As we transition to an inclusive hybrid work model, the overall health, well-being, and safety of employees, leaders, and teams are Cisco’s top priorities. In preparation for returning to the office, Cisco is developing the support systems employees need to succeed when working in a combination of on-site and off-site locations. A basic component is Cisco's technology solutions for workplace transformation. These solutions include social density monitoring, smart workplaces, asset and facility monitoring, and smart buildings. Cisco's solution will enable employees to collaborate safely and reliably in a mixed work environment.

In order to further protect employees from the risk of infection and reduce the spread of disease when the workplace is reopened, what if there is a data-driven solution that can test for bacteria on facility surfaces, clean and disinfect surfaces, and verify the effectiveness of cleaning methods? Then digitize the results to assure employees and customers working in the field?

Entrepreneurship Foundation and Cisco Networking Academy

In June 2020, Cisco Networking Academy alumni Dom Chavez and Malcolm Smith co-founded Victory Lab Micro-Clean, an infection prevention service that uses the most innovative technology to conduct network operations centers, offices, churches, and other facilities. Disinfect and protect. Dom and Malcolm met in the workplace after completing the Networking Academy course, and they were separated by a few years. When Malcolm interviewed Dom about his network role in his team, they learned that they all participated in the Network Academy program. The two people who turned from alumni to colleagues have formed a close relationship.

In his early years, Malcolm's fascination with electronics and his incredible obsession with vacuum cleaners inspired him to start the carpet cleaning business at the age of eight. He uses Bissell carpet cleaner. He once begged his mother to buy him Christmas gifts to professionally clean the carpets in his family and friends' houses.

Years later, after being jailed for marijuana-related charges at the age of 20, Malcolm struggled to find a stable job (read more here: Cisco Networking Academy alumni Malcolm Smith shares his transformation story). Returning to his entrepreneurial roots, he founded a commercial cleaning company and operated it for six years. After running his own business for four years, Malcolm decided to return to the school where he enrolled in the online academy course.

It is this entrepreneurial spirit and the skills that Malcolm and Dom have developed as Networking Academy students—the ability to identify problems, solve problems, and design solutions—promote and equip them to launch Victory Lab Micro-Clean.

Before the pandemic, Dom was affected by the rapid spread of diseases and infections while managing the network operations center and sending his son to the daycare facility. "At the beginning of each fall, I have to deal with a large number of calls from team members because they caught something from the children and couldn’t work shifts. At the same time, my son was in a daycare center and I was sick because of him. Pull him out every month."

Realizing that he once ran a commercial cleaning service company, Dom turned to Malcom to discuss the problems of improper disinfection processes in the facility and the lack of surface test data to verify these processes. These deficiencies may cause surface contamination and illness. To solve this problem, they developed Victory Lab Micro-Clean's infection prevention as a service (IPaaS) model.

Perform surface testing to determine the level of microorganisms on high-contact surfaces, and during each visit to the customer's facility, before and after the surface is treated. This step is essential to verify the effectiveness of the Victory Lab Micro-Clean solution.

Victory Lab Micro-Clean’s technicians are equipped and trained to handle high-contact surfaces including electronic equipment to complete the disinfection protocol. Infection outbreaks in the workplace can be prevented by continuous antimicrobial surface protection by applying a safe solution to the surface that kills viruses and bacteria on contact. The technician will return to the customer's facility at least every 60-90 days to perform the service.

The pandemic caused Dom and Malcolm to incorporate technical components into Victory Lab Micro-Clean's IPaaS model to meet the needs of potential customers to provide assurance to employees and visitors working on-site that measures have been taken to protect their well-being. All the surface test results of the facility are uploaded to Victory Lab Micro-Clean's portal, providing employees and visitors who use the portal with tangible evidence that the surfaces they touch are properly disinfected and protected.

Strong partnership drives successful results

Dom and Malcolm attribute their successful establishment of Victory Lab Micro-Clean to their diverse skills, which enabled them to form a strong business partnership. "The synergy of our partnership is part of Victory Lab Micro-Clean. We are engineers, so solving problems is a fascination. Once we get something in the crosshairs, we won't let it go. Just like there is An unfinished jigsaw; to me, it is unbearable," Malcolm said. Dom pointed out that he and Malcolm have similar professional backgrounds and are both creative people. They benefited from each other's strengths, but they also made up for each other's weaknesses.

Dom and Malcolm are both fathers of young children, and they strike a balance between taking care of their families, spending the first few months of the pandemic, working full-time and nurturing new businesses. They admit that their process of launching Victory Lab Micro-Clean is sometimes overwhelming. Dom shared: “We spend every minute of our free time on this business, including weekends. There are many things to deal with between fatherhood and work.” Malcolm added that time management is theirs The key to success, although long sleepless nights are usually inevitable.

As business partners, Dom and Malcolm rely on each other to obtain the encouragement, motivation and support needed to continue to promote Victory Lab Micro-Clean. Dom shared: "When Malcolm showed me his Christmas photos of turning on the vacuum cleaner, I knew we would use Victory Lab Micro-Clean throughout. I thought, oh man, I found the right partner. I got the right one. partner!"

Standardize data-driven solutions to maintain facility sanitation

In August 2021, Victory Lab Micro-Clean received a grant from the McKinney Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) Innovation Fund for its unique IPaaS method to manage facility cleanliness. Currently, Dom and Malcolm are exploring potential partnerships in catering services and assisted living.

Although they experienced considerable challenges in launching Victory Lab Micro-Clean, Dom and Malcolm agreed that their continued desire stems from their shared belief that they can play a role in eliminating the spread of diseases and infections in the facility. Help keep people healthy and safe. Through Victory Lab Micro-Clean, they hope to standardize cleaning methods verified by convenient consumption data as the new normal for maintaining facility sanitation.

Cisco Systems released this content on November 10, 2021, and is solely responsible for the information contained therein. Distributed by the public at 19:28:04 on November 10, 2021, UTC time, unedited and unaltered.