Commercial Cleaning Blog

I was on-site for an audit when the receptionist pulled me aside.

When organisations such as yours consider psychosocial hazards (things that make workers feel stressed, unsafe, or undervalued), if you discuss them at all, you likely think about them within the context of your own employees—your office staff, your frontline workers, your management teams. As a result, you’ve probably got policies in place, maybe even a dedicated HR team, who is tasked with making sure your people feel supported, respected, and safe at work.

If you’re in food manufacturing, you already know cleaning isn’t just about making things look tidy—it’s about compliance. And compliance isn’t optional. If your cleaning team isn’t getting it right, you’re risking failed audits, contamination, production shutdowns, and even losing major customers.

Let me tell you a story that still makes my blood boil.

Does your current commercial cleaning partner properly train the cleaners who take care of your worksite? You might assume that yes, they do—after all, cleaning seems rather straightforward, doesn't it? You hire a cleaning company, they send their people in, and the job gets done. But what if I told you that, in many cases, those cleaners have had little to no real training? What if the inconsistency, missed details, and frustration you’ve experienced with cleaning services aren’t just about “bad cleaners,” but a fundamental failure in training?

If your organisation has environmental, social, and governance (ESG) goals—whether that’s a full-scale sustainability strategy with detailed reporting or simply a push to improve your overall environmental and social impact—you’re probably tracking every detail. You’re measuring emissions, cutting down on single-use plastics, and putting serious thought into waste management.

Now, if you’re anything like me, you’d be more than a little suspicious reading this article. On the one hand, yes, this is information you need. Although commercial cleaners all have their own ways of pricing their services (us included), you don't want to go into a conversation with a potential commercial cleaner about budget completely blind.

The other day, I emailed a client after we’d finished some periodical work. I wanted to know how it went, so I asked: “What do you think? Were you happy with everything?”

“No contracts required!”