The Ultimate Step-by-Step Office Moving Checklist

If you’re preparing for an office move, you’ll be aiming for minimal disruption during the move. Whether you’re moving to a serviced office or a coworking space with shared facilities, planning, preparation, and communication are key. Although moving offices is a challenging task, there are steps you can take to keep things running as smoothly as possible.

Here’s a handy guide to help you make the move without unnecessary stress.

Step One – First Things First

Once you’ve decided to move offices, start taking care of the first steps. Ideally, you should be doing this 3 to 6 months before your moving date.

• Review your commercial property lease. If you are planning to leave early, it may cost you your deposit. You may also be responsible for any breakages or damage to the space that might occur during the move. Make sure you’re in the know.
• Put together a planning team, who can delegate tasks and be responsible for the moving process.
• Start getting quotes from a variety of moving companies, to find the best available service and value for money.
• Find out whether you need moving insurance for important equipment and machinery.
• Set your moving budget, to help prevent overspending.

Step Two – Communication

Once you’ve confirmed your moving date, it’s important to let internal and external parties know about your upcoming relocation.

• Notify your current landlord and/or property manager and give official notice.
• Notify all your team members of the moving date and new office address.
• Start a master list of people you need to send a change of address to.
• Ensure that your employee list is up to date.
• Ensure that your client list and service provider list is up to date.
• Make sure all team members know what their responsibilities will be ahead of time.
• Make a reservation with your chosen moving company.
• Brief your IT department on the move and discuss what tech is needed for the day.
• Notify local partners, affiliates, and suppliers about the upcoming move, especially those who will be affected by your change of address and contact information.

Who to send a change of address notice to:

• Clients and partners;
• Any professional organisations you belong to;
• Stationery services;
• Banks and financial institutions;
• Any food service companies;
• Bottled water company;
• Telephone company;
• Service companies for photocopiers or printers;
• Insurance companies;
• Any accounts departments;
• Your internet service provider;
• Any additional services your company makes use of.

Step Three – Preparation

Now it’s time to consider the logistics of moving all your office equipment from one space to another.

• Get a detailed floor plan of your new space.
• Measure the new office space and plan how you are going to lay things out.
• Create an inventory of existing office furniture.
• Consult with a furniture company for any new furniture you might need.
• Place orders for new furniture and stationery if needed.
• Arrange external storage facilities if needed.
• Assign colour codes to each department. Work on a detailed floor plan and allocate colour coded stickers to each department section.
• Assign each employee a number and add that corresponding number to their desk and equipment.
• Clearly define and name communal spaces on your new floor plan.
• Sign any official paperwork, permits and licenses.
• Book parking space and elevators for the moving day.
• Arrange for cleaning services at your current office and the new premises.
• Finalise access codes and security for the new premises.
• Send a detailed floor plan to your movers or arrange a meeting at the new premises if needed.
• Create a detailed moving day plan for your staff to follow.
• Draft a list of emergency contact numbers for everyone involved in the move, as well as elevator maintenance and building management.

What should your planning team be discussing at this stage?

• Assigning a member of each team to oversee their department’s packing responsibilities.
• Deciding on packing procedures and layout.
• Drafting directions to the new location, including instructions on parking, public transport etc.
• Putting together a “moving pack” for each staff member, including their allocated desk number, colour code, and information about the new location.
• Determining a standardised way to label laptops, screens, hard drives, keyboards etc. and making sure all staff are informed.
• Ensuring that everyone takes home personal belongings and devices.
• Deciding which representatives will stay at the current location until the last moving truck has left, and who will be going to the new location to supervise.
• Arranging for each department to empty and pack or seal their filing cabinets etc.
• Ensuring that keys, access codes or tags and security information is all available.

Step Four – Making the Move

Once moving day arrives, you should be feeling well-prepared. Here are some more ways to ensure everything goes smoothly on the big day.

• Keep your emergency number printout close at hand.
• Allow a budget for refreshments for the moving team and internal representatives.
• If needed, arrange to have air conditioning on during the move.
• Ensure that all tech equipment, computers, phones etc. are moved first.
• Book a date for telephone lines and systems to become operational.

Step Five – Settling In

The big move is over! Now it’s time to get the final few things set up, so you can get back down to business as soon as possible.

• Ensure that all areas are clearly defined and demarcated for staff to see.
• Set up all computers and tech equipment.
• Set up telephone lines and systems.
• Update the company website with new contact information.
• Create a new phone list.
• Distribute new phone lists and department locations.
• Perform a detailed check of the premises and report any damage to the moving company if needed.
• Make sure your insurance has been transferred.
• Ensure that any old leases have been wrapped up.
• Confirm that any deposits have been received from the old premises.
• Collect all passes, key cards and keys for the old premises and have them sent back.
• Hand out new passes, key cards and keys for the new office.
• Check all invoices and payments.
• Arrange for the installation of new IT systems.
• Issue a press release about your change of address.

Congratulations, you did it!

If you’ve made it through an office relocation without too much stress, it’s time to pause and celebrate. We hope our list helps you get organised.

If you would like bespoke guidance on help in order to make the transition as smooth as possible, please get in touch with the team at Move Management Asset Removals Ltd and we will be happy to help!

Get in touch today