an office cleaning company. When commercial office cleaning companies can drive these costs down, they can then pass along some cost savings to you, their customer. Team cleaning goes a long way in managing labor and equipment costs without compromising the overall quality and effectiveness of your cleaning and maintenance plan. Team cleaning results in fewer janitorial hours translating into lowered costs for your commercial office cleaning company and for you.

Ready to Get Better Office Cleaning Services At a Better Value?

The effectiveness, consistency and value of your office cleaning services make a huge difference in both your added work load as a Facility Manager and the overall appearance and functioning of your facility. Don’t let inefficient office cleaning services keep you in a rut. If you are not satisfied with the quality or value of your current office cleaning services company, it might be time to seek greener pastures. You can find office cleaners that make best practices, effective, efficient service and cost saving measures a priority. You trim costs without it resulting in a host of complaints about the state of your building’s maintenance. You can get great service at a great value.

Here at Stathakis, we provide consistent, responsive, effective service and a solid value for businesses all across southeastern Michigan. With more than thirty years in business, we have developed a standard of service delivery that works, just ask our customers. We work hard to create lasting partnerships and offer the businesses of southeastern Michigan the quality, cost-effective janitorial services they deserve. If you are a Facility Manager in Ann Arbor, Detroit, Royal Oak, Farmington Hills, Farmington, Dearborn, Livonia, Troy, Auburn Hills, Novi, Plymouth, Downriver or surrounding areas and you are looking for commercial cleaning services, office cleaning, school cleaning, industrial cleaning, medical cleaning or a janitorial company, please contact us to learn more about how we can help make your job at least a little easier and make your facility look its best.

Don’t Get Hooked Into Paying Too Much For Commercial Office Cleaning

With commercial office cleaning, costs can vary dramatically, even for what might appear to be a pretty straightforward office cleaning duties list. Commercial office cleaning services come in all shapes and sizes and this in part contributes to such a wide range of pricing. As a Facility Manager, this can make it much harder to pin down what it should cost and how to avoid paying too much for your commercial cleaners. As a Facility Manager, send out a request for proposal and you might get a handful of janitorial bids where no two look alike for the very same building. How can that be? First, pricing services is a skill that not every office cleaning company is adept at. It takes experience and a solid understanding of your services as well as the ability to look at a particular building and predict accurately. Second, an office cleaning company may purposely under bid in order to get the contract fully intending to add on service charges and “extras” down the road. The truth is that if you don’t know understand how an office cleaning service prices their services, you are much more likely to pay way too much for your office cleaning. Or, you might end up selecting a tempting low-low office cleaning bid only to realize cheap isn’t the same as value and bad service isn’t a value at any price.

How Are Office Cleaning Prices Even Determined?

Prices for office cleaning are determined by looking at a number of variables. First, your office cleaning company has labor costs and related costs like insurance and taxes, benefits for their employees, training and management. Then there are an assortment of direct costs like cleaning supplies, trash bags, hand towels, hand washing soap, toilet paper and more. Finally, there is the management fee and a profit. In order for your office cleaning company to operate, they must maintain a healthy profit margin for themselves, it’s simply sound business. The goal however, is to align with those companies that balance their need to see a profit with your need to protect your own bottom line. When going over pricing with prospective office cleaners, don’t shy away from discussing and clarifying costs and even profit with your prospective commercial office cleaning company. The best, most professional companies want you to clear sense of what you are purchasing. Then on your end, there is your building, business type, buildings traffic and use. It is significant where your building is located as overall operating costs and labor costs can vary dramatically. Also of consideration is the scope of cleaning, the frequency of cleaning and any possible special requirements. It can be helpful when pricing to know square footage, square footage by floor type and the number of restrooms in your facility. Do you need outdoor maintenance or a daytime cleaning service? Are you interested in day porter services? Do you have special projects or seasonal needs you must budget for? Finally, there is your budget because whether it is sufficient or razor thin, the likelihood is that you must stay on course, even if the numbers are less than ideal. 

What Your Office Cleaning Company Needs To Know For Accurate Pricing

Of course, you deserve an office cleaning company that offers transparent pricing but they still have to gather some good information from you in order to put together a meaningful office cleaning quote. For instance, what is your overall building’s square footage? And what is the break down of square footage by flooring type because this impacts maintenance times and costs? While pure square footage is some information, it is not the best information when it comes to accurate pricing. What does your building’s traffic look like and how many people populate your building? How many restrooms do you have? This is important because it takes significantly longer to clean a restroom than to clean and office of the same size and there are consumable goods like trash can liners, toilet paper, paper towels, hand soap and more that must be properly estimated for.

