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ISSA Member Profile: Lynn Webster Consultants Ltd.

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Lynn Webster Consultants Ltd. (LWC) is a United Kingdom-based cleaning industry consultancy firm that prides itself on being a source of essential expertise for organisations operating in both facilities management and cleaning with in-house or contracted services.

Lynn Webster, a 35-year veteran of the cleaning industry who served as national chairman of the British Institute of Cleaning Science—or BICSc—from 2009 to 2011, founded the company in 2004. The organization offers a range of services including consulting, audit, compliance, and training.

“The company began as an opportunity to share the wealth of experience that my associates and I have gained in our many years working in the industry,” said Webster. “Our reputation is based on a combination of rigorous professionalism and high-level expertise. Having held operational and project positions in cleaning across many sectors—health care, retail, education, and hospitality—this considerable knowledge and on-the-ground experience is the foundation of the business.”

However, whilst LWC is headquartered in the UK, the company has a global vision.

“We are always looking to develop and build on international opportunities for growth,” Webster explained. “This is one of the key reasons as to why, in August 2013, we joined ISSA. We recognised the global standing of the association, and felt strongly that to be a member would mean being a part of exciting growth into international markets. I knew it would be a greatly rewarding endeavour both personally and professionally.”

Only a few months into its membership, LWC was asked to play a part in ISSA’s first-ever International Trade Delegation. With sessions held in the South African cities of Johannesburg and Cape Town, the trade delegation was created as part of ISSA’s African Network Platform, in conjunction with ISSA’s alliance partner in the region, National Contract Cleaners Association—or NCCA.

“There are significant international growth opportunities for many businesses within South Africa, and this is also true for those of us in the cleaning industry,” said Webster. “There is a real drive to raise cleaning standards in the country, with increasing demands exerted on service providers for high levels of service delivered effectively and efficiently. And while there is an abundance of available labour due to unemployment rates in the region, there is also a movement to raise the perception, professionalism, and skill base of the industry. ISSA’s relationship with NCCA and this trade delegation provided a great platform for companies like LWC to explore these opportunities.”

As part of the South Africa trade delegation, LWC realised a number of benefits. “We were able to develop profitable delivery projects as a result of the contacts we made during our visit to the country, which not only equates to increased revenue, but also helps consolidate our reputation as an international business,” Webster added.

One of ISSA’s expressed aims is to change the world views cleaning. In order to fulfil this goal, the association constantly strives to build bridges throughout the cleaning industry worldwide.

“All cleaning service providers, both in-house and external, need to constantly be thinking about how they can do things better in order to stay ahead of the game,” Webster explained. “This means working together with the supply chain and clients in order to provide the best service possible.

“Through ISSA we have met many like-minded individuals, who, just like LWC, want to share best practices, challenge the norm, improve the public’s perception of the industry, and be a vehicle for change. It is encouraging to see, and ISSA has definitely proved to be a wonderful facilitator of building this network. My experience in South Africa really proved to me that members of the cleaning industry are a global family. We share a common bond―the same desire to make a brighter and cleaner future,” Webster concluded.

For more information on Lynn Webster Consultants Ltd., visit www.lwc-ltd.co.uk.

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