Contract Establishment: The Main Requirements

Introduction

The intention to generate a contract between the office and a cleaning company in regard to its permanent service provision requires in-depth analysis and consideration of the needs, opportunities, and circumstances linking the two entities. However, establishing and implementing the contract as evidence of the financial and other obligations between the employing and employed company requires several considerations. It is important to highlight a plan including information on potential barriers and objectives to consider, such as obtaining information on requirements and office layout and implementing a cost-reimbursement strategy.

Obtaining Information

Creating a statement of work and a request for a proposal requires the obtainment of information correlating with the subject. In this case, the objective is to determine the exact services and conditions that have to be included in the employment contract of the cleaning company. As a multi-department organization, each division requires a variety of services that differ from one another. The various department managers whose areas will be cleaned by the contractor are to provide data and information on several elements. For example, the managers are to highlight the current cleaning schedules if they exist. Specifically, they can mention the number of employees providing cleaning services, the frequency, schedule, and areas that require daily versus periodic cleaning.

Another type of data that can be required is the existence of potential policies implemented within the department. For example, a variety of companies have clean-desk policies assigned to most employees (Babapour Chafi & Rolfö, 2019). However, individuals with executive functions do, indeed, require cleaning services for the task, implying that certain rules differ based on the position of the employee. For example, a department with multiple positions correlating with executive functions would require more assistance. Additional information that can be required is the area from a measurement perspective as well as the positioning of the locations. For example, a department may have a wider area to cover by the contractor. As a result, more cleaning time, supplies, and employees are required to fulfill the service need.

Similarly, the design of the department may interfere with how the contract is being implemented. For example, the monetary rate for cleaning a major office with multiple desks, in which the layout implies the operation of multiple teams, is higher than the same service for a single-person office. Other circumstances that department managers may provide information on include schedule circumstances as well as potential confidentiality requests. For example, a team that operates during the night may require a different cleaning timing. Additionally, depending on the nature of the business or department, cleaning employees may be required to follow confidentiality guidelines when it comes to intelligent technology or private documentation.

Types of Contracts

The type of contract highlights certain circumstances in which parties agree to execute each other’s premises through a legally binding document. Two types of contracts that are relatively common in the area that is being assessed currently include fixed-price and cost-reimbursement contracts. A fixed-price contract, as highlighted by researchers, implies an arrangement in which the sum is determined before the service is provided and cannot be altered by external circumstances (Mangvwat et al., 2020). In this case, the monthly or weekly cleaning services are to be reimbursed by the set price despite certain months requiring more or less service provision. On the other hand, a const-reimbursement contract implies that the contractor is paid depending on the discussed fees in correlation with the services that were provided. For example, months in which most employees take holidays require less office cleaning, implying that the contractor is paid less due to the fact that fewer employees and hours are needed.

Cost-Reimbursement Contract

The contract that would be most efficient under the current circumstances is a fixed-price one. Namely, the contractor and the organization will establish the monetary reimbursement that will be fulfilled each month. The term of employment, compensation, duties, and termination measures will be included in the employment agreement (Tepper, 2014). There are several reasons why this type of contract would benefit both parties. On the one hand, the procedure is much easier and does not require a monthly assessment of services similar to the circumstances correlating with a cost-reimbursement agreement. On the other hand, the contract implies a predictable and stable scenario for both sides. In this case, the likelihood of misunderstandings and risks is decreased as both parties operate on initially predetermined terms.

Conclusion

Contract establishment between the organization and the contractor, a cleaning company, requires detailed planning of circumstances that can influence the collaboration. On the one hand, it is essential to highlight the elements that directly impact the service, namely, the requirements, tasks, objectives, and expectations. On the other hand, it is vital to determine the type of contract that will bind the two parties through the legal agreement. Based on the assessment of the situation, it is certain that a fixed-price contract that considers details correlating with the service providers would benefit both the contractor and the employer. As a result, the parties can expect long-term collaboration with minimum risks and barriers.

References

Babapour Chafi, M., & Rolfö, L. (2019). Policies in activity-based flexible offices -‘I am sloppy with clean-desking. we don’t really know the rules.’ Ergonomics, 62(1), 1–20. Web.

Mangvwat, J. S., Ewuga, D. J., & Izam, Y. D. (2020). Time and cost performance of fixed price building contracts in tertiary institutions in Nigeria. MATEC Web of Conferences, 312, 06003. Web.

Tepper, P. R. (2014). The law of contracts and the Uniform Commercial Code. Delmar.