HR
Why culture is king Words Cameron Cooper Creating a positive workplace culture will be at the heart of cleaning and facility management companies’ success as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to put pressure on profitability and people.
34 INCLEAN March / April 2022
N
ot many cleaning companies are in a position to give their staff free seats in a corporate box at iconic sport venues such as the Sydney Cricket Ground and Adelaide Oval. For national cleaning services and wastemanagement company Quayclean, however, it is all part of trying to give back to its employees and creating a positive culture for them and their families. Quayclean CEO Mark Piwkowski explains that the business has contracts to clean elite venues around the country, and when corporate suites are empty and available the business can offer staff the chance to watch sport such as cricket and Australian football. “Those sorts of actions engage the hearts and minds of the employees, so their commitment to the organisation becomes really strong,” Piwkowski says. Quayclean also offers recognition and benefits including monthly Superhero awards, Christmas bonuses and competitive salaries, while also making it clear to departing cleaners that they
are “part of the Quayclean family” and are always welcome to return to the business in the future. Piwkowski says creating a positive work culture, especially during a pandemic, is crucial to a company’s success and must be driven from the top down and the bottom up so that it is infused in every aspect of the work environment, talked about enthusiastically by the team and recognised by the customers they serve. “The culture of the organisation is integral to its success and without a strong culture a business will never create sustainable success.”
PLAN FOR A GREAT WORKPLACE ENVIRONMENT
People and culture practitioner Amanda de Haas says many companies, including cleaning and facility management operations, often underestimate the impact that culture has on their business. “Positive workplace cultures don’t happen by accident,” she says. “They are carefully thought through and planned.”