Going to Market for Cleaning Services — a practical guide for Australian & New Zealand organisations
Cleaners move through buildings like the quiet guardians of reputation and safety. They’re the people who make a hotel feel welcoming at dawn, keep a hospital safe for clinicians and patients, and ensure an office is presentable for visitors. Despite that vital role, cleaning services are often tendered in a rush, drafted around historical hours and a handful of line items — which creates risk: poor service, industrial disputes, hidden costs and regulatory headaches.
Going to market for cleaning services in Australia and New Zealand demands a different approach. The market has matured: labour is a dominant cost, compliance expectations are higher, sustainability matters to customers and regulators, and digital tools can now make service delivery visible and auditable. This article is a practical primer for procurement and facilities leaders on how to get it right — from scoping and market engagement through to evaluation, contracting and mobilisation — and explains how Trace Consultants can help at every step.
Why getting your go-to-market (GTM) right matters
Cleaning services is a deceptively complex category. At face value it looks like “hours and materials”, but the outcomes you actually buy are health and safety, user experience, asset preservation and regulatory compliance. When procurement focuses purely on hourly rates or the lowest bid, downstream costs often emerge: rework, higher supervision, infection control failures, reputational impacts and industrial relations problems. Conversely, a well-designed GTM can deliver consistent service, reduce total cost of ownership, and build continuous improvement into the contract.
Key reasons to take a structured approach:
- Labour-led cost base: Labour is typically the largest cost. Small changes in roster design, travel allowances, or productivity yield large savings.
- Regulatory and safety risk: Healthcare, education and food environments demand infection control, hygiene and safety expertise.
- Hidden scope & variability: Are you buying window cleaning, periodic deep cleans, or supply of consumables? Ambiguity costs money.
- Service visibility: Digital cleaning verification, audits and KPIs shift the contract from trust to measured performance.
- Supplier market: The supplier market ranges from national providers to specialist local operators. How you structure the market and evaluation determines who bids and who wins.
Start with clarity: define outcomes, not just hours
The most common GTM mistake is an under-specified scope. A clear, unambiguous scope of works is the foundation of a successful tender. It should answer:
- What is to be cleaned — spaces, assets and surfaces (e.g. public toilets, patient rooms, back-of-house kitchens, façades).
- How often — frequencies (daily, weekly, periodic deep cleans), triggers (events, spills), and expected duration or results.
- Standards — quality standards or audit methodologies (e.g. cleaning audit scorecards, infection control standards).
- Exclusions — what suppliers are not responsible for (e.g. pest control, grounds maintenance).
- Materials & consumables — who supplies cleaning chemicals, equipment, PPE and consumables.
- Access & security — hours of access, photo identification, security screening.
- Special requirements — biohazard handling, chemicals of concern, or work during low-occupancy windows.
Translate outcomes into measurable deliverables. Instead of “cleaning toilets twice daily”, define the expected audit standard and maximum acceptable escalations. This moves the contract from time input to service output.
Understand cost drivers and choose the right commercial model
Cleaning contracts are driven by labour, travel, consumables, equipment and overhead. How you price and contract for those components determines supplier behaviour.
Common pricing models
- Blended hourly rate: Simple — often used for ad hoc or low-risk services. It can hide differences in skill levels and incentivise minimal effort.
- Guaranteed FTE (staffing model): You contract for a guaranteed number of FTEs (or rostered hours). This gives certainty but requires careful productivity modelling and strong mobilisation governance.
- Rate card by activity or area: Pricing per room type, per square metre, or per task. This supports transparency and can be linked to volumes.
- Output-based pricing: Pricing linked to achieved KPIs (audit scores, response times). This incentivises performance but needs robust measurement systems.
- Hybrid models: A mix of guaranteed hours for core services and activity rates for variable or event cleaning.
Choosing the right model depends on your risk appetite, desire for control, and the maturity of suppliers. For example, hospitals often favour a hybrid model that guarantees rostered clinical cleaning resources while paying activity rates for deep cleans.