There’s More To Consider With Regard To Commercial Office Cleaning Than Price Alone

While price is certainly an important factor, it can’t be the only one. Why? Because cost and value are very different things. Sure, most of us are tempted by low prices, we do have budgets to meet, but we also need services that fit our facility and keep things running smoothly. And unfortunately, paying more for office cleaning services is no guarantee by itself that you will get better service. Some office cleaning companies just charge more without any real discernible improvements in service. Inopportunely, initial cleaning prices don’t always reflect reality, value or what you will ultimately end up paying. Some office cleaners low ball pricing to get your business, counting on hidden charges, add-ons and upsells to at some point get them to the number they require. Other office cleaning companies may just be inexperienced at accurately pricing services. Other cleaning companies may bid low hoping to get your business but then deliver services well below what you actually need. Does price matter? Of course it does, but it cannot be the only thing driving your decision or the chances are high that you won’t get the services you need.  

Getting Price AND Value From Your Commercial Cleaners

You may have a nice, healthy office cleaning budget or you may be in a position where you have no other option but to live with budget cuts and a less than office cleaning ideal budget. Even tight budgets don’t excuse ineffective office cleaning. If you are working with reduced budgets, know that there are office cleaning companies that can help you maximize your budget and while they might not be able to get you everything you want, will work towards getting you what you need. Part of it comes down to experience, knowing where you can cut services and where you cannot. It is critical after all that cuts don’t just rack up complaints giving you a whole other problem to address. The most effective, efficient and experienced office cleaning companies are in the best position to help you put together a cleaning specification that is reasonable and meets both budget and maintenance goals. They know that bringing together quality service with transparent pricing helps create value. They know how with reduced budgets, the use of smart cleaning, zone cleaning and other efficiencies designed to reduce costs are even more significant.

Getting the Office Cleaning Services You Deserve

Getting the service you need and reasonable, accurate pricing isn’t impossible, but many cleaning companies just won’t get you there. What should you really look at to get the office cleaning services you deserve? The best office cleaning companies utilize best practices, careful planning, decades of experience and even innovation to price janitorial services and deliver a standard of office cleaning services that sets the bar high. But it isn’t always easy telling them apart from those office cleaners that are sure to disappoint. Finding the right office cleaning company is almost akin to finding the needle in a very large haystack.

But there is a better way. More and more facility managers are becoming familiar with CIMS, or Certified Industry Management Standard. CIMS, is a highly coveted industry certification offer by the ISSA, the International Sanitary Supply Association. The ISSA’s CIMS is a high level certification offered to office cleaning companies that wish to set themselves apart from the crowded, often unprofessional office cleaning marketplace. Office cleaning services that meet ISSA CIMS certification have documented processes that demonstrate their ability deliver the most effective, consistent, responsive office cleaning services, clear office cleaning prices and ultimately the highest value from your office cleaning budget.

If you need office cleaning services and your business is in the South Eastern Michigan service area, please get in touch with us at (800) 278-1884 and let us make your life easier and your facility shine. Proudly serving Genesee County, St. Clair County, Macomb County, Oakland County, Livingston County Wayne County, Washtenaw County and Monroe County.

Office Cleaning Prices Shouldn’t Be So Complicated

Office cleaning prices can be confusing but they don’t have to be. Why is there such variation from one office cleaning bid to the next? Well for one, the office cleaning industry is flooded with startups each year and new office cleaning businesses simply do not have the experience to accurately price the services, especially with regard to large commercial office buildings. On the other hand, competition for your business can drive some office cleaning companies to lowball in an effort to get your business with the hope that upsells and add ons will eventually get them to a livable number. This is bad for business and bad for budgets but often a reality with poor office pricing practices.

Your Role In Transparent Pricing

As a Facility Manager, you do have a role in helping prospective commercial office cleaning services get you a more accurate office cleaning bid or respond to a Request For Proposal. The first thing you must do is provide good information. What type of information helps get better office cleaning quotes? Your office cleaning company should have accurate numbers regarding cleanable square feet categorized by floor type. Various flooring has different cleaning methods with the labor times on these varying. Gross square footage with no break down by flooring type can offer a very rough estimate but if you want accurate office cleaning prices, you must get more specific. Similarly, an idea of head count and traffic patterns can help a commercial office cleaning company nail down a more accurate cleaning quote. These help determine not only how quickly your building gets dirty but can help your office cleaning company estimate consumables like trash can liners, toilet paper, paper towels, hand soap and more. These might seem like little things but having good information on them can make a big difference when it comes to accurate pricing.

