PPC: People, Planet, Community

By Jared Sarbit

Group of Mexican students in green and orange uniforms standing with PPC team members under a covered basketball court holding a banner thanking Jared Sarbit and Picture Perfect Cleaning.

At Picture Perfect Cleaning we do so much more than keep your business or office clean and tidy. We empower our employees, we help take care of our planet, and we actively participate in our community.

People

Supporting Our Team Members

Even the best business is nothing without its employees. We care about our employees, and we want to make sure that they understand that they are valued and respected members of our team. To help us achieve this, we constantly ask ourselves how we can make working at Picture Perfect Cleaning the best job someone will ever have. All employers can go through the motions, exchanging money for labour, but we hold ourselves to a higher standard. We are never content to do the bare minimum.

To help our employees feel valued, respected, and safe, we always ensure that they are paid on time and get the time off they need to connect with their families, relax, and rejuvenate. We aren’t here to be the boss: We are here to help our custodians meet their goals by supporting them and providing them with the tools they need to succeed and flourish. Our business operates 24/7, which allows us to match our employees with jobs and shifts that meet their schedule, not the other way around. All of our employees enjoy freedom and flexibility when it comes to work, and know that we are always there to support them.

It’s easy for a company to focus on the bad things, but at Picture Perfect Cleaning we understand the importance of positive reinforcement. When one of our team members goes above and beyond, we acknowledge that. When someone is slipping, we take the time to ask them what is wrong and come to a solution together instead of just criticizing them and moving on.

Empowering Newcomers

At Picture Perfect Cleaning we understand that many Canadian newcomers face barriers when it comes to employment. Whether a newcomer has credentials that don’t transfer, didn’t have the opportunity to gain the education they wanted, or are still improving their English it can be difficult for newcomers to find jobs when they arrive. The janitorial industry has long been in a position to provide struggling newcomers with consistent work. Unfortunately, at Picture Perfect Cleaning we also know that many unscrupulous janitorial companies take advantage of vulnerable newcomers, who often aren’t in a position to complain or fight back.

At Picture Perfect Cleaning we strive to empower new Canadians, helping them build up their skills and confidence in a caring and respectful environment.

Our Annual Summer BBQ

To celebrate our fantastic team, we host a massive BBQ every summer to thank our employees for all their hard work. There we mingle with our team and their families and celebrate the family-like atmosphere we try to cultivate every day. One of our owners, Aaron, makes and grills the burgers. We listen to music from all around the world, offer games and face painting for the kids, and give out prizes.

Our Annual Christmas Party

Our annual Christmas parties are the talk of the office. Every year we book space at a nice restaurant and bring together all of our staff and their families for a full meal and dessert. During our Christmas party, we take time to acknowledge our team members who have hit their five-year milestone and offer them a variety of thank you prizes. This year our prizes included flat screen TVs, laptops, luggage sets, and more. Our Christmas party is a great way for Picture Perfect Cleaning to thank all of our hardworking employees and let them know how grateful we are for their hard work.

Planet

Environmental Stewardship

We only have one earth, and at Picture Perfect Cleaning we believe that it is our responsibility as human beings to care for it. We work hard to reduce our ecological footprint by using high-quality, environmentally sustainable, and low-impact products and cleaning techniques. That is why we choose EcoLogo and Green Seal products whenever possible.

Today eco-friendly products are incredibly accessible and provide excellent results that are as good as or even better than traditional cleaning products. As part of our health and safety initiatives, we have strict guidelines governing the chemicals and equipment we use so that we can ensure that our high environmental standards are always met.

Improved Productivity

Our decision to favour eco-friendly products impacts more than just the environment. By choosing as many environmentally friendly products as we can, we can help improve the air quality in the buildings we clean, keeping our employees and our client’s employees healthier. This, in turn, means that employees get sick less, take fewer sick days, and are more productive.

Lower Costs, More Customer Savings

Our use of environmentally friendly products also helps our bottom line. Using green products affords us a lower insurance rate because it means there is a lower chance of our employees becoming ill or injured on the job. This lower insurance rate means less overhead costs, and we pass the savings onto our customers.

Community

As active members of our community, we understand the importance of giving back. Picture Perfect Cleaning works hard to help support the most vulnerable members of our community through a variety of hands-on charitable initiatives. One of our most common charitable giving initiatives is to purchase and serve food to hungry and vulnerable individuals and families. In the past, we have partnered with The Mustard Seed, The Drop In Centre, and Feed the Hungry to help us support those amongst us who need a helping hand.

We also donate to a company called HomeSpace, who is also one of our clients. To help improve our community we give back 20% of their total bill as a charitable donation so that they can continue to help eliminate poverty in Calgary by providing affordable housing to vulnerable families and individuals.

