Your detailed guide to moving offices

Moving office can be an arduous task, especially when you’re doing it for the first time – there’s a lot to remember and a lot to take care of, and without careful planning and preparation, it can be easy to get swamped by a checklist that just won’t get done by the deadline. Well, don’t panic! We’ve put together a detailed guide to moving office, so whether you’re setting up an office for the first time, moving for the first time, or moving for the second, third, or fourth time, this will help you comprehend exactly what you need to do to make sure everything goes smoothly.

Find the Right Space for Your Business

It might sound simple, but choosing the right space for your business is a lot more complicated than you think. There’s a lot to consider – you need room for your current team and staff, as well as room to expand and grow, a space that motivates, sustains productivity and fosters creativity, a space easy to access but not too swamped by competition. The more you think about it, the more confusing it can get and the more things you tend to think of, so make sure to come up with a list of priorities from most important to least important when thinking about location. It’s difficult to find a good space somewhere that’s high-demand, especially if you’re looking for a good price, so it’s worth setting up a budget and savings plan to make sure you’ll be able to access where you’re looking for with a safety cushion behind you.

There are other things you may not consider that you need to take into account, like the neighbourhood. What sort of place are you moving into? Does it have a good reputation, and would you want to be associated with it? What are the crime rates? Even things like ratings for restaurants can be important, so it’s important to do your research before plumping for a certain area. You may find somewhere incredibly cheap for the area – maybe a bargain in a major city – but where you’ll save money through rent or payments, you’ll lose if your office gets broken in to. Use sites like ADT to review crime statistics and even consider contacting the local police force to get a local opinion. It’s also important to take the time to look around the area before you move and become familiar with the surroundings.

Finally, it’s important to plan your finances – it’s all well and good going for somewhere a little cushier if you have the extra cash, but you have to be sure you have plans in place to maintain this income if you’re renting, or else you’ll quickly find yourself without an office, and shortly after, without a business. Factor in other costs, too – your business may need a licence and will probably need to pay business tax. Furthermore, there may be hidden costs for the place you’re looking at, whether that’s any decorations or upgrades, as well as any maintenance. Always make sure you know exactly how much money you’ll need to keep your business afloat, or it will quickly sink.

Hire a Workplace Consultancy Service

This is something you may not have considered, but it can be the make or break in the smoothness and success of your move or set up. Companies like Amos Beech offer services in major cities like their commercial interior design in Edinburgh, as well as a variety of other services. They work hard to plan the look of your workspace, come up with creative conceptual designs, and can make your office your home away from home. Their other services include space evaluation, office interior design, future needs projections, filing audits, office furniture consultancy, quantity surveying, office refurbishment, all-trades contracting, and office furniture supply and installation – with all of these, it makes the complicated and draining task of ordering furniture, designing the office, planning space properly, ensuring your team are comfortable and efficient, and making your space look good and professional a whole lot easier, and with a professional team taking care of it, there will be a lot less hiccups along the way. They also offer a removal service, meaning when the time does come, you’ll be able to have the hassle of transferring furniture and items done and dusted in a flash.

Hiring a workplace consultancy is sure to give you a smart, efficient and up-to-date design, which can help motivate your team and give your office the love it deserves. Getting a workplace consultancy service to help you build up your office is essential for anyone looking to move – after all, your office is the heart of your business, and it’s worth doing right.

Appoint a Move Manager

Everyone should do their part, but if left to their own devices, wires can get crossed and people can end up confused and with different ideas in mind. Appointing someone to manage the move with your employees and keep things in check is essential to avoid anarchy and keep things running smoothly. They can help divide up work between staff – for example, everyone should be responsible for packing up their own things and their own desk so that no one’s personal items go missing, and the moving company don’t have to spend ages packing each individual desk.

A move manager can also check on people to make sure they’re up to date with their tasks, and find solutions for any problems (which will undoubtedly crop up at some point). The best person to assign here would be an administrative assistant or somebody who has experience with commercial relocation, as they’ll be familiar with the process of organising the team.

Pack Up

Planning to pack up is all well and good, but you need to make sure you do it properly to avoid wasting time, losing items or creating problems. Labelling is incredibly important when it comes to moving things like office supplies – the likelihood is, you won’t be able to unpack everything before you start up business, meaning you’ll need to be able to find items like paper or printer ink quickly rather than spend hours digging through boxes.

Even if you unpack properly, you need to be able to organise which boxes go where, or else you’ll have people diving all over the place, running to and from different areas and creating chaos. Careful labelling is exactly what you need to keep your unpacking process streamlined – it’s even worth labelling the location of where the box should be, noting the number of items inside, and keeping a spreadsheet recording each box on a sharing platform like Google Drive. This means your staff have easy access, so they can find what they’re looking for in just a few seconds. It also means if something goes missing, you know exactly what you’ve lost, and where you may have potentially misplaced it, not only saving you time, but potentially saving you money, too.

Hold a Meeting for Staff Before and After the Move

It’s important to keep communications up to date and make sure there’s transparency within your team, and holding staff meetings is incredibly important to maintain this. Hold a meeting before the move to run through any processes or important information – travel arrangements, roles in the move, and the plan for the next few days are all important to go over. Your staff should be well notified of this in advance, but giving a reminder to reinstate important points is always a good idea.

Once you get there, holding another meeting is a chance to run through important information, especially about the building. There may be rules that come with the building – for example, you may need to put in a request to use the service elevator, and as always, there will be important health and safety guidelines such as fire exits or first aid points. Make sure your staff are aware straight from the start, and keep them regularly reminded of these, especially if at any point there’s an update to the business or building regulations.

Celebrate!

Moving office is no easy task for you or your team – it’s important to show your gratitude for everyone’s hard work, and give each of you a little reward for your effort, too. Planning a small celebration can be a great way to do this, as well as show off your new space and enjoy it in a relaxed environment. It doesn’t have to be a huge party, especially if you’re tight on money – a small lunch or a meal together can be the perfect way to celebrate the move and let your team know they’re appreciated, as well as boost motivation by nodding towards your business’s bright future.

Moving office can be a daunting process, but with the right planning and preparation, it can be exactly what your business needs to make big, monumental changes. Take these tips to make sure your move goes smoothly and without problems, and you’ll be well on your way to growing and developing your business. Good luck!

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