How Site Visits Result In Better Office Cleaning Quotes

If you want an accurate office cleaning quote, any prospective office cleaning company must conduct a site visit. Site visits help a prospective office cleaning company see with their own eyes what your facility really needs and even areas they might save you money. Furthermore, an in-person site visit offers you the chance to see for yourself how a prospective office cleaning service will handle your questions, issues and give you the information to find the best fit and value for your facility.

Had Your Share of Challenges? Share Them With Your Office Cleaning Company

Don’t keep your pain points a secret. The more your office cleaning company knows, the better they can help you. Had a problem with your last office group of office cleaners? Tell your prospective office cleaning service. Working with reduced budgets? Tell them. Tired of a revolving door of new people in your facility? Sharing this with your professional office cleaning company will help them identify potential issues before they arise and deliver the kind of professional office cleaning you expect.

You CAN Manage Budget Cuts With the Right Office Cleaning Company

Major budget cuts can leave you with what may feel like an unworkable office cleaning budget. Here at Stathakis, we often work with Facility managers that have had to manage major building services budget cuts. It’s certainly not ideal, however, as an experienced large office cleaning company, we know better than most how to do more with less. When you need to do more with less, you must choose form only the most experienced and capable Detroit office cleaning companies. From being able to determine how your facility is used to creating minimum acceptable plans that are customized to your office, the best office cleaning companies can make sure you and your building occupants need hardly notice shifts in service. Large office cleaning companies like ours can use their large buying power and business volume to find and create efficiencies that help you live with nearly unlivable budget cuts.

CIMS Certification Cuts Through the Confusion

Getting great service and accurate pricing isn’t impossible, but it won’t just come from any office cleaning company. It takes good information, best practices, careful planning, decades of experience and even innovation to price janitorial services and deliver a standard of office cleaning services that sets the bar high. If you need help finding the needle in the crowded janitorial haystack, CIMS can be the answer to your prayers. CIMS, or the Certified Industry Management Standard is a highly coveted industry certification offer by the ISSA, the International Sanitary Supply Association. The ISSA’s CIMS is a high level certification offered to office cleaning companies that wish to set themselves apart from the crowded, often unprofessional office cleaning marketplace. Office cleaning services that meet ISSA CIMS certification have documented processes that demonstrate their ability deliver the most effective, consistent, responsive office cleaning services, clear office cleaning prices and ultimately the highest value from your office cleaning budget.

Office cleaning prices, while based on measurable factors, can vary tremendously from rock bottom low to downright extravagant and everything in between. The problem is, extremely low prices can be a red flag but high prices are simply no guarantee of effective office cleaning services. Unfortunately, when it comes to finding an office cleaning company, price doesn’t necessarily equate to value. The goal when shopping office cleaning companies is to both get a good understanding of precisely what services you are purchasing and then get a solid value. Understanding office cleaning pricing is a critical component of getting the right office cleaning services at the right price. So how can you as a Facility Manager determine how much you need to budget to get the value you require and the service you deserve all at a price you can live with? The answer is you get at least a general sense of how professional office cleaning companies price their services so that you know what you are looking at and what it all means. Whether you are in search of office cleaning Plymouth or searching for a Dearborn office cleaning company, you will have the information you need to make the right decision for your facility.

How Commercial Office Cleaning Companies Estimate Costs

If a prospective office cleaning service gives you an office cleaning quote based on square footage alone, run the other way. Why? Because there is so much more to getting a meaningful office cleaning quote that both describes the scope of work and helps you understand cost. One-size-fits-all pricing, quick thrown together quotes and straight square footage estimates don’t provide an accurate estimate of what your facility really requires and what you should be prepared to pay for it. Understand the things that go into accurate office cleaning pricing and you will be in a better position to break down a prospective commercial office cleaning services prices and determine if it works for you. What variables are most significant when it comes to your pricing Auburn Hills office cleaning services?

• Geographic Area – Where is your building located? Location, the labor market and such can impact pricing.
• The Scope of Office Cleaning Services – What specific areas do you need cleaned? What services are most critical? Do you require outdoor maintenance or other specialty services? Are you looking for very basic office cleaning services or high level services, or even Day Porter services?
• What Frequency Do You Need – Do you want daily cleaning or twice weekly? Is day cleaning or a Day Porter service better or after hours cleaning when your building is near empty?
• What is Your Facility’s Square Footage – Do you manage a small office building or a 40,000 square facility? Square footage while not the only factor, can help your Farmington Hills office cleaning company accurately estimate cost.
• How Is Your Building’s Square Footage Broken Down By Floor Type? Hard flooring type and carpet all require different maintenance at different intervals so this has an impact on overall cost.
• Your Facility’s Foot Traffic and Population. The more people in and out of your facility, the faster it gets dirty and the more frequently it must be cleaned.
• How ManyRestrooms Do You Have? Restrooms are often the most time consuming to clean as they see a lot of activity and can increase the risk of cross-contamination if not properly maintained.

