When It’s Time to Rethink Your Office Cleaning Company

You can tell a lot about a business from its reception area.

The state of your workplace tells you whether your cleaning service is keeping up, highlighting if your cleaning service is meeting your business’s demands.

Perhaps the bins are regularly overflowing. The kitchen needs attention before anyone has even made their first coffee. Dust is starting to gather in the places that are easy to miss. Or you’re finding yourself checking whether the cleaners have been in because the office doesn’t feel any different afterwards.

These things might seem minor individually. But when they become the norm, it’s worth asking a simple question:

Is your office cleaning company still delivering the standard you need?

A cleaning contract shouldn’t mean accepting the same problems

It’s easy to stay with a cleaning company simply because they have always been there.

You know the cleaners and the invoices arrive on time. Changing provider feels like another job you don’t have time for.

But your business may have changed since you first appointed your cleaning company.

Perhaps you’ve grown, moved premises, introduced hybrid working, changed your opening hours or started welcoming more clients and visitors. Your cleaning requirements may be very different from what they were a few years ago.

Your cleaning service should evolve with you.

If it hasn’t, it may be time to take a fresh look at what you’re getting for your investment.

So, what are the warning signs?

One of the biggest is having to manage the cleaning company yourself.

You shouldn’t have to chase missed tasks, repeatedly point out the same problems or spend your time working out whether someone has attended. A good cleaning service should remove a responsibility from your list, not add to it.

Another warning sign is inconsistency.

Perhaps the office looks great one week and noticeably less cared for the next. Different cleaners may have different standards, or the quality may depend on who happens to be working that day. Consistency is particularly important in an office environment because your employees and visitors experience the workplace every day.

You might also notice that certain areas are being overlooked. High-touch surfaces, communal kitchens, washrooms and less visible areas can all suffer when cleaning is rushed or poorly supervised.

And then there’s communication.

When something isn’t right, can you speak to someone who will listen and do something about it? Or are you repeatedly raising the same issue without seeing a meaningful improvement?

Good communication sis part of the service, not a bonus on top.

Your cleaning company should understand your workplace

There isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach to office cleaning.

A small professional office with 15 employees will have very different requirements from a busy multi-floor workplace with hundreds of people coming and going every day.

The right cleaning company will take the time to understand how your workplace operates. That means looking at how often different areas are used, where the busiest areas are, when cleaning can be carried out with minimal disruption and what matters most to your team.

It also means being prepared to review the service when your needs change.

At Wixted Cleaning, we believe the conversation shouldn’t end once the contract is signed. Regular communication and reviews help ensure the cleaning service continues to work for the people who use the building.

Is your current service saving you time?

This is perhaps the simplest test.

Think about how much time you or your team spend dealing with cleaning-related issues.

Are you:

• chasing cleaners or supervisors?
• reporting the same problems repeatedly?
• checking whether tasks have been completed?
• dealing with complaints from employees?
• worrying about what visitors will see?
• arranging additional cleaning because the regular service isn’t enough?

If the answer is yes to several of these, your cleaning company may be costing you more than the monthly invoice suggests.

A reliable cleaning service should give you one less thing to worry about.

Sometimes, the right answer isn’t to switch

It’s worth saying that changing cleaning company isn’t always the answer.

Sometimes a frank conversation with your existing provider can resolve the problem. Your requirements may have changed, expectations may not have been communicated clearly, or the service simply needs reviewing.

But if you’ve already raised concerns and nothing changes, there’s a point where continuing with the same arrangement stops making sense.

That’s when it’s worth finding out what else is available.

Looking for a better approach to office cleaning?

If you’re considering changing your office cleaning provider, we’d be happy to have an informal conversation about what you need.

At Wixted Cleaning, we provide professional commercial cleaning services designed around the needs of each workplace. We take the time to understand your requirements and agree clear standards, so you know what to expect from your cleaning service.

You don’t have to wait until your current contract ends to start looking at your options.

If your cleaning company is creating more work for you than it takes away, it might be time for a change.

Talk to us at Wixted Cleaning about your requirements and let’s see how we can help.