The Scrub S2E1: Introductions, The Importance of Cleaning, and Tips for Employee Appreciation

Improve your organization's marketing and sales as well as management and field operations by tuning in to the Scrub.

Welcome, everyone. I am Kaden.

And I'm Sam.

And we are your hosts of the Scrub. So season one of the Be Clean Intelligent podcast, which is what this was formerly, has been rebranded and we'll explain why. But what Be Clean Intelligent meant. It was 2020 when we launched season one.

The height of the pandemic.

Yep, it was the height of the pandemic just starting. And we decided to have the topics be centered around all the things that were going on. But honestly, like with such a. A heightened focus on cleaning, what it meant to be cleantelligent, and not in regards to our product as a software, but what that statement meant to increase your productivity, to increase your accountability to customers and your facility attendees and things like that, and change the way we decided increase productivity.

Like, yeah, the essentialness of frontline workers navigating through COVID 19. That's really why we had created it. We wanted to be in the conversation and help people navigate through it.

Yep. And so now we have the Scrub and we've rebranded and as part of this season two series coming your way. And Sam, take it, take a minute and explain what is the Scrub, what it's going to be.

So obviously the Scrub is a play on words. It's not the TLC version that we don't want. No Scrubs. That's not the version that we're suggesting. What we're suggesting is we're getting down and dirty in the nitty gritty of what it takes to run an organization or business, especially for cleaning and facilities managers. You folks out there, there's a lot to do. And so we wanted, as executives in our organization, share our insights and our thoughts, but really work with you and figure out how we can help each other learn and grow together as leaders in our organizations. And so we're going to highlight what it takes to do that, what it takes to be different, what it takes to be unique in this, this new world that we live in, thanks to COVID 19 and the pandemic that's launched. And there's just new ways to do things, better ways to do things. We don't have to stick to tradition. We can get to the next level.

Right.

We can level up. And so the Scrub, the rebranding of the Be Clean Intelligent podcast, you still should be clean, intelligent thinking in that manner, but taking it to the next level now, what do we got to scrub into to really get to the true meaning of what it takes to be a leader in our industry and organizations. So let's talk about what to expect. Caden, what can we expect in the Scrub?

Well, so first off, a much longer run, season two than season one, we did seven episodes, which was a lot of fun, by all means, but just wanting to bring consistent, quality content and conversations to the industry. So every couple of weeks you're going to see a new episode coming your guys way. And part of that is in those episodes, one of the things we're going to be focusing in on and dialing in on is the pains and challenges faced by guests that come onto the podcast as well as our followers. And we're going to be talking about obviously the big pains of this industry. Right? Employee retention, proving cleanliness, building those strong relationships with customers and utilizing data to do so, and empowering cleaners to become more efficient. Right. They represent the front line. There was a lot of talk over the last couple years, but if there's one thing I hope happens and stays strong because of the pandemic, is just for people to realize how vital a clean and healthy world is. That's part of our vision as a company, as an organization, as Clean Intelligent, is to provide a safe and clean environment across the globe by using technology and putting technology in the hands of the front line with our essential workers. And, you know, a lot of appreciation was grown through the pandemic of those who were still out there cleaning as things were needing to be maintained and open, especially in the healthcare world. And I hope that continues. I hope people wash their hands more. I hope people are more conscious and that we as a nation continue to enjoy the benefits of a free country and have the fundamental rights of our citizens be something that we can continue to always have foundationally. And that is because people are taking health into their own hands and their own decisions. And a big piece of that is just wash your hands. Right?

I know it's much the value of.

Clean across the globe. Right. It becomes such a vital piece of society and economically being able to maintain what we've built and what we can do moving forward. But there are things that have adjusted slightly and some others are pretty massive adjustments. You'll notice that Sam and I are both in our home office. We've been this way for almost two years. We're still a local company and we still gather as a team, do team building and things like that. But we decided it works for us as a software company and we're remote permanently, but it's been a lot of fun A lot of value has grown from it. The pandemic helped really influence that and push that into something that we do. So anyways, a lot has changed because of COVID and let's talk about how that's going to be apparent in our podcast moving forward.

