How to Prepare for an Office Move

Making a move is stressful enough but having to move your business and staff to another location, whether near or far, can feel overwhelming. The best way to take on such a big task is one step at a time.

1. Make a To-Do List

If your move is several months away, you have the luxury of doing some planning and calculating in advance. There’s nothing wrong with thinking five or six months ahead. Your list can include things like:

• Collecting boxes and packing
• Contacting clients or suppliers
• Adjusting scheduled meetings
• Reviewing lease details and moving procedures
• Contacting all the utility services (phone, internet, etc.)
• Contact all services with a change of address (financial, postal, insurance, etc.)

Keep the list active and add to it as you discover things that need attention.

2. Schedule in Advance

Start by mapping out how many days it will take to accomplish tasks. Establish a budget as a financial guide so the end result isn’t a surprise. Consider how you will operate, or not operate, during the transition. Will you serve clients? Will you be available in person, just answering calls, or not at all? Will deliveries need to be delayed?

3. Assign Responsibilities

If your company has multiple departments, recruit a member from each area to form a team so the move flows efficiently and everyone is on the same page. Review your list and schedule with your committee, and delegate tasks to them. All of you will still need to continue with your daily tasks prior to the move, so sharing the responsibilities of the move will make the transition less stressful and more doable. Departments can also be responsible for arranging and unpacking their own areas.

4. Unload the Unnecessary

If your move is to a smaller location, you will have to take less by letting go of some things. Even if you are upsizing, you may want to replace some furniture. Consider donating furniture and equipment or selling it to help offset your moving cost. Either way, you will also save on the cost of packing and moving unnecessary furniture. Plan to have any essential furniture or equipment picked up the day before the move.

5. Manage Your Records Collection

Business records will need special attention prior to your move. To be most effective:

• Check retention periods. Check for records that have passed their retention date. These don’t need to me moved.
• File clean and purge. This is the perfect time to do a spring clean of non-records and inactive records. Do a one-time shredding purge of inactive records and consider moving inactive records that can’t be destroyed to a records management facility before the move.
• Identify document collections that require special security handling. Records must still be handled securely during a move. The risk of a data breach increases as the documents are transported from their tightly monitored storage to their new location. Before your move, identify a reputable records management provider who can advise you.

6. Pack It Up as You Can

Packing early and over a longer period of time will lessen the stress and help balance the workload. Pack things as soon as you know you won’t need to use them until after the move. Label boxes so they can be taken to the right location at the other end without the movers asking where each box should go. The bonus is that if you happen to need something you already packed, you know where it is.

7. Back Everything Up

You may already have a data backup system in place, but make sure all your data is backed up and sent to an electronic vault just before your electronic devices are shut down for the move.

8. Hire Help

Your staff will have enough work to do on either end in advance of, and after, the move. Relieving yourself and others of the task of loading, driving, and unloading is prudent and will be appreciated and protect your employees from injury. Take the time to choose a good moving company by getting referrals, reading reviews, and asking questions. Don’t forget to get office move insurance coverage to avoid the undesired expense of loss or damaged property.

Records Management Center in Augusta, Georgia provides secure and reliable records and information management solutions. Give us a call at 706-724-7982 or complete the form on this page and let us know how we can ease the stress of your pending office move.