In this short article you'll discover what a day porter is and if your business needs one.
Most business owners, whose businesses are frequented by customers throughout the day, might find themselves in need of a Day Porter Service. If you are a new business owner and you are unfamiliar with commercial cleaning services, you might be asking, “What are Porter Service, what can they do for my business, and do I really need one?”
Day porters clean and support your business’s image. They ensure that customers, employees, and others who visit your facility are satisfied by providing an invaluable service: keeping your facility clean and in good repair. As a business owner, your list of to-dos’ is ever growing, which is where a Day Porter staff member can help. A porter service functions as a day-time janitorial service, but with extra benefits.
Day Porter Services Include:
Lobby maintenance
Restroom restocking and sanitation
Removing trash
Cleaning communal areas (i.e., kitchens, cafeterias, patios, break rooms)
Meeting setup/tear down
The duties of a porter will vary depending on the exact needs of your facility maintenance and your preferences. A day porter is given a list of duties to perform each day, and a schedule on which to complete each task. Unlike a janitorial service that comes in after hours, a porter works alongside you, your employees, and customers, helping to present your facility in the best way possible. Porters can help with any task that come up during the day to help your day-to-day business operations run smoothly.
Flexible Day Porter Service Responsibilities
While there is a standard list of things that a porter service is generally responsible for doing, the responsibilities of a day porter are fully customizable. We will make sure that he or she is doing what is going to be most beneficial for your organization. To get the most out of your porter staff, identify what kind of daytime help would be most beneficial for you, your facility, your customers, and your employees. The most successful porters are the ones that create real value for the organization they work for by going above and beyond, meeting the daily needs of the organization.
Customize the Services to Fit Your Needs
After deciding on what services would be most beneficial to your organization, talk to your cleaning service to develop a detailed job description and schedule for your day porters. Having a detailed description and schedule of what you expect will give your porter staff member direction and a clear understanding of what is expected. Working together with your cleaning service, you can create a job description and schedule of duties that keeps everyone on track, and provides a way to evaluate the success of your day porter service.
Finding the right fit for your company
Because a porter staff member works directly with your own staff and among your customers, it is essential to find the right fit for your organization. A day porter will essentially become an extension of your staff. Therefore, it is essential that your porters and employees can work cohesively. Having the right porter staff can make a world of difference for your business.
Define The Duties For Your Day Porter Staff
For your porter staff to be successful, it is crucial that you define what you expect, and create a timeline to meet those expectations. Outlining the duties expected from the most essential to the least essential will help your porter know how to prioritize their day. Because porters can be given a wide variety of tasks to perform, it is easy to fall into the mindset that smaller tasks, such as restocking the restrooms or taking out the trash, are not as important as other tasks. Communicate with your Porter staff about your personal preferences and what should be completed first. This also means that you’ll need to stress the importance of not overwhelming your porters with requests from your staff. To help mitigate confusion and unnecessary requests coming from your own staff members, establish protocol early on so your porters know who to accept requests from and who they can say no to.
Make Sure To Communicate Clearly
As with anything else, effective communication can save a lot of time and stress for everyone. Having clear and open communication with your day porter is very important. Communicating with your cleaning provider about your needs can help you get the most from your porter service. If issues with your porter service arise, it is important to let your commercial cleaning service know, about the issues so that problems can be rectified quickly. If the porter assigned to your facility is not a good fit, talk to your cleaning service about finding another porter than would be a better fit for your organization. A day porter is a critical position within your facility and you deserve to have the best fit for your organization. Make sure that your cleaning service provider has a backup plan in the event that your porter gets sick, or requires time off. You’ll come to depend on your porter, that even missing a day or two could have a negative impact on your facility.
A day porter service can prove to be very beneficial to any organization, helping to keep your building in good working order. If you're in the Orange County, Los Angeles County or San Diego County areas please give us a call or click here to schedule an appointment.