Managing an Office Move
Written by: Port Containers
Moving an office takes some logistical planning. You might need ISO containers for your office furniture, or you might have to plan for a certain amount of movers to get things done in your time frame. It all starts by evaluating what you need to transport. Here are some tips to help you manage every aspect of your office move.
Planning
Before you buy shipping containers, you need to plan what to move. Choose a team that will over see the move, and gather them for weekly meetings leading up to the move. Take inventory of everything that needs to be packed, and create a time line to accomplish the move and get back up and running at the new location. Collect all the information you can find about the new location and make some trips to test the hardware (lighting and doorways). Begin to plan the layout of your new office with hand or computer drawings showing where everything will go.
Management
You should start with a helper from each major department. Gather a company meeting to talk about the move, then ask for volunteers. Each person can “manage” their team throughout the move and help members pack their individual desks. Even in smaller offices, a few key people keeping track of which departments are packed can make a difference. Your team should help you prepare for the final day of the move, such that you have no more boxes to pack and you can watch the movers do their thing.
Budget
You will need to spend money to move your office. Whether you’re hiring a couple of movers, or a container rental, you’ll need to delegate some of your budget to paying for these supplies. You’ll need packing materials, extra personnel (or the money to pay people on staff to pitch in outside work hours) and you might want to plan for repairs along the way. Your new office might need some new fixtures, or you might want to make some modifications before you get in.
Delegate
On the day of the move, you and your team should carefully delegate all aspects of the work. Each department should be responsible for its own materials, and each head should have tasks for the others to accomplish. If you require specialty service providers, like a plumber, delegate someone to check up on that task and be sure that it gets finished on time.