How It’s Clean is overcoming the challenge of training contract cleaning employees

Apr 15, 2024

Keeping staff up to date with the latest techniques, legislation and best practice

Contract cleaning providers traditionally find employee training a real challenge due to the antisocial hours and shift patterns of their staff. The main reason for this is because cleaning staff can find it hard to make time to attend training sessions organised by their employer, particularly as cleaning is often a second job.


It’s Clean Ltd has developed a novel solution which means their staff can stay up to date with the latest techniques, legislation and best practice without having to find time outside their shift to attend classroom-based training.


Remote training academy


At It’s Clean we respect our employees’ time and understand that they have probably chosen their job because the shifts work around other commitments. That’s why we have developed a comprehensive online training academy for all our operatives.


Our employees learn through short and engaging weekly videos, with a quick multiple choice test at the end of each video. There are 52 training videos in all, covering everything from colour coding, COSHH, health and safety and everything to do with commercial cleaning best practice.

Incentivised learning


We are extremely proud of the fact that 15% of our staff – that’s 26 out of our 180 workforce – have now successfully completed the training academy. When anyone completes the course, they receive a £50 bonus in recognition of their achievement. We have made the videos as engaging as possible so that they are easy to watch and learn from. The bonus is an added incentive and a token of our appreciation.


We anticipate that by the end of 2024, around 70% of our staff will have completed the academy and been awarded their bonus.


Continuous improvement


We believe our approach to training is innovative and makes it easy for our teams to keep their skills and knowledge up to date. We have found that it helps with employee retention and improves customer satisfaction too.


We have invested over £20K in these online training packages and they are key to our philosophy of continuous improvement. We are certain that our positive attitude towards staff development, an innovative approach to everything we do and a mindset of excellence and improvement are behind the fact that we enjoyed growth of over 23% during the last year.


Would you like to work for an innovative cleaning company that invests in its employees? Join our team

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Artificial Intelligence (AI) is changing the way we live and work in all sorts of ways and the commercial cleaning sector is no exception. However, whereas technology can improve safety, efficiency and security, professional contract cleaning is still a people business. So, how far is AI likely to impact commercial cleaning, what improvements might we see and where will human involvement remain an essential part of the job? Robots, smart systems and automation We have already seen a huge amount of innovation with the introduction of smart cleaning technology and devices. Robotic floor cleaning, air quality sensors and smart systems that create alerts when dispensers need refilling are all improvements that have enhanced quality and improved facilities management. At It’s Clean Ltd we have knowledge and experience of all the latest innovations and can incorporate the use of smart systems for customers whose premises would benefit from them. Data and management The data that can be collated through the use of smart systems, like those described above, is another aspect of the progressive innovation we are seeing in the cleaning sector. The ability to analyse how often things need cleaning and refilling leads to greater knowledge for budgeting and will in turn result in wider innovation and opportunities for artificial intelligence. Virtual training In many industries, virtual reality is used to help train engineers and operatives in a simulated setting. Whilst this may become more widely used in commercial cleaning settings, we are proud to already be using technology to enhance the knowledge and expertise of our staff. Our online training programme can be accessed anywhere by staff and keeps them updated on all the latest techniques, products and processes. You can read more about our training programme here . The human touch AI technology will evolve to support cleaner and healthier buildings in situations where it makes sense to spend time and money innovating - where there is a significant positive impact on public health, safety and efficiency, for example. This is why much of the change is coming in the form of smart sensors, data collection and the automation of repetitive and time-consuming tasks. Anyone who has ever engaged a commercial cleaning company will know that the real value comes from having people on site who know the building, understand the needs of those using it and have the ability to adapt quickly to manage the unexpected. At It’s Clean Ltd we take time to survey every building before we embark on a contract. We get to know the business so that we understand the expectations and needs of the customer. Our cleaning teams are fully aware of what is expected of them but they are also adaptable, which is extremely important. Commercial cleaning involves a lot of routine work but it also presents challenge and change. We pride ourselves in adapting, exceeding expectations and solving the many challenges that we face as a team during our day to day work. We also focus on developing strong relationships with our customers, which allows us to review, adapt and evolve so that we are always delivering the very best service possible. No matter how much technology and artificial intelligence change the machinery and processes involved in our industry, commercial cleaning is, and always will be, a people business. Contact us to arrange a site survey. 
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