Commercial cleaning has many moving parts and creating standard operating procedures (SOPs) can streamline the steps, improve communication, and help cleaners do their jobs better. It’s worth the time it takes to put a professional system in place for your team.

Why are SOPs important for cleaners?

If there are multiple cleaning teams or multiple locations for the same customer, SOPs can ensure that the same service is being provided across the board. This may well give employees peace of mind, but it will also be a comfort to customers expecting the same process each time and serve as a reference if billing issues arise. When step-by-step instructions are available, it makes it easy to remain consistent with cleaning services, maintain communication, and build customer relationships.

With today’s employee turnover, SOPs can cut down on your training time for new staff. Once there are systems in place for the team to refer to, they will not need as much in-person training. It also means that you may be able to better cover employee absenteeism once the procedures exist as a reference.

How to create an SOP

Creating an SOP is a fairly straightforward endeavour, but here is a simple five-step process you can use to create your own SOP:

1. Write down what you hope to accomplish with this SOP. Be specific with your goal so you can tailor the procedure to accomplish that goal.
2. Document the procedure step by step, clearly and concisely, so that anyone in the company can follow along. Rather than trying to remember the steps, it’s a good idea to document each step as you’re actually going through the process, to make sure nothing gets missed.
3. Before distributing the SOP to staff, test it out by following the instructions to make sure it’s correct and set up the way that works best for you.
4. Ask a team member to test out your instructions to make sure that they are clear and easily understood and executed.
5. Once you’ve adjusted the process, create the final version and distribute it to your team.

Documenting and planning out your procedures saves you time, increases efficiency, and provides your customers with the exact steps they can expect to see when they engage your services. It’s worth the time to “systematize your business.”