Cost modelling essentials
- Build a detailed activity-based cost model that maps every task to time, skill level and consumables. This allows price comparisons to be like-for-like.
- Include productivity assumptions (cleaning rates per square metre, travel time, handover time).
- Model peak, off-peak and event requirements — not all cleaning is steady state.
- Consider award rates and industrial instruments in AU & NZ — wage settings, penalty rates and employer superannuation/kiwiSaver obligations materially affect costs.
- Account for management, supervision and overhead rather than assuming the supplier will absorb these.
Market strategy: single supplier, multi-supplier, or managed service?
How you structure the supplier relationship shapes competition and risk.
- Single supplier (national or lead supplier): Easier governance and economies of scale. Risk: single point of failure and potential lack of local agility.
- Regionally appointed suppliers / multi-supplier: Good for local knowledge and resilience. Requires stronger contract management to ensure consistent standards across contractors.
- Managed service/Principal Contractor: The supplier oversees multiple service lines (cleaning, waste, grounds), acting as a single interface. This supports integrated delivery but requires strong contractual clarity on responsibilities.
- Panel arrangements / prequalified panel: Useful when demand is variable or for specialist cleaning where several suppliers can be called off.
Your market approach should reflect operational realities. Large property portfolios often benefit from a single strategic partner for consistency, whereas distributed sites (e.g. regional hospitals or schools) may prefer a local multi-supplier approach to reduce travel and increase local employment.
Tender design: stages and documents
A typical, well-structured GTM for cleaning services follows staged engagement:
- Market sounding / RFI (optional): Test capability, innovation and interest without committing to a tender. Useful to understand supply constraints, digital capability and sustainability offerings.
- Detailed RFT/RFP: Provide a full scope of works, schedules, evaluation criteria, sample contract and pricing template. Make the submission requirements clear.
- Clarification and supplier demonstrations: Site visits, interviews and demonstrations (equipment, cleaning methodology).
- Evaluation and negotiation: Transparent scoring across capability, commercials, risk and value add.
- Award and mobilisation: Detailed mobilisation plan with milestones, training, and transitional KPI baselines.
Key documents to prepare
- Scope of Works / Service Schedule — definitive list of tasks, frequencies, standards, and exclusions.
- Pricing Schedules — activity rates, FTE schedules, consumables pricing, and escalation clauses.
- Evaluation Criteria & Weightings — clearly articulated so suppliers understand how they will be scored.
- Draft Agreement / Contract — include governance, KPIs, payment mechanisms and termination clauses.
- Mobilisation Plan template — require suppliers to detail their transition approach, recruitment plan, training schedules and risk mitigations.
- Site data pack — drawing, site photos, operating hours, footfall and special access needs.
Clarity in the RFT reduces questions and makes evaluation faster and fairer.
Evaluation: beyond the base price
Procurement should evaluate bids holistically. Price is important, but capability, cultural fit and risk appetite determine outcomes.
Suggested evaluation pillars
- Service delivery capability: Experience in similar environments, cleaning methodology, supervision ratios and training programmes.
- Operational systems & technology: Workforce scheduling systems, quality auditing tools, incident reporting and digital verification.
- Commercial offer: Price transparency, escalation mechanisms and value for money.
- Resilience & continuity: Business continuity planning, backup resources, and industrial relations approach.
- Sustainability & innovation: Use of green chemicals, water efficiency, waste management and substitution of single-use products.
- Compliance & safety: WHS systems, worker screening, induction and relevant certifications.
Use a balanced scorecard with clear weightings. Panels should include operational stakeholders (facilities managers, infection control, HR) to validate supplier capability claims.
KPIs, audits and governance
Measurement converts promise into performance. A well-designed KPI framework drives accountability and continuous improvement.
Common KPI categories
- Quality & cleanliness: Audit scores, cleaning defect rate, pass/fail rates.
