The future of the cleaning industry, a regular topic

THERE ARE many areas that are talked about regarding the future. Technology, which has many strands in its own right, data collection for refilling, cleaning schedules, robotics – whether that be cobotics or fully automated – the internet of things, and then there are the other topics, sustainability, environmental impact (ESG), living wage, slavery, and of course getting government recognition for the guardians of public health.  The future has so many strands to it where do you start?

I must ask how many of these considerations are thought about by the cleaning operatives?  How many of these subjects are even discussed with cleaning operatives?  How many cleaning operatives are allowed to have a voice in these considerations?

I am a firm believer that if you want change to happen then it needs everyone in a business to buy into the changes, or at least a majority.  Is there any point in putting in a complete change when everybody is against it?  In my experience, this type of change without buy-in causes poor morale and tends to increase staff turnover.  This means that the experience of your business, one thing that is hard to replicate, is lost, it means that consistency with your customer base is also lost, and this could lead to loss of customers. 

But in my experience, the decision on change, and believe me I am not against change, is usually done and decided by managers and the changes are just passed around the rest of the business as it is happening.  

The one thing I have learnt over time is to talk about the upcoming possible changes, get input on what people think, and explain why you think they will be better for the future. That involvement will assist in the smoother implementation of any changes more than any other preparation you can do. 

I took over my role as Group MD just over a year ago and even a few years prior to that there have been regular changes at BICSc. In the last year the management team have been more open about upcoming bits and pieces, has encouraged more input in the ways we do things, and asked for everyone’s ideas and suggestions. This is proving to be more successful than ever. The team are even more engaged, and the teamwork ethos is so much higher than it has ever been, this is something that, as an MD, I am so delighted to see. 

Believe me, I know this may not work everywhere in the way it is done at BICSc and there are many people who react badly to change and do everything to resist change.  As a company that trains, resistance to change is there daily.  “I have been doing this for years, why do I need to be trained?”, “That wouldn’t work for me”, “We can’t do that”, “It takes too long” are all phrases our trainers hear are too frequently, and the one thing they all enjoy is being able to turn these arguments around at some point during a training session.  Some call it the lightbulb moment. 

I suppose what I am trying to say is every business will be different in how they can address this, but I would like to say one thing: remember, in a business it takes every member of staff to be successful, so inclusion, communication and explanation are key. Don’t forget without your staff engagement at every level, your profit will be affected and the future will become uncertain.

Neil Spencer-Cook is group managing director at BICSc.

For more information visit www.bics.org.uk