The Rhythm of Life Quickens, So Do We, “Zerkalo Nedeli”, №21, July 2009

Checking the development of certain market sectors, we can observe the positive tendencies. For example, some cleaning companies confidently show the stability and increasing of the service volume, even though lots of economic indicators reduce. Is it a consequence of the specificity of cleaning sector or inner potential of organization, pliable government policy or is it the smart strategy, which give the synergetic effect of growth? We talked to Denis Kish, the general manager of Shaden Group, about that.

“If you speak about the companies, which work in one sector”, Denis Kish says, “Under the condition, that the influence of external factors on them is roughly equal, so the saving of high indexes is a question of the inner policy of company. The cleaning market is now suffering from the changes. From the one point, the narrow and the most perspective niche of commercial estate slowed down its development for indefinite time. From the other point of view, the cleaning service is slowed down by reducing of shopping ability. Continuing working in the old manner, ignoring the new conditions means fast movement in a descending line and losing the part of the segment. In the situation like that we have to use the strict measures for optimization the expenses and unique solutions, which act as an anticrisis plan in complex.

—Could you name the aspects of activity, which, you believe, need the mobile reorganization in the conditions of toughening of market.

—First of all, we come to understanding of the necessity to overview the strategic goals. Ambitions are reducing, realism is growing. The crisis is more stimulating here, than negative. We are planning to increase our part of market because of paying more attention on bigger and more effective players. The approach to choosing, estimating and motivation of staff changed. The theme of staff always used to be important for cleaning companies.

I’ll explain. We spend some time and put the money into the education of people, that’s why any loosing of staff is potentially connected with loosing of profit in the future. When the crisis just began, lots of companies had to fire some employees. We avoided the dismissal of qualified staff by changing their functional responsibilities, removing of some position and creating of others, new and more effective. Now the satiety of job market allows filling the staff niches with skilled and educated people. That’s why there’s a possibility to refuse of the staff policy of being content with minimal, while employing.

—Changing of market implies the creating of new relationships with clients. Which features of these relationships are inherent for today?

—Together with the more careful checking of quality of service, the demands to the universality have grown too. The complex service during the long time doesn’t let the situation, when any new service couldn’t be done. As a result, the cleaning company widens the spectrum of its services. The customer often demands the quick and timely doing of cleaning. The doing of service, even the biggest, during the minimal terms is a usual thing for today, not the exception.

—Taking into consideration the global growth of prices of services and good, which price policy should follow the cleaning company?

—Almost all Ukrainian cleaning operators faced the cleaning market is obliged to keep the same prices, even though the other prices have increased. That’s the specificity of the service sector. That’s why one the main principles of our strategy is to keep the medium price at the permanent level. The other evidence of loyalty, when the negotiations deal with the financial side of the case, is a possibility to provide some of the additional services for the same price. As a result our price strategy allowed not only keeping our regular customers, but also achieving the new ones.

Source: “Zerkalo Nedeli”