Infosys
The nature of the IT/ITES industry warrants 24×7 housekeeping” says Bhawesh Kumar, Regional Manager-Facilities, Infosys Technologies Ltd, at the company’s office at the Electronic City in Bangalore. “Infosys strives to provide its customer with a world class business environment and global standards of service. And one of the key activities that contributes towards this vision is housekeeping.
“The Facilities Department is responsible for the cleanliness, maintenance and aesthetic upkeep of the premises. It is an extension of basic home keeping multiplied into commercial proportions. Therefore, just as we enjoy keeping a ‘sparkling’ home for ourselves and guests who visit us at home, the housekeeping department takes pride in keeping the office clean and comfortable, so as to create a ‘home away from home”.
Facilities Management at Infosys adopts a combination of in house and outsourced personnel for housekeeping. We do not outsource everything to one FM service provider. The outsourcing model is such that the company has subcontractors who provide housekeeping services and it has its own team of facilities employees who supervise and monitor these services.
“We are involved from the stage where a sub-contractor is recruited. The process includes: tapping the right source, developing manpower specification, interviewing and the selection process. For the purpose of recruitment, induction, training and self-development, it is essential to know the qualities that housekeeping staff must possess. These are as important as the skills they possess. They are groomed in personal hygiene and physical fitness. We have established a grooming centre, where housekeeping personnel have access to a facility to shower, shave and change into laundered clothes. With this we have been able to make them feel they are one of us,” adds Bhawesh.
Infosys gives a lot of importance to training. This training is the process of changing a given behavior up to a desired behavior. Training is important because trained manpower is not easily available in the market. It helps to equip a person to do a job in the shortest possible time. It helps the management to have a well co-ordinated team. It is hence ensured that the housekeeping staff are regularly trained on the activities involved, the use of chemicals or equipment, the policies and procedures of the company and the hazards in their work place. Recently we had a facilities meet, where Regional Managers Facilities from all our locations gathered. We had a one-week training session. This is how we keep ourselves abreast of all the new technology.
Aids for cleaning
The correct choice and quality of equipment / cleaning aids could save costs due to breakdown, reduce fatigue and thereby demands on labour as also ensure efficiency in overall operations. Infosys has a combination of various equipment ranging from heavy duty equipment for road cleaning to small vacuum cleaners. Over 200 equipment are deployed in the Bangalore campus alone.
“We also insist on using the right detergents not only to protect surfaces but also to enhance productivity and quality. In line with our Health, Safety and Environmental Management System (HSEMS) requirements we have embarked upon use of organic products to the extent possible and have set targets for the same. Deployment of green seal products for housekeeping which belong to this category has been our first steps towards this cause.”
Housekeeping shifts commence from 7:00 am in the morning, wherein the restrooms are cleaned first, followed by the common areas, then covering the work stations. In the second shift which begins at 1:00 pm maintenance work like façade cleaning and glass cleaning are taken up. Majority of the cleaning happens during the night shift which includes waste clearance, segregation and movement to scrap yard. More thorough housekeeping happens on Saturdays. Schedules include routine (daily) and non-routine (weekly, monthly etc.,) activities.
Internal SLA’s are defined for each activity including housekeeping and there are different modes of seeking housekeeping services. The employees can log in a request through an internal application or can call the helpdesk for the request to be attended to and closed.
One of the most vital and important part of the cleaning operations is briefing. Briefing is provided by the management to facilitate a two-way communication between management and staff. All employees must report for briefing properly attired and at the scheduled commencement of the shift or earlier. Some of the issues that should normally be covered in a briefing are grooming, policies and procedures, VIP visits, allotment of duties, feedback of staff training, standard of performance, recognition and praise.
“For this process, we have created levels – supervisor, executive, senior executive associate manager, senior associate manager, senior associate manager, facility manager, senior facility manager and Regional Managers who report to the head of Facility Management. There is a full structure from top to bottom and everyone is responsible. The top management is aligned and aware of this.”
A weekly review is also conducted with the location Facilities Managers. Open houses are also conducted by Regional Managers enabling the staff to voice their concerns. Housekeeping staff are represented in the location Safety Committees where they can present the potential hazards in their work places. “The schedules are so strong that the toilets today are being maintained every one hour during working hours. There is always someone who will go, check and clean.
“We are the employees’ caretakers and we go to their desks and find out if anything needs to be cleaned every Friday. In the toilets we have beautiful signages and we also organise Water Week urging people to report any leaks. Then we have the Paper Week urging people to save paper.”
