let’s talk shop Power W What does knowledge and the power it wields mean for today’s cleaners, particularly those at the managerial and supervisory level? There is a shift taking place in the industry; increasingly, building operators see clean facilities as an investment that both attracts and protects occupants and customers. Cleaning has gone from mopping and dusting to staying up-to-date on new meth-ods and technologies while using safer and greener products. At the same time, budget cuts have left us with less money to work with, and we’re often required to justify our operations and show how we’ve made them more efficient and cost-effective. This not only requires large amounts of information, but also the ability to pull that Knowledge Is By: Kevin Keeler Without knowledge, we place control in others’ hands and lose our power to influence situational outcomes. information together and create clear and concise reports on short notice. Dropping Knowledge Take the following theoretical situation of Jake, cleaning operations director for a school district, as an example of power through knowledge. Jake worked in the district for almost 25 Possessing piecemeal information that is unorganized or inaccurate will leave you in the dark regarding the specifics of your cleaning operation. 44 CM/Cleaning & Maintenance Management ® • March 2013
CMM – Archives Mar 2013: 44
