Companies will sometimes implement clear desk policies for security reasons. Such policies guard against sensitive information being inadvertently left unexposed on an employee’s desk. But even if your company doesn’t deal with highly sensitive information, you might still benefit from a clear desk policy. It would certainly make your cleaners’ lives easier.
Office cleaners are tasked with tidying up after business hours. They empty the trash, vacuum the carpets, clean the break room, and so forth. When it comes to individual workspaces however, their work can be made more difficult by cluttered desks.
One way around the cluttered desk problem is to simply alleviate cleaners from the responsibility of having to tidy up individual offices or cubicles. We think a better solution is to implement a clear desk policy.
The Policy in a Nutshell
A clear desk policy is simple enough to understand. It is a policy that outlines clear expectations regarding what can and cannot be left unattended on the top of an employee’s desk. The idea is to ensure that desks remain clutter-free and that things like documents, company manuals, etc. are not left out at the end of the day.
As a company that specializes in office cleaning services, we can tell you that uncluttered desks are much easier to tidy up. But it gets even better. We know of some companies that take their policy one step further to include a worker’s entire cubicle. Policies that keep cubicles free from excess clutter actually help cleaners do a better job.
Coming Up With a Policy
The hardest part of implementing a clear desk policy is often figuring out policy language. We recommend clearly establishing what constitutes a clean desk and then describing it with a series of bullet points. Be clear, concise, and unambiguous. The policy should also include a set of clear guidelines employees can follow to achieve the clean desk ideal.
After the policy has been developed, it is time to secure management buy-in. Company decision makers should not only support the policy, but they should also be willing to practice it themselves. Doing so sets a good example for the rest of the team.
Communicate the Policy
The final step is to communicate the policy to the entire company. Email is one way to do it. Another option is a written memo. Smaller companies might even gather the entire team together to explain the policy in person. No matter how the policy is communicated, being clear and concise is essential.
It helps to explain to employees why the policy is being implemented. So talk about the cleaning crew and how their lives are made more difficult by cluttered desks and cubicles. Get a discussion going about the benefits of having a clean office to work in. Then explain how each team member can pitch in just by keeping their desk clean and clutter free.
Provide the Necessary Resources
Depending on the scope of your business and the types of items that tend to clutter employee desks, you may have to provide additional resources to implement your policy. For example, your team may need lockable cabinets or drawers for storing sensitive documents. They may need a means to convert paper documents to digital copies.
We have been involved in commercial cleaning services for many years. Our team members can tell stories of desks so cluttered that they boggle the mind. One thing we know at All Pro Cleaning Systems is that cluttered desks make cleaning more difficult. The same is true for your cleaners. Give them a break. Keep those desks clear.
