Moving from one office space to another is never a trivial undertaking, whether your office is big or small. There’s heavy furniture to move, not to mention fragile electronics and important documents. You’ll also be on a time crunch to ensure minimum disruption to your company’s operations. 

Moving into a new office space can be a complex process. Appropriate planning, budgeting and communication can be done with minimum disruption to the business’s daily operations. Once you have moved and unpacked, it will be time to celebrate with your team.

Let’s review the steps to ensure your office move goes off without a hitch.

1. Plan Ahead

You can start planning your office move as much as a year before your move date. However, six months is typically ample planning time for most moves. Create a plan that is easy to share with your managers and staff. The plan should start with the projected move date and the timeline for the relocation.

It needs to be easy to reference so that everyone involved can see the tasks, when they need to be completed and who is responsible for each. The actual logistics of moving an office will differ depending on your company’s size, the number of people you employ, and where the move takes you.

2. Budgeting for the Move

It’s best to create a budget for your office move a few months before your move date. You will need to factor in moving supplies, transportation, professional movers or trucks, moving insurance, and cleaning service for the building you are moving out of.

For the space you are relocating into, don’t forget costs associated with set up and repairs or renovations if needed. You may also have employee relocation expenses to consider, so you must budget for any required reimbursements.

2. Consider a Storage Container

Using portable storage container rentals to move your office, you don’t have to do everything in one day. The storage container will be dropped off outside your office, where you can load it at your own pace. Then the container is safely moved to your new location for you to unpack. The flexibility and time savings you get from using a storage container can be a significant advantage.

Another upside to choosing a storage container is it makes budgeting easier. With up-front pricing and no hidden fees, you know exactly what your bill will be.

3. The Importance of Communication

Keeping a clear line of communication open with your employees is critical when planning an office move. It’s always best to keep everyone current on all schedules and timelines. If there are any changes, notify your team as soon as possible so they can make any necessary alterations to their plans.

Some other information you must ensure you share with all your employees includes the new office’s address, any changes to phone or fax numbers, and any building rules that may differ at the new location. Keeping your employees involved can also help boost morale and smooth the moving process.

4. Take Inventory and Downsize if Necessary

Just like when you are moving house, it can be helpful to inventory your office and discard anything your company doesn’t need. There’s no sense in moving things that don’t have a use anymore. Perhaps you are planning on furnishing the new location with different furniture. In this case, there would be no reason to pay movers to relocate the office furnishing you won’t reuse.

Another area to pay close attention to is your electronics. Any outdated and unnecessary equipment should be discarded before the move. Creating an inventory will also help ensure that none of your office belongings are lost during the moving process.

5. Move Non-essentials First

While conducting your inventory, note which items in the office are non-essential to the business in the short term. You can minimize the company’s downtime by packing these non-essentials first. Label the boxes carefully with their contents and where they must go in the new office space.

This will make unpacking them easier after the move. Equipment and furnishings necessary for your daily operations will stay in place until the day of the move.

7. Spread the News

And finally, don’t forget to let everyone know you are relocating. Your business license issuer will need to be notified of your move. Update your contact information on the company website and any other digital platforms you use. Inform all your clients, vendors, and any other companies you deal with regularly, so everyone knows how to reach you.

Remember to revise your business cards, company letterhead, envelopes, return labels and any other physical medium that indicates your address.