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The key to a practical and effective office move
Seeing as moving offices can disrupt daily operations and cause productivity to drop, you will want this process to go as quickly as possible. At the same time it would be a mistake to rush, because this is what can cause oversights and omissions.
Therefore, the key to a practical and effective office move is the correct planning, preparation and organisation. But what else do you need to know when relocating your place of business?
Store your stock, equipment and furniture
Start the moving process as far in advance as possible by putting any non-essential stock, equipment or furniture in storage. Providers like Alligator can even come and collect your goods for you and keep them in a secure unit for storage here.
When the time comes to move, everything can be transported to your new location with the greatest of ease and normal operations will be back up and running in no time.
Get rid of any unnecessary clutter
Moving offices is a great opportunity to get rid of any clutter or unwanted items.
A lot of businesses will accumulate paperwork or old computers that are no longer needed, so throw them out while you move.
However, take precautions to ensure that any confidential or sensitive information is destroyed so nobody else can access it.
Choose the right removal company
It is important to pick a removals company that specialises in office relocations, as there are several differences between commercial and domestic moves. Valuable possessions such as office furniture and IT equipment are critical to most businesses and will needed to be handled with care.
Therefore, shop around when looking for the right removal company and don’t always pick the cheapest option. Start contacting firms around 8-12 weeks before your scheduled move to ensure they have sufficient capacity.
Give employees an office moving guide
Provide staff with information on how to prepare their workspaces and possessions for the move. Each and every employee should know what needs to be labelled and how items should be packed if this is their responsibility.
You may even want to assign roles or leadership responsibilities to certain members of staff for a more co-ordinated and synchronised move.
Come up with a floor plan for your new office
The last thing you want is to turn up at your new offices with stock, equipment, and furniture all over the place and in no particular order. Therefore, come up with a floor plan for your new office and give this to the removals company.
They can then put everything in its right position, which will streamline the entire process. You may need to take some measurements of the new space to ensure everything fits where it should though.
Keep clients happy
If possible, try to let your customers know about the business’s change of address, details of the move, how this might affect them, and who to contact during this period. You will also need to contact HM Revenue and Customs about this too.
By doing so you can avoid any confusion among clients and keep them on your side. Also to minimise disruption, consider moving on a Friday or during the weekend, as by Monday morning it will be business as usual.
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