Boling Janitorial has been in business for over 50 years.
While I have proudly been at the helm at it since the 80s, we as a company credit our longevity to people. We are a service company after all and it’s a people business.
What exactly does that mean?
We value our relationships with not only our clients, but our employees as well. At times, as a business owner keeping both sides happy may seem like walking on a tightrope. We have to take it all in stride and keep the ship on an even keel, during the inevitable periods of welcome calm, and blips of emergencies. Those in management positions will also surely identify with this conundrum.
Communication is the key to keeping things tight on both ends. We must anticipate our client’s needs and be not only proactive, but very responsive as well. Boling works hard with our crew of supervisors and amazing office support staff to continually inspect our locations and talk with our clients. Believe it or not, based on the feedback we get, this is not exactly the norm in the janitorial services world. Something so simple, customer service, is often forgotten or slips away in the everyday chaos.
Sorry to get on my soapbox here, but customer service should always be top priority.
Without it, we’re no longer a business. We value our clients as people, not just as customers. They are part of the Boling family. So how do we maintain customer service? Well, we have to have a great team that believes in the company. An employee that is treated fairly and with respect will often share your vision of getting the job done, and getting the job done right the first time.
Sound easy?
It’s not. Getting a good person who will become a good employee in the door in the first place can be challenging. At Boling, we recognize that as part of the service industry, we fulfil different avenues for those in different walks of life. We have students, retirees, people with day jobs, as well as those who wish to grow internally into supervisory roles as part of our team.
We value this diversity, and we strive to create a family environment.
We listen to our employees and value their input. We provide them with the tools both in terms of equipment and training that they need in order to succeed. We also have clear expectations and benchmarks regarding performance, and they receive regular feedback.So back to the start of my soapbox. Longevity can be equated with customer service, and customer service can be credited with a good team. As a leader, demonstrating to both sides you value them and care, as well as open communication is crucial to balancing the equation.