Sam yeah, I think one, obviously one thing that in this podcast, the Scrub, we want to gain insight from you as professionals in your industry as well, to share your knowledge with, with others who may be listening to the podcast. And so Kaden and I don't claim to have all the answers, but we want to open up the dialogue and have guests on the show, executives, frontline supervisors, people who are in the thick of it, to share insights, how they navigate through it. And so we have a good approach to the show this year to really help bring season two alive, the first season of the Scrub after the rebranding from the Be Clean Intelligent podcast, as you had been a part of in 2020. So we appreciate all our listeners and followers to that and we're excited to keep moving with the Scrub. So you can expect that. You can expect some industry highlights and successes. Obviously, we work with a lot of you in the industry and so we want to highlight your success. We want to highlight what you're doing and, and how you're making things move forward, the way that you're being proactive in the way that you're working with various customers on your side and how you're helping them see that value of clean and proving that you are providing a great service, high quality, great communication. We want to highlight those things. One segment that we did introduce in the Be Clean Intelligent podcast, and one that we wanted to bring back because we think it just makes sense, is Porcelain Thoughts. It's a segment where we just provide a great tip or trick to adjust in your organization. I mean, some of our best thoughts come when we are on the porcelain. And I assume that everybody understands that comment. But it's Porcelain Thoughts, right?

I mean, porcelain can be obviously on the toilet or it can be in the shower or other porcelain places, right?

Wherever your porcelain is.

But it's one of those things that often it's, I mean, for me, it's in the shower just letting the water run over my head and just thinking. And you know, sometimes, I mean, I shower pretty quick, but sometimes, you know, I'm in there and 10 minutes goes by and I'm just realizing that I was in this daze and I was just thinking and having these thoughts, whether it's about business or family or life in general. And some of those thoughts are pretty thought provoking. They're for clean intelligence. Sam, you've had some of those experiences where I start a conversation, be like, sam, I was thinking, and I was in the shower this morning, I was thinking of you and you were like, wait a second. But as an organization, it's just those places that all of a sudden, at least for me, those thoughts come up. So a lot of golden nuggets happen in the porcelain thaw era. And so we're going to bring that segment continuing into season two and share those insights, tips, tricks that Sam was explaining with you. And also from our guests, you know, what are their porcelain thoughts in life that they've experienced. So that'll be a fun segment to continue.

And yes, the content will evolve over time for the show as you, the listeners, share your insights and your thoughts of what potentially could make the show better. We want to enhance the show. But speaking of guests, we are actively looking for guests that are professionals in the Jansan industry. So if you are interested in sharing your story, sharing your insights, the way that you run your organization and how it's helped you grow or be successful, email us podcastleantelligent.com and we'd love to briefly talk to you and make sure that we're on the same page with what you're going to be sharing and then we'll have a discussion around it. So we are actively looking for guests and the invitation is now open so you can email us podcastleantelligent.com and we'll have you on the show.

From that standpoint though, we are, we aren't defining necessarily a certain requirement. We just anywhere from high level executives in positions and organizations that big or small, all the way down to frontline supervisors, those who are in the grid with their team, you know, they're the ones scrubbing. And you know, it's, it's one of those things that we want the perspective of all levels of the industry. And if you're a supervisor out there of a cleaning crew and you have some insights and some things that maybe you would like company executive leadership in your organization or just across the globe in the industry that you wish the top level leaders would understand about what it takes to be the supervisor and the struggles and the challenges, like sometimes in large enough organizations, the executive suite and leadership might be a little disconnected. And so we hope that our content also can provide that insight. Not just from their own organization, but what happens in the industry. How do supervisors and cleaners on the front line feel that disconnect and what can be done to improve it. And so there might be some segments and episodes in the future that we actually bring on a supervisor and we talk about that. So again, if you're a Supervisor, please email podcastleantelligent.com and share your story, share some of the thoughts and ideas that you would like to share. And as we vet all the people that get to email and send in their requests, we'd love to have one of you, multiple of you over the course of time of content, be people that we bring on the show as well.

So for sure, and this actually might be a good moment or time to share what we are wanting to do with our customers. Kaden, will you share with us what the Executive Scrub is?

