Redacted client audit
Shared with client permission. Identifying details have been removed. Reclaimable hours are estimates from the audit, not measured results or a guarantee.

Commercial Cleaning Company

Team32 people
Work mixRecurring office, medical-office & light industrial cleaning
52reclaimable hours / month
Executive summary

What we found and what to do about it.

52 hrsestimated reclaimable capacity each month
78hours of recurring friction identified each month
7specific workflow problems identified
3quick wins that can start this week
Main finding
The biggest losses are caused by exceptions across a distributed workforce. Call-offs, supply shortages, missed tasks and client issues generate supervisor coordination because information arrives by text and phone.
Largest issue
Call-off coverage is the largest recurring coordination burden. One absence can trigger multiple calls, schedule edits and client updates before a substitute is confirmed.
Operational risk
Supervisor capacity is being consumed by dispatch-like work, reducing time available for quality inspections and client retention.
Recommended decisionCreate a coverage workflow and supply par levels this week, then move quality follow-up into one visible corrective-action process.
This week

Quick wins that can be done in 5 working days.

These are intentionally small. The goal is to produce visible improvement now, not begin a six-month project.

1

Build the substitute coverage pool

Reduce call-off scrambling immediately.

OwnerOperations supervisors
Setup2–3 hours
2

Set par levels at three high-volume sites

Stop emergency supply trips at the sites that generate the most of them.

OwnerRoute supervisor
Setup2 hours
3

Use one quality corrective-action form

Make inspection follow-up visible and accountable.

OwnerQuality supervisor
Setup90 minutes
By the end of the week: these changes should be live, tested on real work, and producing baseline data we can compare against next month.
The Friction List

All seven findings, ranked.

The list separates the amount of friction happening today from the portion we believe can realistically be removed.

#FrictionCurrentReclaimable
01Call-offs trigger a manual coverage scramble18 hrs/mo12 hrs
02Supply shortages are reported too late14 hrs/mo9.5 hrs
03Quality inspections create scattered follow-up12 hrs/mo8 hrs
04Client complaints arrive through multiple channels10 hrs/mo7 hrs
05Timekeeping exceptions are fixed weekly9 hrs/mo6 hrs
06Special-request work is not always billed8 hrs/mo5 hrs
07New-site startup checklists vary7 hrs/mo4.5 hrs
Total78 hrs/mo52 hrs/mo

Priority matrix

Higher is more operational impact. Further right means more implementation effort.

Impact ↑
Do first
Plan carefully
Easy, lower return
Defer
1Call-off coverage
2Supply restock
3Quality inspections
4Client complaints arrive through multiple channels
5Timekeeping exceptions are fixed weekly
6Special-request work is not always billed
7New-site startup checklists vary
Implementation effort →
Findings + fixes

What is happening, how to fix it, and how to know it worked.

01

Call-offs trigger a manual coverage scramble

Do first
Evidence: Supervisors call or text multiple employees, wait for replies and then update schedules manually when someone is absent.
Current 18 hrs/mo Reclaimable 12 hrs/mo Effort Medium Owner Operations supervisors
Recommended fix

Create a qualified coverage pool and one acceptance workflow.

Supervisors call or text multiple employees, wait for replies and then update schedules manually when someone is absent.

How to fix it

  1. Maintain availability, geography and site qualification for substitute staff.
  2. Send one coverage request to the eligible group.
  3. When accepted, update schedule/site contact from the same record.
Success measure: Supervisor calls/texts per call-off → reduce by at least 60%.
Today
Call-off → supervisor texts people → waits/retries → chooses cover → updates site
→
After
Call-off → qualified group alerted → acceptance recorded → schedule updates
02

Supply shortages are reported too late

High priority
Evidence: Cleaners report low stock when products are already nearly gone, creating emergency deliveries and supervisor trips.
Current 14 hrs/mo Reclaimable 9.5 hrs/mo Effort Low Owner Site leads + route supervisor
Recommended fix

Set site par levels and one weekly restock check.

Cleaners report low stock when products are already nearly gone, creating emergency deliveries and supervisor trips.

