Procurement Processes in Cleaning Explained

Organising cleaning services for your organisation or business may often sound simple. Sure, it can be as little as deciding what needs cleaning, inviting a few companies to quote and choosing a supplier.

However, by engaging a good procurement process, you are able to hone in on the best partnership for your enterprise. 

Price matters, naturally, but so do cleaning standards, staffing, communication and the supplier’s ability to keep delivering once the initial promises of the tender process become a distant memory.

That’s particularly important with cleaning.

People notice very quickly when standards start to drop, whether that’s overflowing bins in the office or washrooms that haven’t had enough attention.

So, how should businesses approach the procurement of commercial cleaning services?

Summary: Procurement process in cleaning

• A procurement process starts with understanding what your organisation actually needs.

• A detailed cleaning specification helps suppliers quote for the same requirements.

• Price matters, but reliability, staffing and service quality deserve just as much attention.

• The procurement management process continues throughout the cleaning contract.

• Strategic procurement considers what you’ll need tomorrow as well as what you need today.

What is the procurement process?

Procurement covers the steps a business takes when it buys goods or services from an external supplier. 

It goes further than simply purchasing something because it also covers planning, supplier selection, contracts and ongoing management. 

For example, the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply, known as CIPS, sets out a detailed procurement process that starts with defining a business need. 

From there, organisations can research suppliers, invite bids, evaluate their options, agree contracts and manage supplier relationships.

Different organisations split those activities into different numbers of stages. You’ll find five, seven, ten and even longer versions of the procurement cycle, which explains why there’s no shortage of conflicting answers online on this subject.

For commercial cleaning, it’s not helpful to focus on the number of steps. Each organisation will require its own bespoke approach.

What matters is that you ask the right questions at the right time.

What does cleaning procurement look like in practice?

Any cleaning project might entail a sizeable amount of paperwork, particularly when for a large building or portfolio. 

Strip that paperwork away, though, and the process stars with a simple question: what does this workplace actually need?

Let’s look at how that might work.

1. Start with the building

While it may sound obvious, you can’t procure the right cleaning service without understanding the site you’re operating from first.

An office used by 30 people three days a week won’t need the same service as a building welcoming hundreds of employees and visitors every day. Footfall, washrooms, kitchens, flooring, opening hours and high-use areas can all change the cleaning requirement.

This is where facilities management procurement benefits from people who know the building well. 

A spreadsheet can tell you the floor area, but the facilities team probably knows that the third-floor kitchen gets particularly busy or that reception needs more attention on client days.

Those details matter.

2. Decide what you’re asking suppliers to deliver

Once you know what the building needs, you can create the cleaning specification.

Set out which areas need attention, how frequently cleaners should visit them and when you want the work to take place.

 You should also cover requirements such as consumables, equipment, waste, reporting and any specialist cleaning.

A vague specification creates problems later. If one company quotes for three visits a week and another assumes five, comparing the two prices tells you very little.

The same applies to standards. “Clean the washrooms regularly” leaves plenty of room for interpretation, while a clear schedule gives everyone something concrete to work from.

3. Look at the company behind the quote

Now comes the part most people associate with procurement: finding potential suppliers and comparing proposals.

Of course, the price column attracts attention. Facilities teams have budgets to manage, and nobody expects them to ignore cost.

But there’s a difference between a low quote and good value. A cheap contract soon feels less impressive when your facilities manager spends Monday morning finding out why nobody cleaned the office on Friday night.

Look at relevant experience, accreditations, health and safety procedures and the way each provider manages its cleaners. Ask who will manage your account and what happens when your usual cleaner takes a holiday or calls in sick.

Those answers can tell you far more about everyday service than a polished sales presentation.

4. Compare tenders on the things that matter

A fair tender process gives competing suppliers the same information and assesses them against agreed criteria.

Cost will usually form part of that assessment, but you can also consider service quality, experience, staffing, sustainability and the supplier’s plans for monitoring standards. 

The weighting you give each area will depend on what matters most to your organisation.

It’s worth looking closely at anything that sounds particularly good, too. If a supplier promises rapid cover, ask how they’ll provide it. If they promise regular quality checks, ask who carries them out and how you’ll see the results.

Procurement works better when you test promises before signing the contract rather than afterwards.

5. Get the changeover right

Choosing the supplier is a big moment, but nobody in the building will care who won the tender if the first week goes badly.

The new provider needs to organise cleaners, equipment, site access, schedules and management before the contract starts. 

Both sides also need clear points of contact so everyone knows who to speak to when questions crop up.

A change of cleaning contractor can also involve TUPE in some circumstances. Employers should take appropriate advice and establish their responsibilities early rather than leaving staff arrangements until the last minute.

Good preparation here can prevent an awful lot of first week headaches.

6. Keep checking what happens after the contract starts

This part of procurement sometimes receives less attention than supplier selection, yet it’s arguably the bit that matters most.

The procurement management process should include regular conversations about performance. 

Cleaning inspections, agreed KPIs, staff feedback and service reviews can all help you spot issues while they’re still easy to fix.

Think about what happens six months into the contract. Are standards still where they should be? Does the provider deal with problems quickly? Have the needs of the building changed?

A cleaning contract shouldn’t sit in a drawer until renewal time.

Why strategic procurement looks beyond the first year

A strategic procurement process considers where the organisation is heading, not just what it needs this week.

• Perhaps you’re expecting staff numbers to grow. You might have another office opening next year, or your business may want to reduce its environmental impact across the estate.
• A cleaning company that can respond to those changes may prove more valuable than a provider that only suits today’s specification. Flexibility matters because workplaces rarely stay exactly the same for the full length of a contract.
• Staffing deserves attention here as well. Cleaning depends heavily on people, so a provider’s ability to recruit, train and keep good cleaners has a direct effect on the service you receive.

Ultimately, you’re buying more than cleaning hours. You’re choosing a company that will play a part in how your workplace looks and feels every day.

What should you ask a commercial cleaning company?

Some of the most useful questions are surprisingly simple.

Ask how the company checks standards, who manages your account and how it covers staff absence. Find out what relevant accreditations it holds and how quickly it can change the service if your requirements increase or decrease.

You can also ask what happens when something goes wrong. Every cleaning provider will face the occasional problem, so the response often tells you more than the problem itself.

A good supplier should have clear answers. If you’re struggling to understand exactly what you’ll receive before the contract starts, things probably won’t become clearer afterwards.

For more details, read our guide on office cleaning company questions.

Final thoughts

Nobody wants to make commercial cleaning procurement more complicated than it needs to be. Equally, choosing a provider on price alone can store up problems that become painfully obvious once the cleaners arrive.

A good procurement process helps you ask better questions before making that decision. Get the specification right, look closely at how each company plans to deliver and keep checking performance once the contract begins.

You may also find these articles helpful:

• Quality Assurance vs Quality Control in Cleaning
• What Is Commercial Cleaning? 
• Quality Management System Explained

At Think FM, our approach is pretty simple: we do what we say we’re going to do. 

Think FM has some of the hardest working commercial cleaners London has to offer. We are the daily office cleaning company London businesses throughout the capital can rely on.

If you’re reviewing an existing cleaning contract or preparing to procure a new service, contact the Think FM team to discuss what you need.