4 Steps to Training Janitorial Employees Successfully

Training janitorial employees takes time and planning so it's no surprise that cleaning companies who provide thorough training and continuous opportunities for development have better employee retention rates. And when they do it right, their employees experience more fulfillment and satisfaction with their jobs. As a cleaning business owner, proper training and documentation can make or break your business. From the employee's point of view, there is a lot of information to take in at one time and information overload can cause undue stress and fatigue. Not something you want your employees to experience.

Training Janitorial Employees is no Easy Task

Training janitorial employees is and should be a shared responsibility within your business. Meaning, the owners, managers, and supervisors are all obligated to make sure employees receive and understand all training resources that are presented and training goals are set and met. It is also the responsibility of the employee to participate fully in all required training activities and to transfer that learned knowledge on the job.

Having specific job training manuals, such as a written training program, is extremely important. Training materials need to be suited to the tasks the employee will be performing. After all, it doesn't make much sense to train a new janitorial employee on how to strip and wax a floor when they are only going to be performing general office cleaning duties at first.

“There has been and probably will always be a higher than average turnover rate within the cleaning industry. One thing I have learned over the years is that having systematic and comprehensive training programs and sticking to them can help to combat employee turnover."

Training Janitorial Employees in 4 Simple Steps

Here are 4 very simple steps I use during the training process called TELL-SHOW-DO-REVIEW:

STEP 1: TELL

The first step in basic training for janitorial employees is to introduce them to your cleaning systems verbally. Provide them with a written training program and go through it with them. Explain how each task is done from beginning to end. It is extremely important to let them know ‘why' they are doing each part of the job. If they don't understand the repercussions of not doing it your way, they may choose shortcuts or simply do it their way.

Save yourself a lot of time and customer complaints by giving them the ‘why' up front. Printed training manuals are essential for your new employee to perform their job tasks as efficiently and effectively as possible. Remember, there is a lot of information being thrown at them as a new employee, and these types of job aids will help guide them until they are comfortable and confident in their work.

STEP 2: SHOW

Now that you've completed the basic instruction; provide visuals to the employee by ‘showing' them how each job is done. What I mean is, ‘show' them how to perform each task by having them watch you or have them view a training video that demonstrates each task. Again, ‘show' them and then let them know ‘why' they should perform the task in a particular sequence and what happens when the sequence is not followed. This step should also be reinforced by shadowing the supervisor during their first weeks at their designated job locations.

STEP 3:DO

Have the employee perform the tasks as you observe. Don't just expect them to watch you ‘do' it and then be able to duplicate it later on the job. It's like teaching a child to tie their shoes for the first time. You can ‘show' them how until you're blue in the face but without execution and practice, they will probably never learn.

Provide positive reinforcement when they do it correctly and offer constructive feedback when needed. Encourage the employee to ask questions as you proceed through the training process. Usually the more questions an employee asks, the faster they will learn.

Keep in mind that acknowledging an employee goes a long way. As mentioned, let them know what they've done right. You can say, “good job” and they'll know they did something correctly or you can say, “good job – you removed all the stains in the sinks and toilets. Our customer will be very pleased with the job you have done.” With a more detailed acknowledgment, your employees will know exactly what they did right and will continue doing it right.

STEP 4: REVIEW

Set up a timeline with your employee to review their training knowledge. Have them bring their manual for notes. You might want to go over the procedures every day for the first week. Then review the work they have done once or twice per week for the next 3 weeks. By staying on top of the training process, it reinforces the employee's knowledge and you can be sure your cleaning company's standards are being met without hearing a complaint from a customer first.

It's also important to ensure you, management, and supervisors are doing a good job training your janitorial employees. And the best place to get feedback on this is from the trainees themselves. Our Training Instructor Evaluation form is for trainees to use to evaluate their training program and instructor after completing the training process.

Continuous training and ongoing janitorial employee development

Once these four training steps have been completed and the employee has shown that they have grasped the concepts and fully understand the job requirements, it's time to expand upon their training and development. Let them know that you have noticed what a great job they have been doing for the company and that you would like for them to expand their job knowledge in order to become an even greater asset.

Perhaps it's time to train them on hard floor care project work such as burnishing, buffing, and strip and waxing. Employees that are not provided new job challenges and are stuck in the same old dull routine, usually move onto a job that does.

The best investment you can make is in your employees. By following these four janitorial employee training steps and staying consistent when training all employees, you will promote self-esteem; maintain integrity in your company, and have dedicated employees.

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