A clean and sanitary office or business facility is necessary for success. Your customers expect nothing less and your employees will thank you for it! But, how does a business choose the best commercial cleaning company?
What Is a Commercial Cleaning Company?
First, let’s define what a commercial cleaning company is. A commercial cleaning company is a business-to-business janitorial vendor. They provide custom cleaning programs for businesses in most industries and settings, rather than residential cleaners. They generally perform cleaning services after-hours to avoid interruption to business operations. However, many settings require daytime cleaning as well, such as the common areas of high traffic buildings.
Standard cleaning tasks can include trash and recycling removal, dusting, bathroom cleaning, kitchenette cleaning, vacuuming, mopping, and similar tasks. More advanced services can include commercial carpet cleaning, machine floor cleaning, and window cleaning services.
A full-service commercial cleaning vendor can build custom cleaning programs for end-to-end facility requirements. This turn-key capability can greatly reduce the internal load and overhead of business and facility managers and their staff. So, how can you choose a trusted business cleaning vendor?
1. Reputation and Experience
Trust is necessary when hiring a business facility cleaner. Why? Cleaning company employees will be in your facility, often after hours, and after you and your employees have gone home for the day. Thus, your cleaning company is responsible for working diligently and in a professional manner with minimal direct supervision.
How can you gauge a cleaning company’s trustworthiness? These vetting baselines can help:
- Years Of Experience: Choose a company that’s well-established in your service area and with years of experience.
- Industries Served: Investigate the types of industries, buildings, and settings the cleaning has experience servicing.
- References: The most reputable cleaning companies will be happy to share references!
2. Employee Training and Screening
The best commercial property cleaners view hiring as a critical responsibility. They hire only the most qualified and trustworthy employees, and they provide their staff with formal and consistent training to ensure quality and safety.
As you vet cleaning providers, ask about their employee hiring and training procedures. These guidelines can help:
- Employee Screening: Does the cleaning company perform background checks? Are work references checked? Are state and federal hiring laws strictly followed? What is the interview process?
- Employee Training: Don’t hesitate to ask for specific details on staff training. Is safety training a priority? Are written procedures in place? Who performs the training? Is re-training a formal process?
3. Full-Service Capability?
As mentioned, a full-service cleaning company has the capability to provide turn-key cleaning solutions. Choosing a cleaning company with full-service capability can reduce the number of vendors you must manage.
For example, suppose you’re the Facilities Manager for a sizeable office building with multiple suites and tenants. A full-service commercial cleaning company might propose and deliver this type of program:
- 5X Week Evening Janitorial Service
- Monthly HVAC Vent Cleaning Service
- Quartley Buffing of all wax floor surfaces
- Quarterly machine scrubbing of all lobbies and entrance floors
- Semi-Annual Window Cleaning Service
- Annual Carpet Cleaning Service
- Annual strip & wax of all wax floor surfaces
4. Bonded and Insured?
Never contract a commercial cleaning company without ensuring appropriate insurance policies are in place! The easiest way to do this is to request a COI (Certificate of Insurance) from the cleaning vendor. This will formally validate the types and levels of insurance(s) held.
Reputable commercial cleaning companies should always maintain a fully insured status. General liability, umbrella liability, workers compensation, commercial auto, theft and bonding insurances are typically in place. Finally, requesting the COI annually is never a bad idea!
Foreman Pro Cleaning – Your Trusted Commercial Cleaning Company!
Foreman Pro Cleaning is a full-service janitorial and commercial cleaning vendor. We deliver services in many industries and settings such as office buildings, healthcare facilities, daycare centers, data centers, and much more. Contact us today. We have offices strategically located in Annapolis, Yorktown, and Washington DC. Reach out to us and we’ll get started on your turn-key cleaning program!