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This month's Clean Team Pro Newsletter is focused on one of the most important aspects of running your cleaning company: Training your cleaners. For many owners, it can be difficult to distill all of your day-to-day procedures and practices into one succinct training experience.
There's no doubt that training is a real business expense. It costs time -- and we all know that time is money. But no matter what the investment costs, the loss from not properly training your employees is even greater. To help you make the most of your employee training, we have two articles for you this month: The 4 Essential Elements of Great Training (which is a good read whether you're just starting out or you need a fresh start) and The (Not So Hidden) Costs of Poor Training (if nothing else, this should scare you into being a good trainer!)
As always, we'd love to hear what you think. What training practices are particularly effective for your company? Tell us about them, so we can share them with the rest of our readers. Please send us your emails at jeff@thecleanteam.com.
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The 4  Essentials Elements of Great Training
The Best Training Practices for the Best Employees
Photo Credit: Stock Exchange
Do you have an employee that always seems to be lagging behind? You've told him how to clean the kitchen several times, but he just doesn't seem to get it? Before handing him his two-week notice, you might want to take a closer look at your training methods.
While poor performance may be a sign that a particular employee isn't a good fit for you team, it's more likely that she just doesn't know what is expected of her. By revamping your training strategies, you might be able to avoid many -- if not all -- of these employee slow-starts. Here's a look at the four essential elements of a sure-fire training program:
1) Start With A Syllabus
You cannot -- scratch that: You should not -- train any new employee without a syllabus. A syllabus will bring order to your training process. It will ensure that every time you train a new employee, you cover all your bases -- regardless of what else may be going on in your business (or your life).
Your syllabus should cover what you teach -- and the order you teach it in, including:
New Hire Orientation
Make sure that all the necessary paper work is filled out, including I-9, W-2, health insurance (if you're offering that as a benefit) and auto insurance (if your cleaner's personal car will be used for work.)
Company Policies
If you own a larger company, your policies should be written down; smaller companies can suffice with a verbal run-down. Be sure to cover paydays, work hours, breaks, holiday and sick leave, dress code, grounds for dismissal, and client issues like scheduling, theft and breakage.
Safety
Your company should have a detailed, written safety program that covers (at a minimum) the proper use, handling and storage of chemicals; on-the-job safety awareness; and first-aid kits.
On-Site Training
Break this down by topic and/or technique. Set measurable goals for yourself and your trainees so that everyone knows what is expected of them.
2) Utilize Multiple Learning Methodologies
All adults learn best according to one of three methodologies: Visual, auditory or kinesthetic. Make sure that your training program targets each of these different types of learners by using the following tips:
Visual learners learn best from watching. Videos, demonstrations and handouts work well for visual learners. So does note taking -- for a visual learner, it's not enough to just listen to a lecture about cleaning techniques. Writing the information down allows them to interact with it visually, too.
Auditory learners learn best from lectures or informal discussions. You might consider adding an audio cassette tape to your training repetoir. Instead of books on tape, it's training on tape -- and auditory learners will love hearing what they're supposed to do, as they do it.
Kinesthetic learners learn best from physically doing something. They need to be in the field, practicing your techniques (and being corrected immediately) as soon as possible for the best results.
3) Make a Manual.
Whether you're a three-person operation or a thirty-person one, manuals are your friend -- and your employee's friend. When a new cleaner forgets a detail, she can refer to her manual rather than asking you (which might save valuable time since you might not always be readily available.)
A manual doesn't replace in-person training or on-the-job experience, but it does make clear your expectations, standards and practices. Aside from an easy-to-read section on your company's policies and practices, here are some other things you might want to include in your employee manual:
The Speed Cleaning Book
This Clean Team book outlines in easy-to-understand terms the procedures and products for cleaning an entire house. (The book is great for visual learners.)
The Speed Cleaning Video
The video covers the same material as the book, but it also includes demonstrations of each technique. (The video is great for both visual and auditory learners.)
The Employee Workbook
Another Clean Team product, the workbook is designed to be used in tandem with the Speed Cleaning book and video. It allows trainees to test their knowledge of each subject matter, room by room. (The workbook is great for visual, auditory and experiential learners.)
4) Practice, practice, practice.
Or, as Aristotle once said, "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act, but a habit."
Get out into the field with your trainees and make sure they have ample opportunity to execute, mess up, be corrected, and eventually perfect their techniques.
Remember those kinesthetic learners? All the talking and reading in the world can't replace a few hours of supervised experience. And even with visual and auditory learners, you need to be sure they really "get it" before you leave them to it.
Start by demonstrating the techniques you want your cleaners to use. Then ask them to take over. Watch and make corrections. Next, leave your cleaner to work on his own for a few minutes. Check back in frequently. Remember: Learning to clean to your company's standards will take some time. Look for progress rather than perfection during the training process.
The first few days with a new cleaner are bound to have their share of bumps and bruises. But if after a month, you see that your new cleaner is still not making the grade, it's time to reevaluate. While some employees just may not be a good fit, the problem more often is with their training. By implementing these four essential elements, your training program will be top-notch -- and so will your cleaning team.
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The (Not So) Hidden Costs of Poor Training
Photo Credit: Stockxpert
You've just hired a new cleaner and you're anxious to get him or her out to field. Maybe an old employee has left, or maybe your team is rapidly expanding (Congratulations!). In either case, don't let your anxiousness come in the way of a solid training process.
A well-run training and orientation can make or break your success with your new employee. Maybe you think: What's the big deal? She'll figure out how to do most of it on the job anyway.
Some of it? Yes. Most of it? Probably not. Not to mention that if it doesn't work out with your new cleaner, you'll be right back to square one: Investing time and money once again to find another cleaner.
Still not convinced that good training is critical? Let's look at just how much it costs to start from scratch:
According to the Department of Labor, the average cost of replacing an employee ranges from $17,000 - $31,000. This figure includes recruiting, interviewing, hiring and training. According to some training specialists, even entry-level employees (a category that applies to most of your cleaners) cost a minimum of $2,000 to replace.
How long does it take your company to make $2,000? How many houses must you clean? If you're pulling in $100,000 a year in profit, that's 40 hours -- a full work-week wasted on poor training--for just one replacement worker.
Even if those figures are off, and it only costs half that ($1,000) to replace an employee, replacing a cleaner will cost you 20 hours (if your net profits are $100K/year). Which means that anyway you slice it, good training techniques are an investment you can't afford not to make.
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Thanks for reading us this month! Come visit us on the web at www.thecleanteampro.com.
Sincerely,
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Jeff Campbell
The Clean Team Catalog |
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