Transparent Pricing Is Essential

Transparent office cleaning pricing is an essential part of getting the right services at the best value. After all, how can you compare office cleaning quotes in an apples to apples way if prospective office cleaners are not giving you clear, easy to understand office cleaning quotes? Transparent office cleaning pricing and clear, easy to understand janitorial bids can also help you avoid low low quotes that do not offer value because they simply include less work than your facility requires, as well as sky high office cleaning quotes that are charging significantly more for the same services another janitorial company might provide for less. Transparent office cleaning prices can help you steer clear of overly low janitorial bids that are quite likely a sign that you are either dealing with an inexperienced Troy office cleaning company that does not understand how to price their services accurately or perhaps a Royal Oak office cleaning company that will play pricing games down the line. 

So that you may secure the most accurate, clear pricing, ask prospective office cleaning companies how many hours they intend to spend cleaning your facility. Annualize that cost and divide it by the annualized number of labor hours to calculate an hourly billable rate. If an Ann Arbor office cleaning company is charging to little, you can almost guarantee they will take shortcuts on people and processes designed to protect you, your building and it’s occupants. These can include illegal hiring and subcontracting as well as inadequate drug and criminal background screening.  Well thought out office cleaning bids should always include the following:

• Labor costs
• Direct costs (ex. cleaning supplies, toilet paper, etc.).
• Employee health insurance
• Employee vacation time
• Insurance & taxes
• A management fee
• Profit

These seven factors are the building blocks of pricing and any prospective Detroit office cleaning company should be willing to be transparent about these so that you can understand where their office cleaning prices come from.

Your Office Cleaning Company Must Be Profitable

Sometimes when we imagine a company’s profits, we think of some Scrooge type character rolling around in piles of money oblivious to the hardships of those around them. But making a profit is an important component of any business. Healthy profits grow and maintain thriving companies that reinvest in their employees, technology, equipment and in the long run you the customer. If your Farmington office cleaning company isn’t profitable, they won’t be around long. Profit can’t be a dirty word when it comes to sifting through prospective office cleaning companies. Your Livonia office cleaning company needs to make a profit from their services, after all, they run a business just like you. On the same note, having an idea of what represents a reasonable profit and where that profit comes from gives you the ability to negotiate a fair price and solid value. When you outsource office cleaning to a reliable and effective Detroit office cleaning company, they will be happy to provide you with how the come up with pricing and precisely what their services include. In this way, both you and your Downriver office cleaning company can chart a path to success with a map that will measure how effectively your Novi office cleaning company is delivering on their promises to you. 

Are You In A Position Where You Must Do More With Less?

The single most significant component of office cleaning prices is the cost of labor. So if you are in the unenviable position where you have to maintain your facility on ultra tight budgets, reducing office cleaning labor hours will net you the most significant cuts. But how do you get your office cleaning service to work with the budget you have and still deliver an acceptable standard of clean? The reality is that if you must do more with less, you need an experienced, professional office cleaning company. Why? Because only the best office cleaning companies following industry best practices will be in a position to maximize the budget you have. New, innovative cleaning equipment like Boost floor cleaners and even tech-savvy cleaning practices like Smart Cleaning and Team Cleaning can all help shave labor hours without sending your office cleaning into a downward spiral. When it comes to making the most of your office cleaning budget, experience and prior success with less than optimal budgets is critical. 

CIMS Certification Can Help Clear Through the Crowded Office Cleaning Marketplace

Sifting through office cleaning prices and the crowded marketplace of office cleaners can be overwhelming. Do the prices offer real value? Is the office cleaning company providing the services you really need? Are they using high tech, cost saving equipment and following industry best practices that get you better services at a better price? Do they make safety and security paramount? Are they set up for effective quality control? Do they utilize environmentally conscious products and practices? It can often feel like as a Facility Manager, there are more questions than answers. Recognized industry certifications like CIMS, may offer a valuable and easy path to finding those Detroit office cleaning companies in the best position to offer both quality service and reasonable prices. CIMS, or the Cleaning Industry Management Standard is an industry certification offered to the very best office cleaning companies who have demonstrated specific competencies that directly translate into better service and value for you the customer. The CIMS standard measures:

• Quality Systems: A framework to ensure effective operations & continuous improvement.
• Service Delivery: Processes & systems in place to deliver consistent, quality service.
• Human Resources: Best practices for managing any service industry’s greatest asset—their people
• Health, Safety, & Environmental Stewardship: Ensuring regulatory compliance, workplace safety, and health and environmental management.
• Management Commitment: Establishing our Mission, Vision, and Values and ensuring that the organization's continuity is secured.