Yeah. So obviously on this podcast we have listeners that are not our customers, but for those of you who are our customers, we are going to be having an exclusive VIP group called the Executive Scrub. And we're actually going to do that through Volley. For those of you who don't know what Volley is, just real quick, it's asynchronous video, collaboration, chat, slash channel. Anyways, so we're going to be launching the Executive Scrub and that's for all executive positions of our customers that get to be part of that VIP exclusive group. And that is just a continuation of not only what gets talked about here in the Scrub as the podcast, but just in general questions you have collaboration and it's, it's a closed networking group that we're going to be launching this year as clean, intelligent, and so be looking out for communication regarding the Executive Scrub. Really exciting.

That is exciting. And yeah, we're going to get it launched here pretty soon. So those customers in an executive role, be sure to look out for some type of correspondence in the near future. All right. To end the show, we're going to do our Porcelain Thoughts segment. We figured why not start it today, right? You know, what you can kind of look forward to in the future with these episodes. Porcelain Thoughts being one segment, but other guests on the show and helping with those pains and challenges you might be facing as organizations in this industry. But Porcelain Thoughts, what we really wanted to talk about is, is people. When Caden, myself, managers, supervisors, the people that work with the people, oftentimes it's those people that are going to make the difference. The people that those executives are working with, those leaders are working with, those individuals are the ones that make the business move, make the business run well. And so really, our highlight or the Porcelain thought, the, aha, here is people are amazing and it really boils down to trust. And Caden has some thoughts on this as well. We were talking about it before the show and really thought this would be a great item to discuss to end this. So, Kayden, what are your thoughts on just how people work? Well, when trust is given.

It'S one of those things that obviously Clean Intelligence evolved over time and our experience with our own employees. But you think about this industry and who is on the front lines. You as leadership and as a company are fundamentally the most important source to show appreciation to those people. And appreciation doesn't come in just the form of saying something. Although that's a big piece that I feel like a lot of people miss. Obviously the wage they earn is a piece of that. A competitive and decent, honest wage for the job that someone is doing, but as well as just taking care of your employees. I've heard this so many times that the tech industry, the software world, sas, has the flexibility to do so much more with their employees than other industries. And you know what? There's only a little bit of truth to that, in my honest opinion. The flexibility and the working with people, you know, people, not employees. That's not, that's not my slogan. I've heard it many times from other companies. But people, not employees. And you know, there, there are creative things that people can do, organizations can do to let people know that they're cared about, that they're taken care of. And that comes in forms of time off policies and being creative, being unique in the way you do that and how you let people know that, hey, we're here for you and you matter to us. And it's amazing that when you do that, how much more effective people become, how much more productive they become in their work. And in fact, the more time off someone takes, the more effective they are when they're working. They aren't experiencing the burnout and things like that. And so those are just some porcelain thoughts. It's affected Cleantelligent in many ways throughout the years. For Cleantelligent, it works for us. But we finalized another adjustment this year, Sam, to our own PTO policy, providing about eight weeks off to our employees throughout the year. Now, that sounds like a lot. And we don't go to the unlimited PTO side of things. We feel like studies have shown enough that it's this archaic vague. People don't take as much time off under those policies. And so for cleantelligent, we found our own unique way to present our employees and let them know we've been taking care of. It works for us. Again, I'm not saying it works for other types of industries, but for us, it worked. And the most fundamental piece of that is listening to your employees and figuring out what makes them more effective and more productive. And in turn, I gladly give those things to our employees. And we see the results. We see that we can still produce. In fact, we can produce more by making sure that people have an adequate amount of time to rest and to know that they are being taken care of.

If you take care of your employees, they will take care of your customers. And in turn, that's what will help your business grow, your organization grow. So, yeah, great thoughts. Love it. We love people, obviously, and it really is important to make sure that you take care of those who are helping you move the needle in your business or organization. And in turn, they'll help you. And so that's our show. Kaden, any other final thoughts? Are we good to log off and prepare for the next episode?

Yeah. I mean, the hope of this is that it's short, quick content, 20ish minutes roughly. And that it becomes something that is easy to listen to, quick to listen to. And as we bring on guests, obviously in the future, not every episode will necessarily have a guest. But as we do so in the future, we're committing to still keep those golden nuggets of information and content to a quick, short, valuable ability that people can listen to in just a short commute time or on a break or whatever. And so, in true fashion, that is episode one of the Scrub. And we hope that everything that you guys do on the front lines and for your organizations, that the appreciation is there. If you're in charge of giving it, make sure you do it more. If you receive it, show your gratitude for receiving it. And that's a wrap on today's episode.

Thanks, everyone.