A day in the life of a Swiftclean Compliance Team Leader
We caught up with one of our most experienced team leaders, Lee McGuiness on what it’s like to work at Swiftclean and what a normal day in the life of a compliance team leader looks like. Our team leaders provide a vital role at Swiftclean which includes managing a team of supervisors
By Lee McGuiness – North Midlands Compliance Team Leader
Each working day is different for me, sometimes I’m out on site, and sometimes I’m working from home. I get to work on a variety of tasks, from collaborating with the teams to clean ventilation systems to conducting audits and delivering training; I’m also responsible for completing probation reviews and inducting new staff members. It’s a challenging and diverse role, but I find it incredibly rewarding.
Out on a night shift
On a typical site day, I usually work the night shift due to my high level of security clearance for various sites which require out of hours working. This involves waking up around 6 p.m., spending some time with my family (I have four sons and one daughter), and an activity such as taking my seven-year-old daughter, Caleigh, to her gymnastics class.
After setting off for work, I meet the teams on-site. It would usually be our Manchester or Leeds teams as they are closest – but could be anywhere, usually in the Northern half of the country.
We have a depot in Manchester, which I manage, so before going out to site I might carry out a stock check or pick up some equipment or consumables to take the engineers out on site.
Once I meet up with the teams on site, we could go through a toolbox talk; one I went through recently was working at height, giving our teams a refresher on protocol and working safely when using access equipment at height. I also like to help out on the tools if needed, particularly if it’s a complex job, or if we need some more manpower.
My work might involve carrying out a site audit on the system itself, for example, if there has been an access issue on site that we are having trouble resolving. I also audit the teams and check things like stock, uniform, and correct PPE in accordance with the risk assessments and method statements.
Desktop auditing day
During an auditing day, I will spend time catching up on communications with team members and those in head office – this could be via emails, on the phone or video calls. I tend to use this time to review our fleet management system, ensuring driving standards are at a high level, and to see who’s winning the interdepartmental league – obviously making sure Manchester is on top!
I’ll try and schedule a call with each team member to catch up with them and check all is ok, and if there is anything I can help them out with; I would check the absence statistics and carry out any outstanding return to work interviews that need to be actioned.
I might audit some post-clean verification reports from previous nights or days’ works, aiding the service delivery coordinators with chasing any missing information.
I would often do a stock order with our Northern warehouse assistant, Doug. I would check the PAT (Portable Appliance Testing) records to see if anyone has any electrical equipment due to be inspected soon and ensure that I have this scheduled in to test before it runs out of date.
I could be doing interviewing, our process is that we would do a teams-based interview online or phone interview first, before a face-to-face interview. Because we are based out in the field, interviews are usually held at a coffee shop or our nearest office which is in Leicester.