When you partner with office cleaning services that have put in the time and resources toward establishing themselves as an industry leader, you are all but guaranteed better, more effective office cleaning services.

Don't get stuk with below average office cleaning, you deserve more. If you are interested in learning more about what the best office cleaning companies do differently, read more like Seven Things About Commercial Office Cleaning Your Boss Needs to Know.

What We Hear From Facility Managers Just Like You

We talk to Facility Managers day in and day out, it is after all, part of our job. The thing we hear over and over again is how Facility Managers are working with tighter janitorial budgets and overall belt tightening and as such, need to hold costs steady or even reduce them. This, of course, is not the ideal but we understand that it is sometimes simply an unavoidable part of doing business. So Facility Managers have to be careful how and where the allot their dollars and yet, no Facility Manager wants to meet budgets at the expense of having a well maintained building. Angry phone calls and an email box filled with complaints is not a scenario any Facility Manager wants to entertain. SO what are you to do if you are in the position of trying to manage both getting your facility properly cleaned AND keeping costs down? If you are working with a reduced or suboptimal janitorial budget WHO cleans your facility is even more important. The best janitorial companies have responded to the economic uncertainty of budget cuts, increased minimum wage and increased employee healthcare requirements with creative solutions and high tech cost cutting measures from machines that do the work faster, better and cheaper to methods like team cleaning which offer more efficient and effective service. The best cleaning services do not always have to cost more. In fact, the best janitorial services can help you maximize your budget, deliver a level of services that lightens your load and keeps your facility clean and well maintained avoiding complaints from employees and tenants.

Finding a Janitorial Services Company That is Ready, Willing & Able

Reduced budgets require an A team, not the B, C or D team. While there are a great many janitorial and cleaning companies, there are only a few that are really poised to do more with less and clean and care for your facility well. The janitorial marketplace is a crowded one and while competition is good for you the customer, often there are so many companies that finding the right one for YOUR facility can be a challenge. And so often, we talk to Facility Managers that think just because they are working with less than ideal budgets, they have to settle for crummy service. Sure with reduced budgets you might not get everything you want but the right janitorial company will make sure you get everything you need. When looking for your next janitorial services company, we suggest you get an idea of the size and types of businesses and industries they already serve in order to avoid those janitorial companies that are simply not going to deliver services up to the standard of work you require.

Transparent Pricing Is Key

The only thing worse than getting less than what you need from your janitorial services is paying too much for it. One way to insulate yourself from unnecessary costs and still get the service you need is to get clear,transparent pricing up front. Not only will this help you find the best value, it creates a map for you and your cleaning company to measure whether they are meeting expectations or not. Cloudy pricing and fuzzy math is a bad sign that a janitorial company either doesn’t know how to price their services or is purposefully keeping pricing vague so they can charge you more down the road. A prospective janitorial cleaning service must take the time to acquaint themselves your facility and requirements up front, from the cleaning spec, site visit, they must understand and have a solid sense of your requirements and be prepared to meet them. If they cannot exhibit good planning and process BEFORE they get your business, what is the chance service and quality will get better AFTER they already have a contract? Whatever the reason for the ‘fuzzy math,’ it will end up making a mess of your carefully planned budget.

Cheap Cleaning Bids Are a Giant Red Flag

While they can certainly be enticing, in reponse to your janitorial RFP very, very low cleaning bids are a giant red flag. Listen, there are unavoidable hard costs when it comes to maintaining large commercial buildings. Think about it, how exactly can a janitorial company do the same work for so much less. Anyone who says they can do it for far less than other bids coming in is either going to do much less than you need or charge you more through hidden pricing and pricing games. Too good to be true pricing can be a sign that your prospective janitorial services company is using illegal hiring. Extremely low janitorial prices can signal an inexperienced company that wants to use your facility as a training ground. A very low janitorial bid can be tempting because when you are trying to puzzle together the pieces of your budget it seems to solve the problem. But overly low pricing will create far more problems than it will solve and it’s almost guaranteed to cost you significantly more long term.

Too Good To Be True Pricing Points to Illegal Hiring Practices

Janitorial pricing that is well below the majority of the other bids after a janitorial RFP is a possible indication that the building services company is participating in illegal hiring practices. They might be using illegal hiring to trim costs. Two illegal hiring issues are problematic in the janitorial industry, both of which are bad news for you. First, some cleaning companies hire undocumented workers. An undocumented worker is a person working off the payroll or someone that has not supplied the necessary identification to verify their legal status or authorization to work. Second, some janitorial companies illegally classified workers as independent contractors rather than employees. Dishonest janitorial companies illegally classify workers to avoid the legal requirements a company has when having employees like payroll, taxes, benefits and all of the other things businesses must provide for legal employees. These companies willing to put themselves at risk are certainly willing to put you and your business at risk, it’s just not worth the liability.

