Found a new office space? This is how to successfully move your company!

If you are looking for a new office space, there are some things to consider and should be decided on, such as: What is the most important information when it comes to renting office space? How many square meters of office space do you need? To get you on your way, we have written articles on both of these topics. It could be useful to read these before embarking on your search for an office space. If you have found an office space already, you can read the rest of this blog and prepare your company for the move!

Have you already found a new office space?

You have just completed the search for a new office space, you are happy with the new office location and are preparing to relocate your business there. Do not underestimate the impact of this decision, there is much more to an office move than you might think! To ensure that moving your business runs smoothly, this blog lists everything you need to think about when moving to your new office space.

The purchase of moving boxes can start. Just like many other European companies do every year, you are moving your company to another location. Planning, coordination and communication are the most important words throughout this process. Think of IT facilities, having to notify address changes, the office interior design and perhaps you would even already like to plan an opening party. Let's get to it!

Designate a point of contact for the company move

After signing the rental agreement (or purchase agreement) for your new office space, it is wise to immediately start planning ahead to avoid time stress during the move. Start by making a good division of tasks. Who is the point of contact among your colleagues? And is he or she also the point of contact for external parties? This might be a task for an office manager, facility manager or someone who can take responsibility. This person must be able to plan well and keep track of things.

After that, a group of people can be appointed as the 'Relocation committee'. This group of employees will help the relocation manager during the process and will be partially responsible for a smooth transition. Printing this blog and distributing them amongst the members of the relocation committee could be a good idea. It also creates a solid foundation for the moving process. It is important to keep in mind that you should immediately plan a definitive date for the move to your new office space as well. In order for you to have a set date to work towards.

Appoint someone to act as the contact person for the company relocation and appoint him or her as the ‘Relocation manager'.

Reduce inventory and stock up on packaging materials

Communicate with the rest of the staff what is to be expected of them. It is wise to pay more attention to the storage of furniture and other items during the relocation process. The more things you store for the company move, the more things that will actually have to be hauled from A (your old office space) to B (your new office space).

Also, purchase packaging materials in advance, so that the staff can start packing a few items every now and then. When you buy these, it is a good idea to pay attention to the different sizes of the material. For example, the smaller items, some plastic wrappings, polystyrene foam and boxes are sufficient. But for larger items, such as desks, office chairs and cabinets for your office space, moving blankets are ideal. These moving blankets can also help you prevent unnecessary damage!

Check your insurance policy and prevent any unpleasant surprises

Speaking of damage, we are all only human and as such, accidents can always happen. It is therefore not superfluous to contact your insurance company and ask whether your insurance policy covers any damages that might incur during the relocation. If you use a professional moving company (which will be discussed later in this blog), insurance is usually included in the service. However, it is always better to be safe than to be sorry.

In case you are planning to move as many items as shown on the picture above, it could be a good idea to check your insurance policy again.

IT facilities in your new office space

Perhaps you have a staff member, such a network administrator, who can set up all the devices in your new office space or you could have an external party take care of it. Either way, it has to be arranged before you can move into the new location. Phone lines, Wi-Fi, ethernet cables and other connections (Like hooking up the coffee machine otherwise you might get into trouble with your fellow colleagues).

Also, check if your cell phones have good reception in the office space. If this is not the case, there are articles available which will give you tips and advice on how to improve the reception of your cell phone in office spaces. However, this is only useful if your office space has not already optimised the cell phone reception and/or has any signal available in the first place. For companies in 2019, it is hard to function without proper access to the mobile phone network, hence it is good to double-check whether it works before moving in!

Do you also have a great coffee machine like the one shown above? Make sure it is ready to be used at your new location!

Get help from a professional moving company (or not)

Most (large) companies use a professional moving company to take care of the largest part of the move to a new office space. The main reason for this is that these companies have a lot of experience with transporting all kinds of furniture, which will help make the moving process run as smooth as possible. In addition to that, they can offer you advice and support on further company move-related questions. This option is more expensive but it does, however, save you a lot of additional stress and probably most importantly: a lot of time.

A professional moving company has the knowledge and experience to make the move as efficient as possible

As mentioned before, it saves you a lot of time if you decide to let your business be moved by a professional moving company, your business might not have to stop its usual work activities either. There are some disadvantages as well. One of those disadvantages is that moving companies usually ask for extra money during weekends. For example, the surcharges could be as high as 25% extra on Saturdays and up to 75% extra on Sundays. As a result, you will have to weigh the pros and cons of whether to use a professional moving company or not.

Automatically send out address changes notification messages

Notifying people that you changed your office location is very important. Regardless of whether your company serves the C2C market or B2B market, people and companies must be able to find and contact your business. As such, it is good to write changes of address messages. This message gives your partner companies, suppliers and customers the exact details of your new location. This way there are no unpleasant surprises when they are trying to reach or visit you. Past experiences tell us that it takes quite a lot of time before everyone is aware of the new address of an office space. Try to remain patient!

Letting people know that your company has a new address is very important.

A summary of all the communication tools you could use:

• Notify all regular business contacts, such as the bank, the national Chamber of Commerce, the tax authorities, customs administration and the insurance company;
• Update the email signatures of the staff;
• Change the location of your company on Google Maps;
• Update all your current advertisements;
• Change the address on your website (and possibly add a notification on the website that you have moved);
• Adjust folders, brochures, packaging, envelopes, merchandising and other objects where the address is mentioned.

New office space, new office interior design?

Aside from letting people know that you have moved to a new location, it is also important to think about the new office interior design. Most companies that move to a new office space, also opt for a new office interior design as well. When choosing an entirely new office design, there are a lot of additional things to keep in mind.

Because of how time-consuming furnishing an office interior can be, many companies choose to outsource the office furnishing to external parties like SKEPP. We offer interior design furnishing packages based on your personal wants and needs. This design can be created by a company itself or tailor-made by our interior designers using Officeplanner. Officeplanner is the latest addition to the SKEPP services, being a full-service provider for office spaces in many European countries. For more information, check out this page, which will give you all the necessary information regarding Officeplanner.

Learn more about Officeplanner, an office furnishing solution that is fully customised to your preferences.

Using Officeplanner, it is possible to give your company’s image a fresh start. Our interior designers will give you a personalised interior design proposal based on your wants and needs, which is completely free of charge and without any obligations. We want to make sure that your new interior design is exactly the right fit for you. Officeplanner comes with a purchase, rent purchase and renting option. The latter can be easily up and downscaled to match the current needs of your company. In all cases, the transport and assembly of the furniture is completely taken care off by SKEPP. Giving you a worry-free and highly flexible experience.

Officeplanner

Prepare for the future by making use of the latest tech solutions in your new office space

Aside from thinking about the move of your company and possibly a new office interior design as well, you could also look into applying the latest technological advancements in your new office space. While this is not the main topic of this article, we wanted to give you some information on the latest trends when it comes to new office space tech solutions. Tech solutions like keyless access, privacy glass or a meeting box are rising in popularity and could also make your new office space a more convenient place.

Never heard of these terms before? That is not surprising at all! However, it might be a good idea to take a look at tech solutions that can take your new office space to the next level in terms of usability and comfort. