Increase Employee Productivity With A Clean Workplace

It is a trend these days for companies to outsource the maintenance of office premises.  When doing so, companies should ensure that they hire credible contractors or cleaners that have high standards of work ethics; cleaners who will do their work even without somebody watching over them. 

Cleaners generally clean the visible areas like lobbies, reception areas, stairs and rest rooms.  But there are other areas in the office that are not thoroughly cleaned by your regular cleaners unless told by the office manager to do so. 

• Countertops are cleaned but below the counters are not regularly wiped.
• Indoor plants are watered daily, but leaves are not wiped where sometimes dust accumulates.
• Kitchens usually contain the eating utensils which most employees use. However, floors of kitchen/canteen are not thoroughly cleaned. For example, floor under the sink is not disinfected as those in the exposed areas.  This is most probably because there are packed boxes of unused equipment, supplies and other items that could not be accommodated in work stations stacked beneath the sink.   
• Filing cabinets and modular file holders are among the frequently used fixtures in the office. However, cabinet tops are often neglected as well as the areas at the side and back. This is because you have to really move the cabinet, which is most likely heavy, in order to clean the areas around it.  But this is really necessary at least on a quarterly basis if you want to achieve a 360 degrees clean work space.  

A clean workplace is one that encourages productivity and enhances employee performance.  Although indirectly, an office that is conducive to working contributes to the achievement of the overall corporate goals. The benefits of a clean and well maintained workplace are numerous, as well as the disadvantages as we all know. However, we would like to enumerate some of them anyway.

1. The pristine state of the office reflects the company that owns it.  Its state of disarray reflects a lax management.
2. Structures, furniture and equipment that are not regularly cleaned easily depreciate.
3. Employees don’t stay in their workplace and do their stuff where they should be.  Maybe it’s too hot in his or her place because the air conditioning system does not work.  With this, the employee’s productivity is diminished.
4. Another employee is always absent due to allergic rhinitis.  It might be that her work area is already dusty especially among the files area.  A dirty office deters the company for taking advantage of the employee’s capacity to the maximum because of frequent absences due to a dirty work place.
5. Clients, business partners and prospects are drawn to a well-kept office, while a messy one repels business prospects.