Keeping your office space clean may seem like a never-ending task, but it’s crucial to your business’s reputation and work environment. If you’re like many business owners, you may hire janitorial staff to keep your business tidy rather than outsourcing your cleaning to a third-party company. Maintaining your own staff of in-house cleaners may seem more convenient, but it comes with significant downsides that you may not have even considered.
If you’re deciding between in-house vs. outsourced office clean-up, read ahead to understand the risks and downsides of in-house cleaning.
In-House vs. Outsourced Office Cleaning
When it comes to cleaning your office building, you have two main options:
- In-house: Cleaning staff who only work for your company and are on your payroll
- Outsourced: Third-party companies that send cleaners to your business to provide janitorial services
With in-house cleaning, you are responsible for overseeing the cleaning staff who join your company, teaching them how to perform the necessary cleaning tasks, and checking their work to ensure that it meets your standards.
But with outsourced cleaning, a third-party cleaning company takes care of the entire cleaning process without your intervention or oversight. An outsourced cleaning company may consist of a small two- or three-person cleaning staff, cleaning franchisees from a larger parent company, or anything in between.
The Downsides of In-House, Employee-Managed Office Clean-Up
Hiring in-house cleaners may initially seem like the best option for your office. It’s what other business owners often do, and it allows you to ensure that cleaners dedicate the necessary time and effort to keeping your office clean and tidy.
But you may not have stopped to consider the downsides of having an internal cleaning staff. This practice comes with some risks and disadvantages compared to outsourcing your cleaning to a third-party professional company.
Significant Time Investment
Employing in-house cleaners requires a significant amount of time on your part. Your cleaners are members of your staff, just like your administrative team, accountants, salespeople, and HR professionals. You need to dedicate time and energy to onboarding them and overseeing their performance.
Finding cleaners to add to your company can also take time. You need to post the employment listing, review applications, interview candidates, and send employment contracts. Not to mention that turnover is generally high in janitorial services, so may need to repeat the process more often than you would for other positions in your office.
In any business, time is money. The more time you have to spend overseeing cleaning staff, the less time you can dedicate to other, and likely more pressing, aspects of running a business.
Economic Investment
When you hire in-house cleaners, you must add them to your payroll. Depending on how you structure their positions, you may need to provide health insurance, retirement plans, paid time off, and other employee incentives that can quickly rack up your costs.
If you choose not to offer these incentives and instead hire cleaners on a part-time or hourly schedule, you risk turnover being even higher. Cleaners may not feel any sense of commitment to your company, and it may not take long before they find a position that does offer benefits.
Cost of Supplies and Equipment
Having an in-house cleaning staff means you must also have all of the necessary cleaning supplies and equipment in-house. Commercial cleaning supplies can quickly become expensive, as you’ll need all of the following items on hand at a minimum:
- Liquid cleaners.
- Paper towels or reusable cloths.
- Scrub brushes.
- Vacuum cleaners.
- Mops.
- Brooms and dust pans.
- Buckets.
- Gloves.
Industrial vacuum cleaners cost hundreds or even thousands of dollars, depending on the model, and you’ll likely want to keep at least two on hand. Depending on the size of your office space, you may need other heavy-duty cleaning equipment like steam cleaners, power washers, and upholstery cleaners, and all of these require an upfront investment.
But cleaning supplies aren’t just upfront expenses; they require replacement and upkeep, taking away from your company’s bottom line.
Risk of Inadequate Cleaning
Ultimately, when you work with in-house cleaners, it’s up to you to ensure that they’re cleaning to your standards. But with the dozens of other tasks on your plate each day, you may not have the time or energy to oversee your cleaning staff with the necessary level of intensity and scrutiny. Over time, errors can slip through the cracks, creating a mediocre standard of cleaning that wastes your time and resources.
Reliable office clean-up is crucial to your company’s reputation, work environment, compliance, and safety. But with in-house cleaners, there’s no guarantee that your workers will perform to the standards necessary to optimize all of these necessities.
You may end up hiring inexperienced cleaners who cut corners or don’t care about the quality of their work.
Why Outsource Office Clean-Up to Professionals?
More and more businesses have begun outsourcing their cleaning tasks to professional third-party companies, nixing in-house cleaning positions altogether.
At first glance, you may assume that outsourced cleaning is a luxury your business can’t afford. But in reality, outsourced cleaning staff may be more affordable than in-house cleaners.
Plus, outsourcing your office clean-up to a professional cleaning company poses numerous advantages for your company.
Pass Off the Responsibility
Passing your office clean-up to outsourced professionals allows you to completely forgo the responsibility of keeping your office clean. You won’t need to oversee these cleaners, as they will have their own independently operated business and cleaning standards that ensure top-quality, on-time cleaning services.
By removing the responsibility of overseeing cleaning staff, you can focus more of your time and energy on other aspects of running your business. You’ll also always have a clean, sanitary, clutter-free work area, which can help boost productivity in your office.
Reduce Overhead Costs
When you outsource your cleaning to a professional company, it will likely charge a flat rate depending on the cleaning schedule you choose. You won’t need to cover any extraneous costs involved in in-house cleaning, like:
- Employee incentives
- Paid time off
- Cleaning supplies
- Onboarding
The best outsourced cleaners bring all of the necessary cleaning supplies and equipment with them. You don’t have to spend money restocking your cleaning supplies or repairing faulty vacuum cleaners.
You also don’t need to worry about turnover, as it becomes the cleaning company’s problem — not yours. The company will be responsible for keeping its staff full, and issues like turnover and onboarding won’t affect your office clean-up.
Ensure High Standards of Cleanliness
Outsourced cleaning staff report back to their franchise owners, who hold them to extremely high standards of performance and attention to detail. You won’t need to micromanage these third-party cleaning staff to ensure that they are thoroughly cleaning and disinfecting the workspace. You can trust the company to hold its employees to the same standards of cleanliness that you would.
Third-party cleaning companies provide rigorous onboarding and instruction to their staff, teaching them the best ways to clean specific fixtures and materials. They have a level of expertise that you may not be able to instill in an in-house cleaning staff.
Enjoy Flexible, Customized Cleaning Schedules
When you work with third-party cleaners, you can schedule the specific services you need to keep your office clean without having to worry about providing enough work to in-house cleaning staff.
For example, maybe you have a small office space without many common areas, and you only need a once-a-week deep clean to keep it tidy and sanitary. Hiring in-house cleaners won’t make sense for such a small task.
Your outsourced cleaning company will accommodate your office’s needs, whether you need daily, weekly, or as-needed cleaning services. The best cleaning companies will start by performing a walkthrough of your office space and assessing your cleaning needs. Then, they will suggest a few different schedules based on your desired level of services and budget.
Benefit From Top-Tier Office Clean-Up With JAN-PRO Cleaning & Disinfecting
Outsourcing your office clean-up to professionals can save you time, money, and energy while ensuring exceptional cleaning services. When you work with a certified franchise owner from JAN-PRO Cleaning & Disinfecting in Atlanta, you enjoy a hassle-free, reliable cleaning experience.
Certified franchisees in your area offer flexible cleaning schedules and ensure the highest levels of quality and precision in their cleaning services. Working with a local franchisee allows you to enjoy peace of mind knowing that your office will always be tidy, sanitary, and clutter-free.
Are you interested in hiring a commercial cleaning company? Contact JAN-PRO Cleaning & Disinfecting in Altanta today by filling out this online form. We’ll help you locate a certified franchisee in your area and set you up with a free estimate for office cleaning services.