24 August 2018
 Categories: , Blog

Relocating an office or business is even more complex than a home move. You must keep the office fully functional until the last day of work, and then get settled in and back to work as soon as possible so that your customers aren't affected. To be able to pull it off seamlessly, you must have a detailed relocation plan in which everybody's role and the moving process is explained. This article highlights what to think about when creating and executing the moving plan.

1. Risk analysis

Are you moving closer to or further away from your customers? How big is the business and how long will moving and settling take? Getting a professional moving company on-board as early as possible can help you answer this more definitively. Before scheduling the move, work on a marketing campaign over a couple of months to notify your customers of your impending move. You can use this time to speak to as many of your loyal customers as possible. If you're moving further away, you can introduce some incentives such as lower delivery costs or product discounts to keep them coming to you.

2. Employee training

Your removalist should assign one employee to help you train your staff on their roles so that everything is prepared for moving-day without impacting service delivery. For instance, the sales team can make arrangements to pre-deliver product consignments that will be due during the move. Additionally, make a risk management plan for unpredictable glitches, e.g. office premises not ready on time. If everyone understands the part they play, the move is more likely to succeed.

3. Moving budget

Estimates from three reputable commercial moving companies can help you with this. Additionally, you must have a contingency fund (usually a percentage of the total moving cost) to cover unexpected expenses, e.g. should the moving company have to do more than your contract stipulates. Be sure to create detailed requirements checklist and inventory sheets, so that the quotations are as accurate as possible.

4. Handling delicate business assets

How will sensitive business assets be handled? These include computers, customer information files and drives, electronics, books etc. Create a backup of all company information and store in a different location in case your drives are damaged during relocation. Confirm with the removals company that they have crates to carry computers and drives.

If you have large equipment or a lot of inventory you should also notify the movers so that they plan ahead. For your equipment, if it needs any special handling/ dismantling and assembly, ensure there's a trained professional that will oversee its handling during the move.