Sure Price Is Important But Value Is KEY

As a Facility Manager, it is likely your job to find the best prospective janitorial services and stay on budget. When you requets a janitorial RFP, low prices can be enticing but remember, as important as prices are, value is KEY. Price is what you pay, value is what you get. A janitorial services company that does a shoddy job with cleaning and maintenance isn’t a good value at any price right? And making things even more complicated is the fact that a higher price point doesn’t necessarily translate into better value. Basically, what you need is an acceptable level of facility maintenance at a price that comes closest to your targets. You have service and you have price and where they intersect is where you find the greatest value. So how do you recognize those commercial cleaning companies that really understand value? There are some signs that point to a janitorial service company that truly understands service and value.

The Best Janitorial Companies Know How To Make the Most of the Budget You Have

It takes a certain kind of janitorial company to do more with less. Although it might seem counterintuitive, if you are asking for a janitorial RFP and dealing with reduced janitorial budgets you need a better, more experienced and resourced company to clean your facility. Some Facility Managers are under the impression that the better companies MUST cost more but in fact, the very fact that they are experienced and resourced can dramatically cut overall costs. For instance, the best janitorial professionals have a clear understanding of where you CAN and where you CAN’T reduce services that can only come with experience. If a janitorial services company is experienced, you aren’t going to be their first customer who was working with a less than optimal budget. And experienced, knowledgeable commercial cleaning companies understand Smart Cleaning, Team Cleaning and have invested resources into using equipment, supplies and processes that all save money and time. Smart Cleaning means a janitorial company will strategically focus on the areas of your facility that see the most traffic and require more attention while maintaining less used spaces less often or as needed. Team cleaning is when duties throughout a building are assigned to specialists thereby reducing the need for extra equipment as well as creating specialties and efficiencies that save labor hours, the single biggest component of janitorial cost. They make themselves more efficient so that they can be cost competitive while still providing a quality baseline of services. Those janitorial companies that are better equipped and employ the most efficient cleaning processes are much more likely to be capable of delivering effective janitorial services at a lower cost while still making a profit themselves, a necessity in any business.

When It Comes to Janitorial Service, Multitasking Isn’t Necessarily Good

While often as a society we extol the virtues of multitasking and ‘wearing many hats,’ there is a great deal of data that doesn’t confirm that. In fact, studies show us that specialization is often more effective and productivity increases with task focus. So it shouldn’t be a surprise that the old way of cleaning a large building, with one person working within a specific area or zone and performing all functions of cleaning is falling out of favor.

It is easy to imagine that with varied responsibilities, it’s simply more likely that a cleaner will miss duties and tasks. With zone cleaning, each cleaner needs their own equipment, which causes costly duplication, storage and maintenance/replacement issues. Zone cleaning simply takes more time and is significantly less efficient because cleaners are task switching and even multitasking, which is slower and requires more labor hours. A single individual handling all cleaning duties in a specific zone often results in a higher margin of error, specialized equipment requirements for every zone, and training that is more involved, costly and challenging to manage. So what is the alternative?

Team Cleaning Outperforms Zone Cleaning Hands Down

Having a single cleaner or custodian in a facility is often the answer but in some facilities, especially larger buildings, team cleaning can have significant and substantial advantages over the oft used zone cleaning. What kind of perks can you get from Team Cleaning?

• Faster, simplified training results in a cleaning employee fully equipped to do THEIR job well.
• A team of both specialists and generalists giving you both precision and flexibility.
• Getting consistently high results much easier and more likely.
• A higher quality of cleaning performed in less time saving you labor hours and cost.
• Streamlined training, ease of supervision, and absentee/team member replacement equals consistency for you.
• Lower onboarding cost of cleaners passed on to you the customer.
• Can be customized to the needs of YOUR  facility.
• More cooperative attitude among workers as everyone fully understands their duties.
• Fewer equipment costs/servicing resulting in lower costs for you the customer.
• Efficient use of required labor hour means reduced overall costs.
• Better bottom line for both janitorial companies and their customers.
• Directives and outcomes like Cleaning for Health & Smart Cleaning are more likely.
• The more simple the system, the greater chance of sticking with it.

