Every company manager has to answer the question at some point: “should our company hire an employee or cleaning crew for our facility?” As tempting as it might be to answer with “well, we’ve always done it this way,” the question should be analyzed and reviewed on a regular basis to determine which cleaning solution is right for the future.
Cost is obviously an important factor in your analysis, and determining cost can be started with a list. Make a list of all the cleaning tasks your company needs, both interior and exterior. Make sure you include any tasks that your maintenance crew is currently responsible for, if you want to allocate their time to other jobs (i.e. preventative machine maintenance, repairs, etc.)
Discuss the full cost of a cleaning employee (or employees) with your human resources department, including the cost of benefits. Make sure you consider the ideal shift for the employee or when cleaning work can be completed without impacting operations. For a cost comparison, contact cleaning companies with your list of cleaning tasks and the ideal time for completion, so you can get an accurate quote for comparison.
As you contact cleaning companies, be open to discussing the possibility of a cleaning service that can fulfill other needs your company may have as well. Many commercial cleaning services offer business maintenance services, such as parking lot maintenance or building exterior clean up. These options can be a viable option during busy times or when an employee retires.
Another important factor in your decision is whether your company is going to be supplying the cleaning supplies, or would rather rely on a cleaning service (some cleaning services also refill your restroom supplies as well). If using green products is a priority for your business, make sure you discuss this need with potential cleaning services in your initial conversation to get an accurate quote. If your company is supplying cleaning supplies, make sure you assign the task to a manager or employee that can take on the responsibility.
You should find the answer to your in-house versus outsourcing cleaning question in the results of your research. Though numbers should play an important part in your decision, make sure you include the availability of personnel and ideal time for the work in your final decision.
