letters and views Editor’s Note: As a service provider, it is natural to have a desire to do whatever is necessary to keep your clients happy. However, there comes a point when the extra services you provide out of goodwill hinder the services you are paid to perform. The question soon becomes: Do you continue to perform extra services simply to satisfy your customers, or do you stop the add-ons because they are not part of your service agreement? Recently, an insightfully, interesting post on the cmmonline.com Bulletin Board sparked a discussion of this potential dilemma. the coffee for the next morning, etc. Every time we find it going on, we stop it for exactly the reason you stated. Once it becomes part of the routine, you canʼt stop without getting a ton of com-plaints and issues. Posted By: Carlos Morales 5/29/2009 So, over the years, some of our staff have done dishes and emptied coffee grounds from coffee makers as a courtesy to office tenants, even though itʼs not in their scope of work. I appreciate the fact that they go beyond the call of duty. The thing is, when that janitor leaves for whatever reason and a replacement is sent to the location that does not normally do dishes, we get complaints that staff is not doing their job. I then have the task of having to explain to the tenant why it is that their coffee mug was not washed. Some donʼt get it, some understand, but mostly all frown upon my explanation. Has anyone experienced a similar situa-tion, and how have you handled it? Joseph Russell 5/30/2009 There are always questions as to what you want to accept as part of “your job.” These are some areas: We keep bottled water dispensers filled and clean We do empty coffee [grinds] from the machine — itʼs trash We do not wash out coffee mugs We do not do dishes, although in years gone by, we did wash out ash-trays. We donʼt think we should have to clean vending machines, because we donʼt get a dime from the vending company. That should be done when the vending company stocks the machine. But, some-times we do it anyway. What you take on regarding gratis jobs is up to you, there are a thousand little things that need doing, and really, I look at it like this: Do they consistently pay me on time; are they a reasonable customer or a royal pain in the butt? You know when a customer appreciates your effort. Keep in mind that if you have a cus-tomer whose policy is to put the job out for bid periodically, all your extras are just dust in the wind. If we donʼt, itʼs the first thing dumped in the bag in the morning. We will empty hole punch machines for the employees that havenʼt figured out how to dump the thing without spilling it all over the floor. We do it to save time and ourselves a little work. If it werenʼt for that, we wouldnʼt do it. Iʼve had building occupants tell me that the staff can clean out their own cups. They are adults. Itʼs the least they can do. I usually want to say, “Wanna bet?” I could name about 10 more things they could do. Ed Samson 6/1/2009 Weʼve had the problem in the past. I donʼt allow our employees to wash dishes for the reasons you stated. Besides, when you start, then everyone leaves their dishes and pretty soon you have a whole sink full of dishes with food stuck on them. The only exception is when the customer requests it up front and we have it built into the cost. Responses: Ken Galo 5/29/2009 I have had cleaners who went around and collected cups from cubicles, offices and conference rooms, and then washed them. I have also had them water plants, set up Tim Herr 5/30/2009 I empty the coffee filter and coffee [grinds] sometimes so we donʼt always have to change trash bags. What’s in the bag? Is your staff over-exceeding your service agreement plan? Chris Wheeler 6/5/2009 Sure, this happens all the time. It goes under the heading, “Gray area cleaning tasks,” in the big data-base-in-the-sky. As to how to handle it, Iʼve simply pointed out that washing dishes is not a part of the service, and wasnʼt that employee just wonderful? Now, if you wish to make that a part of the contract, we can discuss it. Over the years, Iʼve 6 CM/Cleaning & Maintenance Management ® • July 2009
CMM – Archives Jul 2009: 6
