Why is Office Tidiness So Important?
According to the Princeton Neuroscience Institute, working in a tidy environment improves mental focus and yields better results overall. This is because the brain can only process a certain amount of information at once, and when there are too many visual stimuli within someone’s field of vision, their focus begins to drift, leading to distraction. This is why it is so important to keep a clean and organized workspace.
This task cannot be left to the janitorial staff alone, as you have a team within the office upwards of eight hours a day, and things can get messy quickly. Plus, it is simply polite and expected that employees clean up after themselves, and try to do some housekeeping when there is downtime. Of course, the thought of cleaning isn’t appealing to everyone, especially in the midst of their workday when they have other focuses and more critical tasks at hand. As well, most people go home from their long workday to a home they have to clean, so making cleaning appealing in the workplace is a task in itself.
In this article, we will go over some incentives and scheduling ideas to aid in keeping your office space clean with everybody’s help, which in turn will increase productivity and strengthen team values.
Motivating the Team: Creative Incentive Ideas for Office Cleaning
There are several ways you can create incentives for your employees to keep their workspaces and overall office clean and organized. Not only is it good for them in the long run as it helps them keep their focus and feel more relaxed in a tidy space, but it is good for the team as a whole to work together to strengthen collaboration. Using a digital tracker like Lumiform’s office cleaning checklist can make these tasks more efficient and eliminate paper waste! Here are a few creative incentive ideas to get your staff more involved in office cleaning:
- Clean Sweep Contest: Set up a friendly competition among team members to see who can keep their designated areas the cleanest over a set period. The winner can be rewarded with a prize or recognition.
- Cleaning Lottery: Set up a lottery system where team members can earn tickets for participating in cleaning tasks. Draw a winner at random at the end of the month for a prize.
- Clean Team of the Month: Recognize and reward the team or individual who has made the most significant contribution to keeping the office clean during a specific month.
- Clean Break: Allow team members to take a longer break or finish work early on days when they complete their cleaning tasks.
- Clean and Green: Implement a recycling and waste reduction program and reward team members who make an extra effort to reduce waste and recycle.
Another great idea worth mentioning but one that takes a bit more planning is a coffee clean-up day. Supply coffee and treats, or allow everyone the opportunity to bring in some foods/goodies potluck style, and have a social clean-up “party”. Turning it into a fun little event with conversation and snacks will get everyone excited about getting their workplace back to its former glory and help them share any tips or tricks that they know about keeping spaces clean and tidy.
In addition to these practical tips, it's also important to lead by example and be willing to pitch in when necessary. When team members see their manager or supervisor getting involved in cleaning, they will be more likely to do the same. It is also important to appreciate and acknowledge the effort of the team in keeping the office clean. This can be through small rewards, verbal recognition, or simple 'thank you' notes. By doing this, team members will feel motivated to continue their effort in keeping the office clean.
Establishing Team Cleaning Rules and Guidelines in the Office
Cleaning up after yourself is an important part of workplace etiquette, and it can be especially challenging when you have a large staff. Because everybody completes tasks differently, especially when it comes to cleaning, some instructions may need to be clearer than others to guarantee a thorough job is being done. Here are some simple ways to implement team cleaning guidelines into your workflow:
- Clearly define the roles and responsibilities of each team member regarding cleaning tasks. Assign specific tasks or areas of responsibility to different team members or teams.
- Establish a cleaning schedule and assign specific days for cleaning tasks. This will ensure that cleaning tasks are completed regularly and team members will know when it's their turn to pitch in. Using Lumiform’s Cleaning Schedule App is a great way to easily implement cleaning schedules into your office!
- Encourage teamwork and communication by setting up a system for reporting and addressing any issues or areas that need extra attention.
- Provide demonstrations for tasks that are as straightforward as others so that everybody is on the same page.
By implementing some simple strategies like these, your staff will soon learn how to clean up after themselves with ease!
Effective Tools for a Clean and Collaborative Work Environment
To truly reap the benefits of getting your team involved in office cleaning, it has to be rewarding for you and them. Implementing a few of the processes mentioned above will certainly help with that, but keeping track of all of these cleaning methods can quickly add up and feel overwhelming. That’s where Lumiform comes in!
Using a fully-digital tool like Lumiform allows you to create specific cleaning checklists that you can set schedules for and access the results to at any time. Keeping up with office cleaning has never been so easy! By having a schedule in place, team members will know when it's their turn to pitch in and will be less likely to put off cleaning tasks.
By working together and taking ownership of your shared workspace with your team, you can create a cleaner, more productive and positive office environment for all.
