THINGS TO CONSIDER BEFORE HIRING OFFICE MOVERS
Is your office looking to make a big move this year? If so, there’s a lot of planning that you need to do to get your team ready. One of the biggest things you need to do is to hire an office moving company. But, with plenty of moving companies out there, which one should you choose? Make the right choice, and you’ll have a smooth and easy move that brings minimal disruption to your business. But, choose the wrong company, and you could easily have a disaster on your hands. Don’t worry, we’re here to make the decision an easy one. Check out this guide to learn the top things to consider before hiring office movers.
Get Recommendations from Those You Trust
Before hiring office movers, you should first talk to those you trust for recommendations. Considering that 40 million people, or 14 percent of the population, move each year, there’s a good chance that you have someone in your life that you can trust for a recommendation. It’s possible that someone you know had a bad experience with a reputable company. On the other hand, it’s possible someone had an excellent experience with a relatively new company. While Google can certainly be reliable for finding a moving company, asking for recommendations from those you trust can help you read between the lines.
License and Insurance
Before hiring an office moving company, you also want to look into their license and insurance. Never, under any circumstance, should you use a moving company that isn’t licensed and insured. If you are relocating your office within the state, then it’s important to note that each state has different rules and regulations when it comes to licensing, so it’s important to look into your own state’s information. Insurance is also extremely important for a moving company, as without insurance, you could end up footing the bill for a mover who gets hurt on the job.
Experience
Obviously, you want to make sure the moving company you hire has a few years of experience under their belt. However, you also want to make sure that the company you hire has experience in your specific type of move. Moving from one house to another is a lot different than moving from one high-rise office to the next. Therefore, you need to make sure you hire a company that has experience with office moving. Only an office moving company will know the ins and outs of moving fragile office equipment, finding parking in busy downtown areas, and fitting heavy office furniture in elevators and up staircases.
Review the Estimate Carefully
Last but not least, you want to make sure you review the estimate the moving company gives you carefully. Make sure you cross those T’s and dot the I’s, and read all of the fine print. If you get a super cheap rate from a moving company, it may be tempting to immediately say yes. But, you often get what you pay for, so tread lightly. Before you sign, make sure the company you hire is transparent about all of their charges.
Items to Include on Your Complete Office Moving Checklist
For businesses, moving office locations can be a stressful and tedious process. The move must go as smoothly as possible. The more issues that pop up, the longer it will take to get up and running at the new space. Preparation is one of the best ways to avoid hold-ups and ensure everything is accounted for. Creating an office moving checklist is a must for business owners and managers.
Office Furniture
There’s a good chance the furniture in your office will account for the most bulk during your move. You’ll need to make some decisions before moving day. Take a careful inventory of all your office furniture and determine which items you should get rid of. There’s no point in moving useless furniture to the new space.
Tech Equipment
Things like computers and modems require extra care during an office move. You need to have these items labeled and appropriately packed. Most of these devices also include hardware, cords, and other accessories. Make sure you account for everything during the packing process.
Important Documents
Even in today’s digital business environment, most offices contain sensitive documents. These could include client contracts, employee records, and trademarked business information. You must treat these documents with care. You’ll need to remove them from file cabinets and securely transport them to the new space.
General Office Equipment
Go through your office and write down all the pieces of general equipment involved in the move. This includes printers, fax machines, telephones, and office supplies. This is another situation where you should consider the condition of the item. A piece of equipment that’s outdated might not be worth moving to the new space.
Moving Office Tips for Employees
Moving office takes time, luckily, it is a burden that everyone in the company shares equally. With the right planning, organisation and coordination, a lot can be achieved with as little effort invested as possible. The work must carry on at the new workplace location, so having everyone exhausted by the move may result in turnover you don’t need. Therefore, everyone must play their part in this process. Here is our office moving checklist for employees.
Tell all your clients
The first thing you need to keep in mind is that this move isn’t just affecting you. For instance, what happens in a situation where an important client decides to visit you, unannounced, at your old location, only to find you absent. In this case, they might get the impression that they are not important enough to get a timely notification of your company’s relocation. To avoid this, contact your clients in advance and let them know you’re moving office, including the new office address, change of operating hours and telephone number (if any).
