Recruitment And Retention Strategies Are A Must

According to industry sources, the number of jobs in the cleaning industry are rising. However, commercial cleaning companies need to be a little more flexible when it comes to recruiting new staff to fill those roles to secure the best talent possible.

Flexibility is the key to finding top people. I have been to many interviews and conducted many interviews as well and one thing I have found no matter if you are interviewing or the one being interviewed is that a lot of companies are just not flexible when it comes to making suitable times with prospective candidates. By not being flexible in this, you will not secure the best candidate possible as someone else who is a little more flexible will. In  the beginning of 2009 there was no shortage of good candidates for office cleaning, industrial cleaning as well as commercial cleaning  but now as the economy is recovering more and more, those good candidates are being snapped up by the commercial cleaning companies that have the foresight to be flexible.

Cleaning companies also need to rethink their retention strategies if they are going to compete in today's market. All this means is rather than thinking about constantly replacing employees or contractors if they are not meeting your requirements, you should be thinking about what you can do to better train them. If they are worth keeping, then implement some sort of training program or an incentive scheme to keep existing employees. training and development should be the key component of any recruitment and retention program. It doesn't need to take the form of formal courses but a one on one mentorship is just as effective if not more so as it provides a personal interest on your part in your employees.

Recruitment and retention strategies need to be implemented as quickly as possible if you haven't already done so as you can rest assured that your competitors are doing just that. Once you have on in place, effective communication of such to your employees and contractors will boost their morale but make sure that communication works both ways. you want to allow your employees to communicate back to you as well for any feedback which they might have to make your plan even more effective.

Maintain A Sustainable Service Level Without Losing The Shirt Off Your Back

The recession might be over but not all the optimists who comment or analyse our economy are in agreement with that statement. All in all, the cleaning  industry in Australia has come through relatively intact but that doesn't mean that any of us in the commercial cleaning industry should let our guard down now.

Most of our clients are still very guarded with their level of spend and their business model is still based on cost rather than value. Sometimes, if businesses are to survive, that is an understandable measure. And there is no indication either that clients are going to increase their level of spending any time soon. In fact, recent figures I have read indicate that clients level of spending on commercial cleaning and maintenance is still down from 2009 levels. Recovery will take some time because clients are still looking at ways to cut costs in their own businesses.

If there has been any positives coming out of this recession is that many businesses see the advantages of outsourcing many of their services. There has been a lot of tender activity in the last 12 months or so and many of those tenders were for services that were performed in house. So companies that employed their own cleaners under their own banners have outsourced their cleaning and maintenance needs to commercial cleaning contractors.

The important thing is to maintain your  own profit margins and don't fall victim to the trap of cutting your margins for the sake of just keeping the job. Sometimes doing that will end up costing you money and that's not why you are in the commercial cleaning business for. Always charge for a level of service that covers your costs and has a  profit margin as well off course also maintaining the level of service that the client expects and deserves. Keep in constant touch with the client and act on matters that they raise immediately. Doing things in this manner will ensure that you have a healthy profit margin and happy clients.

Maintenance Of Linoleum Floors

To seal a newly laid linoleum floor is not as hard as most commercial cleaning companies tend to make out. However, there are a few simple steps that need to be taken to ensure that the linoleum flooring of your contract stays looking as good as possible for quite a few years to come.

First, it is imperative that any adhesives be removed from any corners or joins in the floor before any sealant goes on to it. never seal in adhesives. Use mineral turps if necessary and immediately rinse off with water. Linoleum is easily damaged by strong solvents so be very careful and follow the manufacturers instructions on this at all times.

Next you need to prepare the surface for sealing. You need to cut back the factory polymer sealer and residual resins before you seal the floor as this will ensure a superior adhesion of the new sealer. you should never seal a newly laid linoleum floor without at least cutting back once lightly. A word of caution though. Linoleum floors are very prone to 'burning' or 'browning' so be very careful as to your choice of pads and chemicals you use on the floor. Consult your chemical company if you are unsure before you begin the job.It is preferable to rinse the floor twice with new linoleum flooring with warm water.

The choice of the proper sealer is very important. generally linoleum is not designed to be a wet look glossy floor so only two coats are required. By doing this you are sealing the floor for protection and easy maintenance. there are many finishes available so check with your chemical supplier which one is best suited.

For regular maintenance, a neutral PH floor cleaner between 5 and 8 should be used. A damp mop in warm water should do the job and never wet mop a linoleum floor...always damp mop.

Whether you are a commercial cleaning, office cleaning, industrial cleaning or house cleaning business, you will come across linoleum floors. If you follow these simple steps, you should have no issues and you will get a great looking floor that is easy to maintain every day.