How to fix it

  1. Define minimum/target quantities for each site.
  2. Have site lead submit a 60-second weekly stock check.
  3. Batch restock delivery by route.
Success measure: Emergency supply trips → reduce by 70%.
Today
Supply low → cleaner texts → supervisor buys/delivers urgently
→
After
Weekly par check → restock list → planned route delivery
03

Quality inspections create scattered follow-up

High priority
Evidence: Inspection issues are captured in photos/texts and manually relayed to cleaners or site leads.
Current 12 hrs/mo Reclaimable 8 hrs/mo Effort Low Owner Quality supervisor
Recommended fix

Turn every inspection issue into an assigned corrective action.

Inspection issues are captured in photos/texts and manually relayed to cleaners or site leads.

How to fix it

  1. Use one inspection form with issue, photo, owner and due date.
  2. Require completion evidence for failed items.
  3. Escalate only overdue corrections.
Success measure: Inspection failures without documented closure → target zero.
Today
Inspection → photo/text → supervisor messages cleaner → follow-up check
→
After
Inspection → corrective action assigned → evidence returned → item closes
04

Client complaints arrive through multiple channels

Medium impact
Evidence: Issues arrive by email, text and phone and are not always tracked consistently.
Current 10 hrs/mo Reclaimable 7 hrs/mo Effort Low Owner Account managers
Recommended fix

Route all client issues into one service-recovery queue.

Issues arrive by email, text and phone and are not always tracked consistently.

How to fix it

  1. Create one issue record regardless of channel.
  2. Assign owner, due date and resolution note.
  3. Review repeat issues by site monthly.
Success measure: Client issues with no owner/next action after one business day → target zero.
Today
Complaint arrives → message forwarded → status hard to see
→
After
Complaint → recovery queue → owner/due date visible
05

Timekeeping exceptions are fixed weekly

Medium impact
Evidence: Missed punches and wrong locations are reconciled at payroll time.
Current 9 hrs/mo Reclaimable 6 hrs/mo Effort Low Owner Payroll + supervisors
Recommended fix

Review time exceptions daily.

Missed punches and wrong locations are reconciled at payroll time.

How to fix it

  1. Generate missing/invalid punch list each morning.
  2. Route each exception to the responsible supervisor.
  3. Close it before the next payroll day.
Success measure: Payroll-week time corrections → reduce by 70%.
Today
Payroll week → exceptions discovered → supervisors reconstruct
→
After
Daily exception → same-day correction
06

Special-request work is not always billed

Medium impact
Evidence: One-off client requests can be completed without a clear billable work order.
Current 8 hrs/mo Reclaimable 5 hrs/mo Effort Medium Owner Account managers
Recommended fix

Require a billable work order before non-contract work.

One-off client requests can be completed without a clear billable work order.

How to fix it

  1. Give supervisors a quick special-request form.
  2. Route request for customer approval/pricing if needed.
  3. Do not mark work complete until billable status is clear.
Success measure: Special work completed without billing decision → target zero.
Today
Client asks → cleaner/supervisor handles → billing may hear later
→
After
Client asks → work order created → approval/billing status visible
07

New-site startup checklists vary

Low impact
Evidence: Site launch knowledge is spread across supervisors.
Current 7 hrs/mo Reclaimable 4.5 hrs/mo Effort Low Owner Operations manager
Recommended fix

Use one site-startup checklist.

Site launch knowledge is spread across supervisors.

How to fix it

  1. Include access, scope, supplies, contacts, schedule and inspection cadence.
  2. Require sign-off before the first regular clean.
  3. Store site-specific exceptions with the checklist.
Success measure: First-month site issues caused by missing startup information → reduce by 50%.
Today
New site → supervisor remembers setup items → gaps appear later
→
After
New site → standard startup checklist → complete handoff
30-day plan

What to do after the quick wins.

Use the first month to implement, measure and decide what deserves deeper work.

Week 1

Exception control

Launch coverage pool, par-level pilot and corrective-action form.

Week 2

Expand sites

Roll stock checks and quality workflow to the remaining sites.

Week 3

Client issues + billing

Create service-recovery and special-request work-order queues.

Week 4

Measure supervisor load

Compare call-off touches, emergency supply runs and open inspection items.

Estimated monthly recovery52 hours

Start with the one-week quick wins, measure the result, then work down the Friction List in priority order.