Team Cleaning Can Be the Simple Answer to the Problem of Cost

If you are a Facility Manager facing belt tightening and budget cuts, Team Cleaning can help you reduce janitorial costs without sending your facility maintenance into a tail spin. With Team Cleaning, individual cleaners learn and perfect tasks, performing them throughout your facility. For instance, a light duties specialist might dust and clean all surfaces, clean windows and doors, empty trash and stack trash for pickup by another team member to collect. A team could also include a vacuum specialist, utilities specialist, restroom specialist and more. With task specialists, not only do you limit the risk of cross contamination, the team members are specialized to clean the right way, every time. And quality control is simplified because the guidelines of who does what and who is responsible for what are completely clear. Think about it, one or two people vacuuming your facility can get that task done far more efficiently than eight people juggling a laundry list of duties. Even better, Team Cleaning can be completely customized to the individual needs of your facility.

Labor Hours & Rising Janitorial Costs

The single highest cost in a janitorial services company is labor. While that has always been the case, major upticks in minimum wage, including here in the state of Michigan, as well as changes to health care requirements, have sent commercial cleaning costs soaring. After labor hours, the second highest cost to a cleaning company is that of their equipment. When commercial cleaning companies can drive these costs down, they can then pass along some cost savings to you, their customer. Team cleaning goes a long way in managing labor and equipment costs without compromising the overall quality and effectiveness of your cleaning and maintenance plan.

Is It Time For A Change?

Are you satisfied with the quality of service and value your current janitorial services company is providing you? Is it perhaps time to find a new cleaning service that focuses on best practices, efficiencies and cost saving measures without sacrificing service? Do you need to cut costs but don’t want that to result in a bevy of complaints about the state of your building’s maintenance? Here at Stathakis, we deliver consistent, responsive, effective service and real value for businesses all over southeastern Michigan. With over thirty years in business, we have developed a standard of service delivery that works, just ask our customers. We work hard to create lasting partnerships and offer the businesses of southeastern Michigan the quality, cost-effective janitorial services they deserve. If you are a Facility Manager in Ann Arbor, Detroit, Royal Oak, Farmington Hills, Farmington, Dearborn, Livonia, Troy, Auburn Hills, Novi, Plymouth, Downriver or surrounding areas and you are looking for commercial cleaning services, office cleaning, school cleaning, industrial cleaning, medical cleaning or a janitorial company, please contact us to learn more about how we can help make your job at least a little easier and make your facility shine.

Are you looking for school cleaning companies? Think your facility might benefit from day porter duties and what does a day porter do anyway? Are you a Facility Manager lookign for real committment and quality from medical office cleaning services? Call Stathakis at 1-800-278-1884.

Like It Or Not, Leaner Budgets & Methods Are Here to Stay

Here at Stathakis, we work with Facility Managers and business owners from all over southeastern Michigan. We know how many of you are struggling to make reduced budgets work in your facility. We know you don’t want an exodus of tenants or the interruption of constant emails and phone calls complaining about service issues. Outsourcing your janitorial services was supposed to make you job easier and your facility maintenance better right? While we all wish we were dealing with more robust budgets that made it easier to cover all of the bases without so much thought and analysis, we all understand the reasoning and need for leaner approaches to building maintenance. And while budgets narrow, your responsibilities seem to grow in tandem. It is likely that beyond supervising your facility’s maintenance, you are responsible for things like lease management, assigning and managing space, managing people, understanding and assuring compliance with all relevant regulations. You may even be responsible for the planning and management of building work and renovations. You may be tasked with uncovering greater energy efficiency and cost-effectiveness, forecasting and budgeting, and even directing security and general administrative services. And of course, figuring out a way to do all of this for less. Assuring solid, effective maintenance with a reduced janitorial budget is like Ginger Rogers doing every move Fred Astaire did as a dance duo, except Ginger Rodgers had to do them backwards.

Which Do You Want First The Bad News Or The Good News?

The bad news is this belt tightening isn’t showing any signs of waning. With increased competition and economic unpredictability, most businesses are continuing to try to do more with less. And while it isn’t really bad news per se, the reality is that the workload for many for the Facility Managers we have sat down and talked to, has become far more complex than in the past. The good news is that business challenges like these have always driven American innovation and we have found this to be the case within the janitorial industry. As budgets tighten, professional janitorial companies and their suppliers are continually working to cut waste, looking for ways to create efficiencies and work leaner in an effort to support Facility Managers and secure new competitive business. Of course, some janitorial companies continue to do business ‘as usual’ without trying to address the growing need for leaner processes, reduced waste, increased efficiencies and reduced or flat costs. In order to work with reduced budgets without a bevy of complaints and unlivable, unworkable services, you have to partner with a commercial cleaning company that approaches these needs strategically rather than haphazardly.

