The cleaning industry is no stranger to the challenges of labour shortages and employee turnover, and recruitment remains a top priority for many commercial cleaning companies. As the landscape continues to change, attracting and recruiting quality cleaners is one way you can stand out from your competition. Not only that but hiring and re-training, along with work stoppage caused by missing employees can cost your business significant time and money.
Create a recruitment strategy to simplify your efforts, attract great candidates, and hire the best talent.
Branding
Three-quarters of candidates are now researching companies before they apply, looking for employers that appeal to them and whose values match theirs. If you are posting about positions or adding listings to job boards, make sure your branding is clear, so people know what they are getting. More than just emphasizing pay and benefits, approach your recruitment strategy with the intent to stand out from the crowd and appeal to a mass number of applicants.
Try and get your brand across on by promoting perks, adding current employee testimonials, and speaking about your mission and work ethic to attract cleaners that will add value to your team.
Technology
If you are not using technology tools to streamline your practices and get real-time data, you are missing an opportunity. Today’s innovation makes it easier to stay on top of positions to fill, turnover rates, advertising initiatives and results, performance, and more. There is even AI that can help you sift through applications, picking out the most relevant candidates and sorting them into a priority list.
Investing in these types of technology means that you can use your time to train and manage your people, so they are happy and performing at their best.
Flexibility
The job market has changed, and many candidates are looking for better balance and a more flexible schedule. It is estimated that 32 per cent of workers are part-time or on contract, and this number is expected to increase to about 60 per cent by 2027. While many employees prefer a full-time, steady arrangement, consider offering flexibility as an option to make your company more appealing to applicants.
Offering flexibility may allow you to attract and retain quality candidates who would otherwise not be able or interested in working for your company.
RELATED: Mastering your cleaning schedules
Retention
Recruitment is key to attracting those excellent candidates, but it doesn’t mean much if you can’t keep them. Employee retention needs to be part of your recruitment strategy, so think about training and development, getting feedback from your current employees, and providing a warm and welcoming environment where employees want to stay. The idea is to develop loyalty and long-term relationships with your employees to keep those great cleaners and save the time and money it takes to rehire and retrain.
