Moving Office: Full 2021 guide.

Moving office can be a large and lengthy undertaking. with many potential issues lying around every corner.

There is nothing simple about relocating and moving an entire office. So as to ease your mind we have put together this easy to understand guide with a recommended timeline.

Getting Started with your office move

When moving office it can take some time to get the proper organization in place. So that you are fully prepared come the day of the move.
Propper planning is essential to ensure that all of your belongings make it to the new premises on time and all in one piece.
With as minimal hiccups as possible.

Security, speed, and efficiency are key when moving an office. we here at Thompson and Son understand the importance of having minimalistic downtime.
as a result, we have compiled some useful information to get you started with your move.

Planning your office move

Planning, as we stated earlier. Is going to be one of the biggest contributing factors to ensuring a smooth transition over to new premises.
Ideally, you want to allocate around 6 months of total time preparing to move office.

Planning is important as it allows you to set targets and timescales. As a result, you can continue business operations with as little downtime as possible.
An effective planning strategy will take a lot of stress out of the move.

One of the first steps to moving office is first locating new premises.
Like with anything that has a lot of moving parts. It is always a good idea to spend some time researching and looking into new office space.
We recommend using a service such as HubbleHQ to help you find your perfect office space.

Setting targets

Around 6 months before your move office.

Prepare for the move.

Review your current premises

Examine the terms and conditions of your current lease. So that you are up to speed on the terms of your current premises.
Doing this will ensure that you will not get caught out by additional costs when you come to moving day.

You will want to check for any damages you may have to pay. As well as the current tenancy contract length when you can leave etc.

Setting a budget

Set up a budget before getting ready to move. You should do this so that you are less likely to overspend and able to make cutbacks. consequently making the move is as cost-effective as possible.

The cost of a moving office will often vary depending on the size and complexity of the job.

Obtain quotes from multiple removals companies –

Shop around for the best removals companies. You should find quotes that best align with your budget.

There are many removals companies out there. As such it is a good idea to look around to get the best removals firm that suits your needs.

Get planning

Now is a good time to start appointing your team so they can get planning and preparing your move.
If possible, you should assign a point person for your office move.

This person is in charge of overseeing the organization the move and getting the ball rolling. It is also important to make note if any higher management needs to be involved in this stage of the move.

4 months before moving.

Planning the logistics

Set in stone the move date

When you have organized your new office space. You will want to confirm your reservation with your chosen moving company. This way you can be sure that come the big day, you will be fully prepared to move.
Or secure alternative arrangements for moving.

Notify your current landlord

Once the move date has been locked in you should contact your property manager. Let them know well in advance of your plan to terminate your lease.

Develop a moving plan

Now is a good time to start to get your moving checklist in order.
Include all people involved with the move, as well as all the essential amenities such as phone line and Wi-Fi connectivity. As well as setting deadline targets so all goes smoothly.

Assigning responsibilities

After allocating a team to the job it is now time to start assigning responsibilities to accomplish by pre-determined deadlines.

Doing this helps to spread out the workload and achieve goals a lot faster. It is also a good time to notify all your staff of the upcoming move. so they can prepare well ahead of time.

Notify partners/affiliates/suppliers of your intent to move

If the move will impact any partners etc is important they should also be notified of your upcoming move.

Designing the Relocation.

Plan what items are coming with you and if any special considerations may need to be taken place while undergoing the move.
Such as floorplanning for the new premises and specialist furniture or equipment handling.

When designing your new space. You should get a floor plan drawn up. So that you know where everything will be going and make sure it will all fit.

It may also be a good idea to hire an interior designer to come in and start sprucing up the place aesthetically.
If you require such services, it would be good to start looking into them at this time.

2 months prior to moving office

Design the floor plan

Start to plan what and where everything is going to go from your current place to your new one.
During this phase of the move, you will want to determine where all your belongings will reside in a detailed floor plan.

Phone line and internet access

Now is a good time to plan how to get the internet up and running.
You will want to determine if you are planning on keeping your current provider or switching to a new one.

If you are opting to go with a full-service move. The removal company will generally be working closely with you to help you organize this.
You should check with your moving company if this is part of the service they provide.

The IT setup

You will also want to have a talk with your IT staff. As to ensure they can set up the computer systems, or whether you may need additional help with this.

Keys passes and cards

It is also important to compile a list of all keys, parking passes, etc. that will need to be returned prior to moving in.

Remove and dismiss any services relating to your current lease

Do you have any specialized services for maintenance related to your current premises?
You should get in touch with these providers. Such as cleaners, landscapers, and security so that they can stop the services and are made aware of your plan to move.

A few things to consider when moving office.

• Business insurance options You will want to investigate what insurances will be needed to help cover all the aspects of your move.
• New furniture or equipment If you are choosing to purchase new furniture for your new office. You will want to start shopping so that it is ready to set up for when you move in.
• Secure storage Not taking everything with you on moving day? You might want to consider putting everything not going to the new premises into storage.

Get organized

1 month till move day

Inventory, equipment, tagging

Now will be the time you will want to create an inventory list. This list will contain all the items that are being taken with you.
Label them so you know what they are, and where they will be going. Doing so will avoid any loss or confusion surrounding your company’s possessions.

It may also be a good idea to photograph all of your belongings during this stage of moving office. That way in the unlikely event something should occur,
and you have to go through a claims process. You have something to substantiate your claim which will take away a lot of stress.

Moving office supplies

If your employees are packing up their own desks. You should provide them with boxes and labeling equipment so that they can follow suit with your moving plan.

