3 Keys to Managing a Successful Cleaning Business

Janitorial business owners don’t enter the industry hoping to fail. Rather, they fully intend to manage a successful cleaning business. They dream of being an independent business owner in charge of their own limitless destiny.

As time wears on, though, they realize the number of moving parts and pieces that they are responsible for. Forward progress becomes slow and painful.

If this resonates with you, you’re not alone.

The janitorial industry has often been presented as having a very low barrier for entry and success. While this pie-in-the-sky promise may come true for some, that’s not the reality for most. Take it from someone who knows – once you’re in the business, it takes hard work and careful intentionality to create a thriving, successful cleaning business.

A Good Business Needs Good People

One of the most important keys to establishing a successful cleaning business is to surround yourself with good, quality, dependable people. You can’t do business alone.

Unfortunately, the commercial cleaning industry is marred by the constant turnover of employees. When employees feel taken for granted, shuffled around with little forewarning, or clueless of expectations as they attempt to work for you, the door to your success will remain firmly closed. If you’re failing to improve employee communication on an ongoing basis, you will find yourself nauseated by the revolving door of employees you’re going through; frustrated by the desperate hustle to find new customers to replace those who have left; and disappointed by your inability to reach the business goals that you were once so optimistic about pursuing.

Often, these problems can be addressed by improving the way you communicate with your staff. Using a streamlined, mobile communication tool (like this one) that allows you to stay in touch with each of your employees is one way of accomplishing this. The JM app provides easy-to-navigate scheduling tools, job assignment procedures, janitorial checklists, and messaging features that allow you to keep your employees close and well-informed… two important efforts for maintaining a full staff of quality cleaners.

No Training, No Gaining

Speaking of quality cleaners… Your employees can’t be expected to know what they don’t know. If you are finding employees constantly failing to meet your expectations, merely snapping at them to, “Do a better job next time,” won’t suffice. That approach will only alienate employees and prove to them that they are not going to be treated as valuable assets to your company. It will show them that they shouldn’t expect you to be invested in providing quality training. They will discover that you aren’t interested in empowering employees to achieve or succeed.

The result? They leave you for a better company. This situation then leaves you in the position of having to make yet another quick hire to fill the void. You’re back in the same position over and over.

Something has to change.

In addition to utilizing a janitorial app to ensure ongoing communication and ease of schedule management, you must have a system for providing adequate training for every cleaner. On every job. Every time. Why?

• Training is a crucial component to empowering your staff to take ownership of their work and of their results.
• Training demonstrates to each cleaner that you are invested in them for the long-term.
• Training equips your cleaners to support your efforts in creating a successful cleaning business with consistently satisfied customers.
• Training uncovers questions that may pop up while on-the-job and helps clear these queries up before they become a hindrance to them doing their job well.

To keep moving towards establishing a successful cleaning business, you need to know which of your employees are able to do a quality job for your customers. The Janitorial Manager cleaning app allows you to keep track of which cleaners are adequately trained to accept assignments for specific tasks and tag work. To quickly review the quality of work that each employee is producing, create easily-customizable reports of inspection results. Use this information to identify areas where additional training is needed… and then be ready to provide it.

To Build a Successful Cleaning Business, You Must Invest in Yourself

Communication and training… Two key components that are essential to supporting your desire to build a successful cleaning business. However, these can also be two of the most difficult ongoing efforts to maintain long-term without some help.

The third key for building a successful cleaning business, is investing in getting yourself the support you need. Whether it’s reading up on best practices in the commercial cleaning industry or leveraging an affordable commercial cleaning software that will work in your favor! Connect with the pros at Janitorial Manager today for a FREE demo of their cleaning management software. These minutes invested in your success can make all the difference!