Make an announcement
When a company relocates, there are so many things to do. Most importantly, your workforce needs to make an important choice whether they will relocate with your business or quit. In a situation where the move is across the country, it isn’t that odd to assume that some staff may decide to leave, yet this is something that needs to be discussed in time. It is vital that the employee responsible for spreading this announcement (most commonly someone from HR) does this to give employees enough time to work their notice period and recruit for new staff. This usually means weeks or even months in advance.
Hire office movers
As for the move itself, contacting professional office movers in advance to avoid the hustle. The office manager is recommended to have the full list of the items, including computers, furniture and storage, that are transported to a target location. It may be more cost effective to purchase new office furniture and equipment at the new location than to pay for the relocation of goods from your existing office. You can either sell these items or donate them to a charitable organisation. It is recommended to get an itemised quote from the office movers to work out what is the best course of action for you.
Get the packaging material
Simply contacting office movers isn’t enough, it is also your job to secure all the materials that you’re going to take to your target location. For this, you need to get a sufficient amount of boxes, duct tape, labels and other important items. It is important that you are as organised as possible during this process. It is common for many items to get misplaced and mishandled during the move as people don’t know the importance of the contents of the box. For this reason alone, some companies purchase, borrow or rent out a label printer.
Things to Think About Before Moving Office
If you’re running your own business, it’s highly likely that at some point you’ll be faced with the decision to move offices. You may be a solo operator looking to branch out beyond your home office, maybe you’re exploring new geographic markets, or perhaps you’re expanding a small team and simply need more space. It’s inevitable that your business needs or operations will change over time and the office space you’re in, may simply not always be able to support them.
Location, Location, Location
Just like moving home, selecting the right location for your new office requires careful consideration. Take some time to think about your customers or clients and other stakeholders, as well as your staff.
Technology
The technological infrastructure is an important element that you’ll need to factor in, which largely depends on what your business needs. Things to consider include:
Power
Heating & cooling
Communication services
Wireless connectivity
Phone/computer systems & cabling
Security
How Much Space Do You Need?
Moving office is a good time to take a look at the type of business you are running and what type of space will best support it. Will you be there from 9-5 each day, or do you spend a significant amount of time visiting customers? What about weekends? Do your employees need a traditional workstation (desk/chair/computer), or does it need to be a more flexible set-up? Your specific business and the type of work that you do will dictate the type of work space need, so consider this carefully.
What About Furnishings?
New furnishings are often a necessity when moving into a new office. If the new layout is significantly different, there’s a chance any current furniture you have won’t fit into the new space. On the other hand, if you’re moving into a bigger space, more furnishings will be a necessity.
How to Pack your Desk for an Office Move
Whether you are moving to a new desk or to a completely new office, packing your desk can be a bit of a hassle, especially when the bulk of packing is done during the work day. It is important to plan out your packing process and make sure all your important items are secured properly. Below you will find some helpful tips on how to pack your desk, so you will be ready for the big move!
Declutter your workspace– A desk tends to become a catch-all for paperwork, pens, cups, food wrappers, etc. It is important to get rid of all trash or unnecessary items you may no longer need. You can easily determine what should be thrown away by simply asking yourself, “Have I used this in the last 6 months?” If the answer is no, then toss it! Decluttering your workspace will make the packing process much easier.
Pack paperwork– Paperwork and files are most likely going to be the bulk of what needs to be packed and organized before your move. Be sure to collect all your important paperwork and organize it with file folders. Don’t forget to label the folders, so you can determine which paperwork is in each file. Less important paperwork can be scanned and transferred to a flash drive or a disk to save space. Once all your important documents have been organized in file folders, place them into a box and label the box, so it can be easily located upon arrival
Pack smaller items– Smaller items on your desk such as pens, pencils, rulers, staplers, tape, scissors, can take up a lot of space when packing. It is important to stay organized and keep like items together. Pens, pencils, highlighters, etc. can be consolidated into one small box or a pencil case. Slightly larger items like rulers, staplers, and tape can be put into a gallon-sized Ziplock bag. All liquids such as hand sanitizer, lotion, white out, etc. should be packed separately in their own box or bag to prevent spills. Any food items can be placed into a grocery bag separate from all office supplies.
Disconnect electronics– If your company is not providing technical disconnect and reconnect services, it is important to disconnect all your electronic devices such as computers, phones, and printers; so they are ready for relocation.