In most hotels, cleaning is something that happens in the background. A contractor sends a team, rotas are checked off elsewhere, and if something goes wrong, managers start chasing emails to work out who’s responsible.
Act Clean has taken a different route.
Instead of one supervisor spread thinly across multiple properties, each major venue has a dedicated supervisor and in some cases a site manager – a person whose entire job is to lead the cleaning operation in that one building.
“For me, a Site Manager is essential for a big site,” says Mark. “They take on everything an operations manager would do on a smaller site, but on a much bigger scale — and they’re there every day. They control the whole operation for that building, from rotas and payroll to health and safety, training and client contact. It’s a big role, and a very important one.”
At its heart, the site manager role is about ownership. They are totally embedded into an organisation, the on-site leader for Act Clean, responsible for:
- The day-to-day cleaning operation across the building.
- Leading, training and motivating the team
- Writing and managing rotas that follow the hotel’s rhythm
- Health & safety knowledge and compliance on site
- Turning feedback into action – quickly
- Being the main point of contact for the client’s leadership team.
A site manager doesn’t just check standards; they carry them out everyday.
They know the building, the brand and the people – from the hotel director to the night porter who spots a spill at 3am. They can make decisions in the moment, rather than waiting for approval from someone in a different property.
“A great site manager has to be well-rounded,” says Mark. “They need to be hands-on, but also know when to step back and manage. If you’re too hands-on, you’re not leading. If you’re not hands-on enough, the team won’t respect you. It’s about finding that balance.”
Many of Act Clean’s site managers, like Douglas at The Ned and Rebecca at The Standard, have grown from their very first shift as cleaners into leadership roles. That’s deliberate.
“Progression from within is something Act Clean has always done,” Mark says. “When people have done the work themselves, they understand the pressure, the standards and what good really looks like. That experience makes a huge difference for our clients.”
For hotel partners, the benefits are felt every day: one accountable person, on site, who treats the building as if it were their own.
“The site manager is your one call,” Mark explains. “They’re there five or six days a week. You shouldn’t need to pick up the phone to me unless something has really gone wrong. That relationship makes everything faster, smoother and far less stressful.”
How it Works on Site
The theory of a site manager makes sense on paper, but it is pretty powerful when you see the impact at our hotels, members clubs and restaurants.
The Ned: Leadership in a City Within a City
The Ned isn’t just a hotel, it’s a private members’ club with multiple restaurants, event spaces and hundreds of staff moving at speed. It virtually operates like a small city.
On a site like that, cleaning can’t be reactive.
“Being a site manager at The Ned presents a considerable challenge,” says Douglas Boakye. “But it’s also a rather engaging role… client engagement, team leadership and facility management. Rotas are done punctually and distributed. Staff have enough knowledge on health and safety measures and protocols, and feedback is addressed.”
That’s the difference. When a client has feedback or something specific to work on there is no chasing emails or waiting for someone to “get back to you.” The decision-maker is already in the building.
Douglas has been with Act Clean for ten years, progressing from cleaner to supervisor to site manager at The Ned, and recently stepped up to a Night Operations Manager role.
For Hotel Director Mairead Gleeson, that leadership shows up immediately in the guest experience.
“When you have a building of this size… It is those touch points. If you walk in that door and the cleanliness is not there, it just has a knock-on effect for the rest of the guest and member experience.”
Cleanliness isn’t just cosmetic, it actually sets the emotional tone of the whole building and experience for guests.
And nowhere is that more visible than on New Year’s Eve.
New Year's Eve: Partnership Under Pressure
The Ned’s black-tie New Year’s Eve party runs into the early hours. But by breakfast, guests are back in the same spaces.
Between those hours, Act Clean has just a few hours to reset the entire property. Preparation starts with the site manager meeting with the hotel supervisor before the party ends.
Together they:
- Walk every floor.
- Agree priorities and timings.
- He briefs supervisors and team leaders.
- Equipment is checked.
- Teams are positioned.
From Mairead’s perspective, it’s an operational feat. That level of turnaround doesn’t happen because of a contract. It happens because someone owns the building, every shift.
“I remember walking in on New Year’s Day and speaking to guests who found it incredible they had left that night just a few hours earlier… and it was back to standard.”
The Standard: Detail, People & Accountability
Across town at The Standard, Rebecca Umukoro runs a smaller team, but the principle is the same.
“I’m responsible for overseeing the cleaning operation. I delegate tasks, share the work and make sure it’s all done properly.”
Rebecca also began as a cleaner and progressed through team leader and supervisor roles. That lived experience shapes how she leads.
“Seeing the place I clean, seeing my team doing well, getting positive feedback from clients – that’s what I enjoy most in my position. Working with people and helping them.”
On a daily basis, that means:
- Immediate response when priorities shift
- Clear task allocation
- Standards reinforced in the moment
- A visible leader on the floor
For hotel leadership, it means something simpler: There is one accountable person on site for cleaning operations every night.
One role and a tangible impact
Across The Ned and The Standard, the pattern is clear. A dedicated site manager brings:
- One clear point of contact for hotel leadership
- On-site ownership of standards, rotas, health & safety and training
- Faster response to events, pressure points and changing demand
- Stronger team morale and progression
- Tighter control over compliance and risk
With Mark and the operations team behind them, site managers transform outsourced cleaning into something more powerful: an embedded operational partnership.
And truly your #teamwithintheteam
