Every hallway mopped, every restroom cleaned, every filter replaced, often is followed by a paper trail. In many schools, maintenance and custodial tasks are still tracked with antiquated legacy systems–slowing teams down and leaving gaps in visibility across daily operations. 

Though digital tools are more accessible than ever, adoption among operations and facility management teams has been sluggish at best. Nonetheless, clinging to outdated systems doesn’t just cost time–it wastes resources. By adopting digital tools and moving away from paper-based systems, school leaders can strengthen accountability, increase efficiency, and meet rising expectations for cleanliness– all while supporting long-term sustainability goals.

This is critical, as processes that rely on paper frequently create bottlenecks for building performance. Not only do they slow down response times, but they increase miscommunication and make important information difficult to access and share. Paper also doesn’t scale–what might work for one school may not translate well across an entire district. Without real-time visibility or streamlined workflows, teams become reactive rather than proactive.

Smarter Systems: How Digital Tools Enhance Operational Efficiency

According to a study conducted by the Aberdeen group, teams that adopted mobile field service solutions saw a 28% boost in on-time work order completion. The reasons for increased efficiency are clear: digital tools make it easier to prioritize and track tasks in real time, reducing delays and improving accountability. 

Digital technologies used for cleaning can help at each stage of maintenance operations. This includes:

• Real-Time Communication of Work: For example, QR codes, especially in high-traffic areas like restrooms or on important equipment, allows staff to log cleanings or report issues instantly–no clipboard or paperwork necessary. 
• Dynamic Scheduling: Scheduling is also more efficient, with on-the-go access eliminating the need to commute to an office for printed assignments. Supervisors can even monitor staff completion remotely, reassign work as needed, and better balance workloads across their teams. 
• Complete Real-Time Visibility Across Portfolio: Automated reporting further streamlines operations by reducing manual data entry, minimizing human errors, and closing communication gaps. The result is not only faster workflows, but also more reliable, data-informed decision making.

Sustainability: Less Paper, Less Waste

‍

Source: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/359950636_Biochemistry_of_wastes_recycling

Going paperless isn’t just an operational upgrade–it’s a meaningful move toward achieving facilities sustainability environmental impact. In custodial operations, paper waste adds up quickly through repeated use of checklists, logbooks, and inspection forms. By digitizing these workflows, schools can drastically cut down on printing, reduce emissions, and eliminate unnecessary storage. This directly supports environmental targets at the district or municipal level.

This shift matters: the EPA estimates that paper accounts for roughly 25% of landfill waste in the U.S. Minimizing dependence on paper is a concrete way to shrink a school’s environmental footprint. Thus, using digital tools provides up-to-date visibility into supply usage and task completion. With clearer data, teams across the world decrease waste and take more intentional steps toward sustainable daily operations.

Transparency: Do It for Your Team

Beyond operational and sustainability gains, going paperless directly benefits your team. Digital tools empower custodians to work independently, as well as communicate more easily with their supervisors and colleagues. The result is more time for meaningful work–and less time lost to inefficient processes. Digitized systems also create a more transparent way to track effort, recognize contributions, and reward hardworking staff equitably.

Conclusion

Where to begin? Start small. Any move away from paper-dependent systems is one towards a more efficient and sustainable workplace. Given that change can be met with hesitation, it’s often wise to begin with something manageable–like digitizing a single cleaning loop–and expanding gradually from there. The payoff: cleaner buildings, more productive teams, and a greener environmental footprint.