- Response & service: Response time for spill cleanups, complaint resolution time.
- Health & safety: Incident reports, PPE compliance, training completion.
- Workforce metrics: Staff turnover, background check compliance and training records.
- Sustainability: Chemical usage, waste diversion, equipment energy efficiency.
- Reporting & data: Timeliness and accuracy of reports, digital verification rates.
Design incentives and remedies carefully. Avoid punitive systems that encourage gaming; prefer balanced incentives that reward improvement and collaboration.
Quality assurance techniques
- Independent audits — periodic third-party audits provide objectivity.
- Digital verification — QR code checks, photos, and IoT sensors to prove work completed.
- Customer feedback loops — quick surveys or apps for building occupants to flag issues.
- Root cause analysis for failures — require suppliers to demonstrate corrective actions, not just one-off fixes.
Transition & mobilisation — the make or break phase
Even the best tender can fail where mobilisation is poor. Mobilisation should be planned as a project with governance, milestones and dedicated resources.
Mobilisation checklist
- Recruitment & training plan: Clear timeline for hiring and induction.
- Baseline audits: Capture existing condition and set baseline KPI scores.
- Supply chain & consumables: Confirm sourcing, labels, chemical approvals and stock levels.
- HR & compliance: Police checks, right to work documentation, payroll set-up and award alignment.
- Site access & security: Keys, access cards, sign-in processes, parking.
- Equipment & uniform: Deliveries, maintenance plans and storage.
- Test cleans & trial periods: Early operational trials to iron out schedules.
- Stakeholder communications: Inform occupants and relevant teams about changes, contact points and escalation.
Mobilisation should include a joint governance calendar — weekly standups, milestone sign-offs and readiness gates. Payment shouldn’t move to full scale without key readiness checks.
Technology, visibility and innovation
Innovation in cleaning is no longer just about chemicals. Digital tools and data drive productivity and customer confidence.
Digital opportunities
- Workforce management systems — optimise rosters, reduce travel, and match skill to task.
- Cleaning verification tools — QR scanning, photo evidence and mobile checklists.
- IoT & sensors — occupancy sensors to target cleaning frequencies, smart bins and soap dispensers to reduce waste.
- Mobile reporting — real-time defect capture and escalation.
- Analytics dashboards — link audits, complaints, and costs to identify hotspots and improvement opportunities.
Technology also supports sustainability: metered dosing systems reduce chemical waste; microfibre systems extend equipment life; and route optimisation reduces travel emissions.
Risk & compliance: what to watch for in AU & NZ
Cleaning suppliers operate within a governance web. Procurement must be alive to regulatory and reputational risks.
Key compliance issues
- Workplace health & safety (WHS): Ensure suppliers have robust WHS systems, hazardous chemicals registers, and training in manual handling.
- Modern slavery & labour standards: Due diligence on supply chains, subcontractors and labour hire is expected. Include clauses for forced labour, wage compliance and subcontractor oversight.
- Industrial instruments: Understand relevant awards and agreements in AU and collective agreements in NZ that affect wage costs.
- Background checks & vaccinations: Particularly for healthcare and education, requirements for police checks and vaccination records are common.
- Environmental compliance: Disposal of chemicals and waste may be regulated; ensure suppliers can demonstrate compliance.
- Insurance & liability: Verify indemnities and insurance limits appropriate to your risk profile.
Contract clauses should require suppliers to provide evidence of compliance and allow for audits and corrective action plans.
Sustainability & social value
Clients and regulators increasingly expect sustainability and social procurement. Cleaning contracts present genuine opportunities to deliver both.
Sustainability levers
- Green products and dosing systems to reduce chemical footprint.
- Microfibre and low-water cleaning systems to reduce consumables and water use.
- Equipment efficiency — invest in energy-efficient machines.
- Waste separation & diversion — separate organics and recyclables at source.
- Local employment & social procurement — clauses that encourage local hiring, indigenous supplier participation, or employing people from disadvantaged cohorts.