The nature of the IT/ITES industry warrants 24×7 housekeeping” says Bhawesh Kumar, Regional Manager-Facilities, Infosys Technologies Ltd, at the company’s office at the Electronic City in Bangalore. “Infosys strives to provide its customer with a world class business environment and global standards of service. And one of the key activities that contributes towards this vision is housekeeping.
“The Facilities Department is responsible for the cleanliness, maintenance and aesthetic upkeep of the premises. It is an extension of basic home keeping multiplied into commercial proportions. Therefore, just as we enjoy keeping a ‘sparkling’ home for ourselves and guests who visit us at home, the housekeeping department takes pride in keeping the office clean and comfortable, so as to create a ‘home away from home”.
Facilities Management at Infosys adopts a combination of in house and outsourced personnel for housekeeping. We do not outsource everything to one FM service provider. The outsourcing model is such that the company has subcontractors who provide housekeeping services and it has its own team of facilities employees who supervise and monitor these services.
“We are involved from the stage where a sub-contractor is recruited. The process includes: tapping the right source, developing manpower specification, interviewing and the selection process. For the purpose of recruitment, induction, training and self-development, it is essential to know the qualities that housekeeping staff must possess. These are as important as the skills they possess. They are groomed in personal hygiene and physical fitness. We have established a grooming centre, where housekeeping personnel have access to a facility to shower, shave and change into laundered clothes. With this we have been able to make them feel they are one of us,” adds Bhawesh.
Infosys gives a lot of importance to training. This training is the process of changing a given behavior up to a desired behavior. Training is important because trained manpower is not easily available in the market. It helps to equip a person to do a job in the shortest possible time. It helps the management to have a well co-ordinated team. It is hence ensured that the housekeeping staff are regularly trained on the activities involved, the use of chemicals or equipment, the policies and procedures of the company and the hazards in their work place. Recently we had a facilities meet, where Regional Managers Facilities from all our locations gathered. We had a one-week training session. This is how we keep ourselves abreast of all the new technology.
Aids for cleaning
The correct choice and quality of equipment / cleaning aids could save costs due to breakdown, reduce fatigue and thereby demands on labour as also ensure efficiency in overall operations. Infosys has a combination of various equipment ranging from heavy duty equipment for road cleaning to small vacuum cleaners. Over 200 equipment are deployed in the Bangalore campus alone.
“We also insist on using the right detergents not only to protect surfaces but also to enhance productivity and quality. In line with our Health, Safety and Environmental Management System (HSEMS) requirements we have embarked upon use of organic products to the extent possible and have set targets for the same. Deployment of green seal products for housekeeping which belong to this category has been our first steps towards this cause.”
Housekeeping shifts commence from 7:00 am in the morning, wherein the restrooms are cleaned first, followed by the common areas, then covering the work stations. In the second shift which begins at 1:00 pm maintenance work like façade cleaning and glass cleaning are taken up. Majority of the cleaning happens during the night shift which includes waste clearance, segregation and movement to scrap yard. More thorough housekeeping happens on Saturdays. Schedules include routine (daily) and non-routine (weekly, monthly etc.,) activities.
Internal SLA’s are defined for each activity including housekeeping and there are different modes of seeking housekeeping services. The employees can log in a request through an internal application or can call the helpdesk for the request to be attended to and closed.
One of the most vital and important part of the cleaning operations is briefing. Briefing is provided by the management to facilitate a two-way communication between management and staff. All employees must report for briefing properly attired and at the scheduled commencement of the shift or earlier. Some of the issues that should normally be covered in a briefing are grooming, policies and procedures, VIP visits, allotment of duties, feedback of staff training, standard of performance, recognition and praise.
“For this process, we have created levels – supervisor, executive, senior executive associate manager, senior associate manager, senior associate manager, facility manager, senior facility manager and Regional Managers who report to the head of Facility Management. There is a full structure from top to bottom and everyone is responsible. The top management is aligned and aware of this.”
A weekly review is also conducted with the location Facilities Managers. Open houses are also conducted by Regional Managers enabling the staff to voice their concerns. Housekeeping staff are represented in the location Safety Committees where they can present the potential hazards in their work places. “The schedules are so strong that the toilets today are being maintained every one hour during working hours. There is always someone who will go, check and clean.
“We are the employees’ caretakers and we go to their desks and find out if anything needs to be cleaned every Friday. In the toilets we have beautiful signages and we also organise Water Week urging people to report any leaks. Then we have the Paper Week urging people to save paper.”
