As a business owner or manager, moving offices can be a great sign. It often means your company is growing and needs room to expand. As with any important business decision your company makes, deciding to actually make the move can be a time consuming process. From budgets to location decisions to reducing employee stress, an office move requires proper planning.
Here’s a suggested checklist to make your corporate relocation process easier and more efficient. It’s important to note that office moves vary based on size, location, and number of people and items, so not all suggestions may be relevant for all companies.
Moving Masters inspects both the current and new office locations before the move to ensure proper equipment and staff are prepared.
1 Year Before the Office Move
- Assign an internal person to be responsible for all phases of the move.
- Depending on the size of your company, appoint a coordinator from each department to voice concerns specifically associated with their department. For example, the Human Resources Department may have privacy concerns associated with their files, while the Production Department may have heavy equipment that requires special knowledge to disassemble and reassemble.
- Create a standardized form on which each department coordinator can list all of their employees by classification, including vacant positions and projected new positions.
- Determine the number of employees that will be moving to the new location.
11 Months Before the Office Move
- Research potential office moving companies in your region. Do your due diligence by reading reviews of any corporate office mover you find online. Make sure the moving company has its proper accreditations, certifications, and insurance. Contact any potential options and ask if you can stop by to visit their facility. While you’re meeting with management, be sure to pay attention to the employees and equipment that could be used in your corporate move.
- Generate a complete inventory list of all furniture, machinery, and electronics used by employees that will be moved to the new location.
- Hire the moving company for the timeframe you need. Reputable moving companies with repeat customers can be reserved many months in advance, so it’s best to do this as soon as possible, especially for large moves that will require multiple trucks.
- Order any necessary furniture for the new location, including updated desks or items for the cafeteria, lounges, reception and executive areas. Be sure to order items for new employees that may onboard if you are expanding in your new location.
- Call a meeting of all move coordinators to review the progress of the move.
- 5 Months Before the Office Move
- Coordinate plans to relocate all employees who are not moving to new location.
4 Months Before the Office Move
- Make a list of furnishings that need to be refinished before the move.
- Order any additional or replacement machines, equipment, or electronics necessary for the new location.
- Notify your current building owner of your plans to vacate.
- Invite your moving company to your current facility to discuss the details of your move, including concerns from each department coordinator.
- Contact communications and computer companies to arrange for telephone and internet transfer and installation.
3 Months Before the Office Move
- Generate a moving instruction document and orientation sheet to be distributed to all employees.
2 Months Before the Office Move
- Divide floors into two or three sections and assign color-coded labels to each section.
- Coordinate with the building landlord and other tenants on exclusive use of elevators and loading and unloading areas during the move days.
- Contact all move coordinators to review furniture layouts.
Assign color-coded labels to each section of the office for easy coordination.
6 Weeks Before the Office Move
- Mount large prints of each floor plan on cardboard. Provide appropriate copies for move coordinators, moving supervisor, and elevator lobbies.
4 Weeks Before the Office Move
- Order boxes or crates for use during the move.
- Prepare grid sheets for furniture placement in each individual room.
- Complete packing of large common areas.
2 Weeks Before the Office Move
- Meet with all move coordinators to advise them of final plans and schedules.
- Advise all employees of moving plans and time schedules as well as which move coordinators they will be assigned to work with during the move.
- Schedule installation of new furnishings at new office location.
- Remind building management to turn on the air conditioning and/or heating during the move-in and move-out.
- Arrange for security and telephones at each building during the move.
- Set priorities for moving furniture to destination.
- Make a list of all employees being moved and their new phone numbers.
1 Week Before the Office Move
- Label all furnishings, equipment, cartons, and boxes with a destination location. Make sure color-coded labels and numbers are used.
- Put up direction signs and arrows in the new building to direct employees and movers to correct locations.
- Generate work schedules for move coordinators and employees during the moving days.
- Instruct mover to visit both origin and destination move sites to photograph and note any existing damage to the building to protect client and mover from any claims.
1 Day Before the Office Move
- Advise all employees to organize and finish packing their personal workspaces.
- Direct move coordinators to organize common areas within their designated locations.
Move Day
- Have the mover install wall and floor protection to origin and destination sites. Ask for elevator protection, if necessary.
- Designate personnel to be on-site at both the old and new buildings.
- Rearrange furnishing with-in office as necessary.
- Move surplus items to storage.
- Remove emptied boxes.
- Make list of damages or misplaced items.
Next Working Day
- Instruct mover to provide post-move crew for miscellaneous adjustment, removal of empty cartons or crates, and any requested changes in furniture placement.
Our experts move offices every day, both big and small. Feel free to contact us at any time with questions or concerns you may have while you prepare to relocate your office. We will be glad to assist you.
About Moving Masters
With over three decades of commercial relocation and office moving experience, Moving Masters is a reputable moving company that executes safe, timely, and professional moves. Our extensive office and specialty moving experience has allowed us to perform numerous successful moves. We serve Maryland, DC, and Northern Virginia.