In Branschnytt number 13, we did a reportage with Well-kept in Norrland where we interviewed CEO Jimmy Westerlund and Operations Manager Mari Kemppainen. Here you, as a reader, get to take part of Jimmy and Mari's thoughts on how the business looks and what success factors have helped them in public procurements.
Välstädat i Norrland is a full-service company that provides cleaning services to businesses, private individuals, and associations throughout Norrbotten, with offices in Luleå, Boden, and Piteå. In an interview with CEO Jimmy Westerlund and Operations Manager Mari Kemppainen, they describe the company as a premium provider of cleaning services with a focus on sustainability and the highest quality. Välstädat is a subsidiary of Stålstaden AB and currently has a turnover of approximately 40 million SEK with just under 70 employees.
How would you describe Välstädat as a business?
We are a solution-oriented service company that always prioritizes service and quality in the work we perform, as well as flexibility towards our clients. Our staff are also highly competent and take pride in working at Välstädat, which is also noticed by our clients, explains Jimmy Westerlund.
An important part of our quality assurance is that we work sustainably with environmentally certified products. For example, since last year, we have also started investing in a completely new vehicle fleet where we are transitioning from fossil-fueled to electric cars. These are things that our customers demand and are primarily required in public procurements.
Which factors do you think have been decisive for you has succeeded in public procurements?
Several factors have contributed to our success. We've put a lot of energy into becoming proficient at submitting bids in tenders. Tengella helps by providing an overview of our previous reference projects and identifying what we need to prioritize. For bidding purposes, we retrieve all our information from the system to be able to present documentation regarding, for example, quality controls or how our staff work, in the form of staff lists and real-time clock-in/clock-out times for the projects.
We stand behind what we do well and do not underbid in public procurements. We provide an accurate and fair price for the services we offer. We focus on highlighting what we, as a supplier, have that others don't – an increased focus on the environment and a highly experienced organization that manages operations effectively.
”Accounting is a critical tool for us to feel in control and optimized in our work.”
You are in an industry with low profit margins, What value do you see Tengella contributing, based on your Role as CEO?
Time tracking is a critical tool for us to feel in control and optimized in our work. We have so much documented in the system today, we regularly go in and analyze the information – it becomes a control function to know that we are doing what we should be doing correctly. Precisely because it is a low-margin industry, it is extremely important that we are good at scheduling and continuously reconciling our profitability at a detailed level, Jimmy concludes.
You target several customer groups; how do you manage to deliver premium quality cleaning services?
From the very first introduction of new employees, we establish thorough training until we jointly decide that the quality of "Välstädat" is met. We strive for continuity in staffing our assignments, which builds long-term relationships between client and employee, says Mari Kemppainen.
Within the organization, we prioritize consistent work methods, with job descriptions and frequency lists compiled in Tengella and on mobile devices for staff. Our supervisors bear the greatest responsibility for maintaining quality, which means they are out with employees both so that they feel seen and to validate assignments. Fundamentally, it's about caring for our customers and our staff. This is what's most important to us and something that permeates our entire way of working and ensuring quality.
Which features of Tengella have primarily helped you to Develop the business and in what way?
With Tengella, everything comes together, all in the same system from quotes to invoicing the customer. This gives us an important overview without using other tools, which streamlines operations and reduces the risk of mistakes.
Follow-up also becomes much easier, as we can generate reports on almost anything from the system. Tengella is also flexible enough that we can adapt the system to our needs and not the other way around – which is valuable to us. Another significant feature is case management; we can quickly and directly answer questions from our customers. Tengella is a system we couldn't do without; we are grateful that it provides us with the support we need in our daily operations.
What features do you consider especially valuable when Are you doing business with the public sector?
In dialogue with corporate clients and in public procurements, high demands are placed on clarity, follow-up, and structure – it’s not enough to do a good job, we also need to be able to account for it. With the help of Tengella, we can extract data that, for example, shows the number of completed assignments, the results of quality controls performed, and which work descriptions we have for the client's property. This is therefore important for working with that type of customer, Mari concludes.
”At its core, it's about caring for our customers and our staff. That's what's most important to us and something that permeates our entire way of working and ensuring quality.”