Transferring utilities

Cancel any current utilities that are no longer necessary and start to prepare and look for new utilities for the new premises.

Change of address list

Around this time in the moving out process. You should compile a list of all the people you will need to notify of your change in address etc.
clients and customers. This can simply be achieved by sending out a bulk email.

Updating the company address listing

At the 1-month mark, you should get started on updating the company’s address listings on all the locations where necessary. This will include places such as:

• Business website
• Social media accounts
• Google, Yelp, and other review sites
• Banks and financing institutions
• Any ongoing subscriptions to magazines etc
• A few things to consider.

Should you need parking permits for your new premises. Now is the time you will want to apply for them.

You may also want to book in your office to be cleaned after your move. It may be an idea to ask your removal company whether this is a service they provide
as some moving companies will also offer a cleaning service.

Back up all data from all the current IT equipment. You should do this in case of any damages that can cause data loss during the move. This can be achieved via manual backup
to a hard drive or so a secure cloud server online. This is also a good reason to be looking into coverage when moving.

2 weeks before moving office

Finalizing plans

Finalize the plans with your moving team share what needs to be going and what parts will need to remain active so the business can keep running through the transition.

Keys and access cards

You will want to order the keys and access cards so they will arrive ahead of time so you can distribute them to the employees that need them ready for moving in day.

Phone and internet access

Double-check everything is to have your phone line and internet set up ready for your arrival so that everything is transitioned smoothly with no downtime.

PC and IT setup

If you and your team have the skills to set up the computers and IT departments. You will want to make sure that you have the appropriate people assigned to get the task done.
If you are unable to set up yourself ensure you have a hired team of professionals ready come moving day.

Check the office inventory to double

Check what is going and what needs to be disposed of.
You will also want to decide how you plan to dispose of whatever equipment or furniture you do not want to take with you.
Some removal companies will even offer disposal services. Check with your moving company to see if this is a possibility as it can save you any additional hassle.

Backups

If this is something you have not done yet now is the time you will want to get it done create backups of all your important data so that if anything is damaged and data loss occurs you will not lose that precious data.

1 week till moving day.

Double-check your schedule

go over your schedule again check when the removal company will arrive who will be there to greet and help direct them.

Check out new office space

If you have access to the new office space we recommend you go and check it out before moving in just to inspect all is in the condition you expect it to be before you bring it all over and find your toilet doesn’t flush or you only have a single light working.

Responsibilities of Personal effects

Confirm with all employees if they will be held responsible for the packing and transportation of all their personal belongings before the move occurs.

Packing materials

If you are packing yourself, you will want to purchase plenty of packing materials for your move good rule of thumb is it is always better to have too much than too little if you have any extra at the end you can return them later.

Get surface protectors bubble wrap etc

Removal companies will typically come with moving blankets and offer a fragile packing service.
any reputable company will take the utmost care when moving belongings in the first case. If you are concerned you can always stock up on these materials such as bubble wrap and do the wrapping yourself. However, it is good to be aware that getting the removals company to come and pack for you. Your belongings will be covered by goods in transit insurance.

The day before moving day.

Collect all passes cards and keys

Using the inventory list you created earlier. You should collect all the passes, cards, and keys make sure they are returned, deactivated, or disposed of appropriately.

Finalize labeling and packing

Finish up packing and labeling if there is any specialist packing needed. You will want to communicate with the appointed person in charge be it the moving company or a member of staff.

The big day

The big day. Moving Day.

Testing the utilities

Have a walk around to test all the facilities. For example lighting, plumbing, power outlets.
If you find anything is not working or is out of place you should contact your utility company to resolve the issue.

Office setup

Basing your layout on the blueprint you planned out in the beginning you will want to layout the equipment and furniture accordingly.
The moving company you go with should place the equipment in the desired rooms or locations to ease your workload.

Connect computers phones and the internet

once everything is in place and set up you will want to connect all your services up. To ensure it is all running smoothly any issues you incur should be communicated with your provider.
Last-minute check of your old premises – Just to make sure that you have not missed anything or forgotten any important belongings you might want to have one last check through your old office space. It will be good to go through and take note and report of any damages incurred throughout the move.

Post move

Testing all the phone lines computers internet etc

Test all the physical and digital technology as soon as possible so you can limit the amount of downtime your company will have when setting up in the new office.
Should you run into issues now is the time you will want to troubleshoot.

Making sure the old lease has been terminated

Confirm the cancellation of your old office let and update your address change.
It is worth double-checking that everything was canceled with your old place. Ensure everybody that was needed to be notified of the move has been notified and is has been updated on all platforms so that all information is current and relevant.

Unpacking and remove tagging

If you have opted to unpack yourself, you will want to designate some people to sort out the unpacking of all the office belongings as well as removing any of the tags.
The more people you can get on this the better as you will be able to get up and running a lot quicker.

In summary

It is always good to get out ahead and start planning early on in the game. From the moment you decide to move offices, you will want to start looking into the allocated budget,
delegating responsibilities within the company. This can be accomplished by assigning tasks and outsourcing assistance where you are unable to achieve a task on your own.

Jobs such as planning the office space and key exchanges should be something that is done well in advance of moving week.
As to avoid any frustration or nasty surprises.

Another good thing to note is that removal companies can assist you in every step of the move from packing to setting up office furniture.
some companies may even provide services such as waste removal and planning assistance. It is always worth your while to see if these services are on the table.

Still have a question? Contact us.