Checklist for a smooth office move

Moving offices can be a stressful time and it’s easy to make mistakes. Unfortunately these mistakes can be costly, especially if you’re a small business, so we’ve put together a guide citing some of the key mistakes businesses make when moving and what you can do to rectify them.

Taking it on yourself

A move is always going to be a busy and stressful time, even with the help of professional movers. So taking on something as large scale as an office move it a potential disaster waiting to happen. Many make the mistake of assuming taking on the task yourself saves money, but with the man power requirements, furniture struggles and hire requirements, it can often work out being a much costlier process than first thought. For peace of mind, and to ensure your belongings arrive in one piece undamaged, getting the professionals in is the practical option.

Failing to plan

Many businesses underestimate the time and effort that an office move requires. Don’t leave it all until the last minute as this leads to confusion and extend the process for much longer than it needs to be. It’s important that someone steps up and takes charge of the move making checklists for pre-move and post-move to ensure nothing gets forgotten and everything runs as smoothly as possible.

Throw out the junk

Over the course of a business’ stay in an office, it’s inevitable that you’ll have an abundance of paperwork and objects which your company are no longer in need of. Instead of carting all your clutter to the new office, take the move as the perfect opportunity to de-clutter and throw out what is sure to be a big bag of rubbish. Many of the documents and equipment that you take with you will end up using valuable storage space and are likely never to be used again. Moving is an excellent time to de-clutter and rid yourself of all the unwanted material which has been crowding your office over the years. As a business, you’ll need to keep hard copies of some recent documents, however anything over six years old generally is no longer needed. If you’re reluctant to throw out documentation in case it is needed down the line, why not transform the bills and documents into a digital form. Actions such as scanning in documents will allow you to dispose of bulky hard copies.

Sort the essentials

A new office can often lead to panic and distractions. Don’t allow staff to become preoccupied with minor tasks and pettiness over who gets which desk, but these notions are all trivial in the grand scheme of things. Your top priority should be to get your business running and get everyone back into work mode. Setting up phone, internet and email systems should be right at the top of your list and giving staff clear defined roles on what they should be doing in the new space should be your first priority.

Not securing the move

With everything else to consider, security often falls down the list when it comes to planning your move but it certainly shouldn’t be forgotten. With people and valuables moving between sites all day, it’s important that you ensure that premises and possessions are secure at all times. Make sure there are people you trust at both sites who can take charge of the moving from both ends.

Here at Robinsons, we’re experts when it comes to moving offices, and have serviced more than 15,000 employees in the last 12-months alone. One thing we see time and time again is firms expecting the impossible. Office moves will always bring challenges, so expect there to be a few things that don’t go to plan, try and stay calm and always work as a team throughout the stressful period.

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