Social value is not a tick box. It should be measurable, reported and linked to contract performance.
Supplier relationship & continuous improvement
A high-performance cleaning contract is a partnership. Once mobilisation is complete, the focus shifts to continuous improvement.
Practical governance
- Monthly performance reviews — track KPIs, disputes and improvement plans.
- Quarterly business reviews — strategic items: cost optimisation, technology adoption and workforce issues.
- Joint improvement plan — a formal roadmap for efficiencies and innovation.
- Clear escalation routes — for disputes, safety incidents and urgent unscheduled cleaning.
- Benchmarking — periodically benchmark prices, productivity and audit scores to understand market movement.
Change is inevitable. Contracts should be structured to allow scope changes, price review mechanisms and collaboration on productivity gains.
How Trace Consultants can help
Going to market for cleaning services is as much a project as it is procurement. Trace Consultants brings specialist supply-chain, procurement and facilities expertise to ensure your GTM delivers outcomes. Practical ways Trace can support your organisation include:
- Scope definition & activity-based cost modelling: We translate your building inventory and service requirements into a detailed scope and an activity cost model so you procure like-for-like.
- Market strategy & supplier shortlisting: We advise on the optimal market approach (single supplier, panel or managed service) and identify capable suppliers across AU & NZ.
- Tender documentation & drafting: We prepare clear scopes of works, pricing schedules and contract documents that reduce ambiguity and procurement risk.
- Evaluation design & facilitation: We build balanced scorecards, run bidder clarification sessions and facilitate evaluation panels that include operational stakeholders.
- Commercial negotiation: We lead negotiations to ensure commercial transparency and value, while protecting your operational and compliance position.
- Mobilisation & change management: We plan and manage mobilisation as a project — recruitment, training, baseline audits and readiness gates — so your supplier is ready on day one.
- KPI design & governance frameworks: We design meaningful KPIs, audit programmes and reporting to ensure performance is measurable and managed.
- Technology and productivity reviews: We assess digital cleaning verification, workforce management and IoT opportunities and help select practical solutions.
- Risk, compliance and modern slavery reviews: We assess supply chain risk, ensure award compliance modelling, and incorporate modern slavery due diligence into procurement.
- Sustainability & social value planning: We embed sustainability opportunities and social procurement outcomes into the strategy and contract.
Trace’s approach is pragmatic and evidence-based: we combine activity modelling, market insight and operational understanding so your GTM is fair to suppliers, defensible to auditors and focused on outcomes.
Practical checklist: 10 steps to a successful GTM for cleaning services
- Map every space and activity — create a site data pack with drawings and activity lists.
- Define outcomes and standards — convert frequencies and tasks into measurable standards.
- Build an activity cost model — capture time, skill and consumable assumptions.
- Choose the commercial model — decide between FTE guarantees, rate cards, output pricing or a hybrid.
- Engage the market early — run RFI/market sounding to test capability and innovation.
- Draft clear RFT documents — include pricing templates, contract and mobilisation requirements.
- Score holistically — include capability, compliance, innovation and price.
- Plan mobilisation as a project — with readiness gates, recruitment and site trials.
- Implement digital verification & audits — to remove ambiguity and measure delivery.
- Run joint continuous improvement — monthly and quarterly governance with a focus on productivity.
Cleaning services are fundamental to safety, user experience and asset care. They’re also an area where an upfront investment in planning — good scope, robust modelling and a strong market process — pays dividends in service reliability and total cost of ownership. Whether you are a facilities leader, procurement manager or a project sponsor, the way you go to market will shape outcomes for years.
If you’d like a partner who understands the operational realities, the commercial levers and the market dynamics across Australia and New Zealand, Trace Consultants can help you design and run a go-to-market process that delivers measurable outcomes — without the friction.
Ready to turn your cleaning contract into a strategic asset for your organisation? Contact Trace Consultants to discuss a tailored GTM plan.
