Relocating to a new office can be full of excitement, but it can also be very stressful. There are a lot of tasks that you need to take care of and plan. If you have never relocated an office before, this can seem overwhelming. In order to make the moving process a little easier, there are tips you can use to ensure your office relocation is successful.
1. Plan The Relocation Early
The first step to any successful office relocation is to have a plan. It is recommended that you start planning as soon as you know you will be moving. This allows you to set up a schedule and gives you enough time to organize everything.
The first part of your plan should be determining the best moving date. This should be a date that will have the lowest impact on your business operations. Once the date has been set, you can start looking at your moving budget.
A budget is vital because it helps you narrow down potential moving companies. To determine the budget, you will need to speak with the accounting department and start looking at rough costs. Planning everything as early as possible will stop you from making any uninformed decisions that can be costly for your business.
2. Have A Move Manager
You do not have to be in charge of the move yourself, but you do need to have a move manager. They will act as a project manager and ensure that everything is running as it should. The move manager will also ensure that everyone is on track.
If you are assigning this role to someone else, you need to look for certain skills. The ideal move manager will have multi-tasking skills, be very organized, and able to communicate with others in the company. They should also have some experience working with budgets.
3. Communicate With Your Employees
Nothing hampers office relocation as much as miscommunication with employees. If your employees are unaware of what is happening, they will not be able to help with the relocation. This is why you need to inform them about the move and keep them updated on the plans.
If there are any changes to the relocation plans, you need to tell your employees as soon as possible. You also need to provide them with information about the new office. This includes the new building rules, the address, changes to phone numbers, and parking arrangements.
Your employees should also be told what they can do to help facilitate the move. You can reduce the work you need to do by having your employees help with packing the office. Areas that departments commonly work in should be packed by the members of that department. Employees can also take care of clearing their workstations to ensure they are ready for the move.
4. Protect Your Data
During office relocation, you never know what could happen to your hardware and files. Important documents could be lost or the servers damaged. This is why you need to take steps to protect your data from breaches or losses when relocating.
Talking to your IT department is the best step for any digital data. They will be able to set up safeguards that protect the data from breaches. They can also create backups to reduce the chance of any loss.
Protecting your hard copies can be harder. When you move, any sensitive data should be stored in secure boxes or cabinets that only your employees can open. The movers you hire should also be thoroughly vetted to ensure they will not cause any loss or data breaches.
5. Hire Professional Office Relocation Companies
The moving company you hire should be having experience with office relocations. Fortunately, there are many office relocation companies that you can work with. These companies understand the problems you can face with relocation and the challenges of physically moving everything.
When looking for a moving company, you need to ensure they are certified and adequately insured. You also need to find out what checks they complete on their employees. This will help protect your data.
As you look for a moving company, you will notice that there are different services on offer. Some moving companies offer full-service packages where they will pack up the office for you. This can be very helpful, but it will increase costs.
6. Deep Clean The Office
When you move house, you need to get rid of things that you no longer need, and the same needs to be done for your office. You do not want to move unnecessary items. Any old furniture and equipment should be sold or donated before your move. To determine which route to take, you should talk to the accounting staff regarding what can be written-off.
7. Update Your Address Everywhere
You do not want to leave updating your address until too late. Let your customers and suppliers know that you are relocating when this will happen and what your new address will be. If there is any disruption in your operations planned, you need to communicate this as well.
While you have to let everyone know about the change, you should not forget about updating everything. Letterheads, your website, business cards, and social media accounts all need to be updated to display the correct information. You also need to contact Google to have your online listings changed. This should be done around a month before you move.
Office relocations do not have to be stressful. If you take the time to plan everything and communicate effectively, this process should be smooth.