At Picture Perfect Cleaning we believe in being more than just a janitorial company. We work hard to empower our team members, give back to our community, and safeguard our planet for future generations.

Cost Calculator

What Is In-House Cleaning Really Costing You?

Adjust the four numbers below to see your true annual in-house cleaning cost, an estimated cost range with Picture Perfect Cleaning, and what you'd save by making the switch.

Current in-house staff cost

Annual wages plus benefits for your cleaning staff

Supply and equipment costs

Annual spend on products, tools, and machine upkeep

Management oversight time

Hours per week spent scheduling and supervising cleaning

hrs/wk

Sick days or missed shifts

Average per cleaning staff member, per year

days/yr

Your Cost Comparison

True In-House Cost

Est. PPC Cost Range

$0 – $0

Estimated Annual Savings by Outsourcing

Based on the average of your PPC estimated range

Get a Custom Quote and See Your Savings →

Estimates are based on average commercial cleaning rates across Alberta and typical management and coverage costs. Your actual quote depends on square footage, service frequency, facility type, and scope of work. Request a custom quote above for an exact number.

The Hidden Cost of In-House Cleaning

A wage comparison only tells part of the story. Here’s what usually gets left out:

Wages and Benefits

Payroll is usually the first number people look at when they think about cleaning costs, but it rarely tells the whole story. Supplies, equipment, manager oversight, scheduling headaches, and the inevitable sick days all add up over time. By the time you account for everything, the true cost of keeping cleaning in-house can look very different from what’s on the payroll report. That’s exactly what our cost comparison tool is designed to help you see, along with what outsourcing might save.

Supplies and Equipment

Cleaning products, paper goods, vacuums, floor machines, and the replacement parts that keep them running all add up over the course of a year. Businesses that clean in-house often buy retail-grade supplies at retail prices because they don’t have access to the commercial pricing that a cleaning company gets from its suppliers. Equipment also breaks down, and replacing a vacuum or floor buffer every few years is a cost that rarely gets planned for in advance.

Management Time

Somebody has to schedule shifts, check the quality of the work, order more supplies when they run low, and step in when something gets missed. That’s real time pulled from a manager’s actual job, and it rarely gets assigned a dollar value, even though it should. If a facilities manager or office lead spends even a few hours a week on cleaning oversight, that’s time not spent on the parts of their role that actually move the business forward.

Absenteeism and Coverage Gaps

Sick days and missed shifts are part of running any team. When they happen, the work still has to get done, which usually means paying someone else to cover the shift or accepting that some tasks will have to wait. Over the course of a year, those extra costs can become surprisingly significant. There’s another effect that’s harder to measure, too. When cleaning is inconsistent, people notice. Employees notice it, clients notice it, and visitors notice it, even if they couldn’t tell you exactly why the space feels different.

Cost Category	What It Covers
Wages & Benefits	Annual pay for in-house cleaning staff
Supplies & Equipment	Products, tools, and machine upkeep
Management Time	Hours spent scheduling and supervising
Absenteeism	Missed shifts and last-minute coverage

Why Outsourcing Often Comes Out Ahead

Once you’ve seen your own numbers, the reasons behind the gap start to make sense.

Predictable Pricing

A cleaning company quote covers labor, supplies, and equipment on a single line. You know what you’re paying before the work starts, and that number doesn’t shift because someone called in sick or a vacuum broke down. Budgeting gets easier when the cost of cleaning is a single line item rather than four separate ones scattered across payroll, supplies, and management time.

No Coverage Gaps

When a member of an in-house cleaning team calls in sick, someone on your staff has to figure out what happens next. With a professional cleaning service, that responsibility shifts to the provider. If a cleaner is unavailable, arranging a replacement is part of the service, so your team isn’t left scrambling to fill the gap.

Accountability Built In

Picture Perfect Cleaning holds COR certification and provides regular service reporting, so you can see what’s being done and when, without spending your own hours checking on it. That’s the management time most in-house teams never get back. Our team also uses EcoLogo- and Green Seal-certified products, so you’re not trading cost savings for a lower cleaning standard.

Get Your Custom Quote

Wages are only one line in what in-house cleaning actually costs. Once you add in supplies, the hours a manager spends overseeing the crew, and the gaps left by sick days, the real number is usually higher than what shows up on a payroll report and often higher than what a professional service would charge for the same work. That’s the gap the tool above is built to show you, along with what outsourcing could put back in your budget.

Our cost comparison tool gives you a reasonable estimate of what you could save by switching to a professional cleaning service, not a final number. Every building is different, and factors like your cleaning schedule, the size of your facility, and the services you need will affect the actual cost. If you’d like a more accurate quote based on your space, contact Picture Perfect Cleaning, and we’ll walk you through the options.