Clean Sweep: Do’s and Don’ts for Boosting Your Team’s Housekeeping Habits

You’ll need to make the case to your workforce that cleanliness matters. Show them what they have to gain by practicing good housekeeping, and reinforce the message over time. Your employees should be keenly aware of the benefits of cleaning up—how less clutter means less stress, fewer accidents, and better workflows.

Focus on the positive aspects of your housekeeping program rather than dwelling completely on the bad stuff that could happen if people don’t clean up. Studies show that even minor rewards and forms of encouragement (such as a “good job!” message for washing one’s hands) can be stronger than fear in terms of motivating action and change.

Whether it’s before-and-after pictures or case studies from organizations that have completed 5S projects, there’s plenty of compelling evidence out there about how effective this discipline can be. At first, you may have to draw these examples from other companies whose programs you’re emulating. But as your 5S initiatives gain traction, the evidence could easily come from the early adopters within your company.

Be careful not to present housekeeping as a massive undertaking or daunting task. You can’t expect your employees to focus all their time on your 5S initiative, nor can you expect it to be done within a day or two. It will likely take several days, if not weeks or months, to complete just stages 1 and 2 of the process.

Divide everything into simple tasks—activities that are easy to start and finish, and which don’t require long time commitments. Assign tasks to various employees, so everyone is accountable and participating, and no one person is overloaded. Housekeeping should be embedded in everyday work—for instance, an employee who uses a tool should be responsible for wiping down work surfaces and putting the tool away when they’re done.

The 5S system can significantly disrupt operations—and fail as a result—if program managers aren’t careful about introducing it to their workforces. According to Industry Week, employees at most organizations “will have to figure out how to get it done while still capably fulfilling their day-to-day job responsibilities.” It can’t be a totally separate, top-down initiative.

As with any workforce initiative, 5S necessitates training and practices. Employees will need to learn the system front to back. There may (will) be mistakes, gaps, and delays. The mess may seem to get worse before it gets better. Take a deep breath and be patient.

Support your team members with morale-boosting efforts as well as the practical tools they need for housekeeping: cleaning supplies, labels, boxes, and so forth. No one should be left wondering about their role or when they should be doing something, or if they need to go to the store and buy materials themselves.

One of the most difficult parts of 5S can be disposing of unneeded or unwanted items. You can’t just dump everything, but you can’t allow it to continue taking space in your facility either. Look for opportunities to reuse, reallocate, or sell what you aren’t using. Those materials may be of use to employees in other departments or locations, or to your neighbors—the organizations in your local community. Before getting rid of items, be sure to ask around or even host a “yard sale.” In any case, consider formally designating someone as a disposal manager to ensure the process runs smoothly.

One of the most powerful motivators is executive advocacy—communication from the top that this is something the organization cares about and is paying close attention to. Moreover, to avoid confusion and duplication of effort, leadership should be in charge of standardizing, implementing, and measuring the program. In other words, housekeeping needs to involve the whole house.