Moving offices is like a root canal or a tax audit in terms of people’s perceptions of the task. In spite of this, thousands of companies do it every year, and a surprising number of them do it totally wrong. A good office move involves organisation and carefully avoiding a number of mistakes that are obvious in hindsight.
Misjudging The Required Time
The worst thing companies do is underestimate how much time is required. Most companies do a move like it is going to be done in a weekend. It’s simply impossible; unless your company is two people big. Organising and moving takes time. There is office IT, office infrastructure, furniture, packing files and staff coordination. Not to mention the problems that come up once people start working. The worst companies lose a ton of time and money in this, and lose more money lessening the operational functionality of the company. This is not a good path to be on.
Waiting Until the Last Minute Because You Think Everything Will Settle Itself Out.
When you move to a new office, the internet, the phone systems, the server access, and all the other technologies that make the move legally a move and not a new office for your business, do not instantly appear. They never do. It all takes time, and it all has to be arranged to be executed in the timeline you need it to be. Coordinating with internet and phone providers, testing internet access and all that should be arranged and completed for your team to access for the scheduled time. I have heard accounts of businesses losing days of productivity and wasting company time, money, and resources, because businesses never think to get the internet access arranged in advance.
Not Communicating with Their Staff
Communicating a timeline to staff and why there is a new office and why it matters to them is always taken for granted. It begs the question of why businesses treat their new office relocation as a covert operation. It is never benevolently economically advantageous to keep the team in the dark. Answer their questions about disruptive logistical details such as parking, commutes, desk allocations, desk and office setup. The best way to avoid confusion and resentment from staff is to not strand them in indecision by avoiding answering or ignoring their questions, especially those that you know will be new or disruptive to the location of their office and change the tasks or projects that your team is handling. A team that feels left in the dark will be initially not very productive and account for a lot of wasted time. They will not help pack anything. They will not be remotely willing to endure unproductive time getting the new office systems setup. A staff that has little or no knowledge of plans is unlikely to help systemised time and planning.
Keeping the Staff Informed About the Planning
Direct time and proper planning, a staff that has not been informed, by definition of left in the dark, will not help with the time sensitive and scheduled portions of new office relocation.
Trying To Move Everything
Not everything in your office has to come with you. All the old furniture that has seen better days, broken equipment that has been collecting dust, the files from 2003 that you can legally throw out, all of that adds extra weight, cost, and hassle to your move.
Consider doing a serious clearout before you move. Going into your new space with only the things you actually need will allow you to be much more organised. Just make sure you’re not throwing away anything that you are legally required to keep or that somebody else might actually need.
Going With the Cheapest Quote
Office removals cost money. Yes, believe it or not, going with the cheapest quote you can find is not always a great way to go.
A moving company that is significantly cheaper than the competition is probably doing something shady like not getting proper insurance, being inexperienced, or tacking on extra costs in other sneaky ways. Price should be a factor, but so should reliability, coverage, and the ability to actually get all your things from point A to point B in one place. Check other people’s reviews, ask about insurance, and make sure you understand all the services that are being offered for the money you spend to avoid being disappointed.
Lack of Preparedness for the New Layout can end in chaos especially if there is no plan for a new layout for the new office. Fire exits will be blocked, there will be no adequate chairs for the meeting tables, and the office after all will be a dysfunctional space. Creating a layout for the office space will save hours that would have otherwise been lost due to a bad layout. Measure the office space, and see how the office traffic will flow. Identify the teams that will need to be in closers proximity to other offices in the space. Clearly mark the boxes so there is no cluttered confusion for the moving to-be office.
Neglecting the Small Details believe it or not, there are a lot of sections that need to be filled out when it comes to things like building and lease agreements. Boring paperwork like that needs to be handled in order to avoid the penalties of having a building nag you in the long run.
Understand what needs to be done in order to be allowed to leave the office space. Also make sure to clear the new office space of possible restrictions, which could help avoid other building problems like scheduling restricted access or having a service lift.
With careful planning, your office relocation does not require to be a disaster. Set realistic goals where you can, determine time scales, and try to avoid making the mistakes that have caused problems to businesses before you.
