HOW TO RELOCATE YOUR BUSINESS

There’s no doubt that moving your company can be a monumental effort—especially when under a tight timeline. But, with careful planning, internal support, and clear communication, you can make relocating your corporate office a success.

In this article, we’ll outline the key steps needed from planning your company move to finding commercial moving companies. We’ve also created a downloadable moving checklist to help you along the way and help you track your progress. So, let’s get moving as they say.

Create a Planning Team

First, create a “Moving All-Star Team” to help you navigate your moving journey. Representatives from each department can provide perspective in the planning process and help communicate updates out across the organization. They can also solicit feedback from their teams to ensure everyone is heard and considered in the move. Regularly scheduled meetings for input and updates can keep everyone informed and involved. Consider starting with a smaller team from Operations, Technology, and Human Resources to lead the initial planning efforts, then add to the team as needed.

Draft a Moving Plan and Checklist

Creating a high-level moving plan is critical to your success. By outlining key action items, due dates, and the owners responsible for executing, you create a clear plan with accountability for all. We recommend a sharable spreadsheet like Smartsheet or Airtable that can be shared and updated as needs grow and dates get booked. Reviewing the plan with key stakeholders regularly will also help you and your team stay on task. An easy way to ensure you’re hitting your key deadlines as you near your move is to create a moving checklist that’s in chronological order. Revisit this list daily to ensure that you’re on track and on time. These detailed to-do’s help you achieve the major milestones that are in your overall moving plan.

Plan Your Space

The design of your new office can play a big factor in your timeline. The long lead times of traditional furniture dealers and construction needs could add months to your project. So, it’s better to begin early. To ensure your people feel included in the design process, you can send an employee survey to gather insights and requests. An architecture and design firm or a workspace designer can help you create a space plan that’s functional, flexible, and active.

Hire a Moving Company

Now that you have a move date, it’s time to find the right commercial movers. Your best bet is to get three quotes to ensure you are getting the best deal. You can also seek recommendations from your real estate company. Ask for references and check online reviews to make sure you hire a reputable company. You should also ask if they can help you move outside of normal business hours to minimize the disruption to your business.

Stagger Your Move

Another way to minimize disruption to your business is to stagger your move by moving one department at a time. This will allow you to give undivided attention to the departmental move in progress. Each department will have unique challenges so be sure to get the buy-in you need from each leader before the move. A move for Information Technology is going to be much different than a move for marketing, for example, as servers and employee technology require special care. We recommend moving your Technology and Operations teams in the first wave to help get the space ready for the rest.

Communicate with Employees

Good communication is essential throughout the process. Solicit input when planning and keep a steady cadence of updates so everyone is included and informed. Another way to ensure a smooth transition is to communicate to your employees what they need to do individually for the move, such as gathering their personal belongings. Send multiple reminders, relevant dates, and provide updates along the way.

Update your Business Information

Shortly ahead of your move, you’ll need to notify the necessary parties. First, be sure to change your address with the USPS, which you can do online. Also, notify the IRS, your Secretary of State office, and your vendors of your move. You’ll also want to update your address and information with Google so that your customers and vendors can find your business after the move. Don’t forget to update your website or business cards either. You can also create a post on your company’s social media channels and encourage employees to reshare the post so their own profiles.

With a new office comes the opportunity to create a workspace that helps attract and retain talent by making it a place employees want to work. With the planning, communication, and belief from key stakeholders you can make move smooth and successful for your business and your team.

Resources:

https://robinpowered.com/blog/workplace-design-strategy-to-attract-retain-talent

https://zapier.com/blog/best-spreadsheet-excel-alternative/

https://www.vari.com/resource-center-articles/rc-beginners-guide-varidesk-active-workspace.html

https://www.forbes.com/advisor/home-improvement/how-to-hire-movers/

https://www.1plus1tech.com/how-to-prepare-your-it-department-for-a-large-office-move/