How to Plan and Organize an Office Move
If you are in the position of needing to move your business, there are a few things that you can do to ensure that your move goes as well as possible. The reality is that regardless of how large your company is the task of moving an office is a large undertaking. One that usually requires some level of additional help in the form of other colleagues or professionals.
Here are a few tips to help you to coordinate your office move:
Make a Plan
When coordinating any kind of move, it is important that you create a schedule that will allow for all the necessary stages of your move. When it comes to the task of moving an entire office this is absolutely crucial. One of the first things that you will want to do is discuss the possible schedule with the other people that are involved with the move. This will allow you to create a timeline that is feasible. For a small office, you will need a minimum of three months to prepare, and for a medium, to large you will want anywhere from six to eight months to prep everything. Remember: in order for everything to run smoothly you will want to begin as early as possible.
Resolve Problems Before the Move
Next up, you will want to gather any and all information on your new location as you can. It might sound like overkill, but if you can get your hands on a floor plan or even blueprints that allow you to see where key components of the office (like outlets and storage) are located your life will become a lot easier. It is even better if you are able to draw up or get your hands on a floor plan of your current space. This is because having both floor plans available to you will provide you and your team with the opportunity to compare the two; this means that if there are areas in the current office that are not working, you can easily identify them and figure out a new layout so that the situation won’t carry over to your new location.
Tip
Also, make a list of problems that you think might arise with the new space. This might be something like “the new location has less storage” or “there is a smaller waiting room for clients”. Being able to foresee problems before they really arise gives you the opportunity to make a plan, or completely bi-pass them by solving them before the move even happens.
Delegate
Have a meeting where you and whoever is helping you organize your move create a list of jobs that need to be done in order for the move to go smoothly. On this list, make sure that any necessary is included – when each job needs to be completed by, any important contact information…etc… Then begin to assign tasks to those helping you and anyone else that is available to lend an extra hand – even if it is just to make a couple phone calls or pack a few boxes. Every bit of extra (organized) help can make a big difference!