Smart Cleaning Can Help You Get Right Where You Need to Be

At Stathakis, we have developed and use Smart Cleaning to help get the Facility Managers we work with where they need to be regarding their janitorial budgets without creating the extra headaches of unlivable service drop offs. We do this through our Smart Clean/Smart Cleaning method. What is Smart Clean? Smart Cleaning is a workable approach to reduced or suboptimal janitorial budgets in which we do a holistic review of your facility in order to determine which janitorial services are essential to the appearance and overall smooth operation of your facility, which services are important but not essential and thus may be delivered at a reduced frequency and which services represent a degree of waste and may be eliminated altogether. In our holistic review, we ask:

• “What are we doing currently and does it make sense given your maintenance and budget needs?”
• “What tasks and duties are must haves that need to be included regardless of reduced budgets?”
• “Where are the areas we might be able to get by with less?”
• “What tasks are we performing that might be unnecessary?”
• “What better, more efficient ways might there be to complete those things that are necessary?”
• "How can we use janitorial industry innovation, products, equipment & processes to better meet our customer's needs?

Smart Cleaning Requires a Plan & a Partnership

Smart Cleaning can’t just be a directive you throw at your current commercial cleaning company. “Here, do more and better work with less money.” That’s how you end up with an inbox full of complaints and a janitorial company that is either resentful for doing work they aren’t getting paid for or searching for ways to add fees or extra costs to break even. No, it’s called Smart Cleaning not Less Cleaning for a reason, it is smart cuts and smart cuts require both you and your janitorial services company to talk about a plan for going leaner without going meaner. As a janitorial company, we have to be given the opportunity to really know your building and how you use it. We need to understand what your pain points are and what your priorities are. Smart Cleaning is customized and as such, requires some upfront communication and planning between you the Facility Manager and us, the Detroit janitorial services company. Yes, there is upfront work involved but the long term benefits are immeasurable and certainly worth the initial effort.

Smart Clean: What It Is & How It Works

Smart Cleaning is a combination of philosophies, methodologies and specific competencies that taken together, work to deliver more for less. Sound complicated but really it’s a pretty simple, yet effective approach. First, when embarking on a Smart Clean approach, your janitorial spec shifts from a general list of cleaning tasks to a needs-focused directive to your cleaning company. Smart Cleaning has many moving pieces and requires thought, planning and a solid system. 

The Smart Clean approach requires:

• Getting a solid sense of your facility and how you use it
• Site visits a must in order to look well beyond simple square footage in determining work and pricing.
• A holistic review of your needs to be able to put the focus where it is needed most.
• A thorough review of services and how they can be reduced and scheduled to minimize the appearance of less by employees or tenants.
• An understanding of your pain points, whether with previous janitorial services or within your own organization so we can offer you the solutions that will actually help you.
• Leaner approaches to cleaning through enhanced staff training and efficiencies like Team Cleaning, where appropriate.
• Creating efficiencies through the use of better, tech savvy equipment that reduces janitorial hours while still providing effective service.
• Solid, effective communication in order to catch problems early and adjust in real time.

Smart Cleaning cannot be about just doing less cleaning. Rather, it must be about a strategic shift in services that eliminates redundancies and spreads out work in a way that maximizes your janitorial budget. Smart Cleaning works best when we both uncover areas to reduce waste and create efficiencies through improved processes, products and equipment. While evaluating your facility for overlap or unneeded work is a critical element of Smart Cleaning, we also look to do more work with fewer resources. This is the only way we can both reduce costs and deliver quality cleaning and maintenance. Smart Cleaning relies on a janitorial company that is experienced, professional, effective and steeped in the advances and best practices of their industry. Smart Cleaning only works with those commercial cleaning companies highly resourced and professional. Why? Because the Smart Clean plan requires a considerable investment from your janitorial services company in products, equipment, training and even the framework in place to make it all work.

Do you think your facility could benefit from Smart Cleaning? Is your facility in the southeastern Michigan area? Here at Stathakis, we have spent over thirty years developing a standard of service and working hard to create lasting relationships with our customers and offer the businesses of southeastern Michigan the solutions and services they deserve by adhering to and even developing janitorial best practices.

If you are a Facility Manager in Ann Arbor, Detroit, Royal Oak, Farmington Hills, Farmington, Dearborn, Livonia, Troy, Auburn Hills, Novi, Plymouth, Downriver or surrounding areas and you are looking for commercial cleaning services, office cleaning, school cleaning, industrial cleaning, medical cleaning or other building services, please contact us to learn more about how we can assure you get the service you and your facility require.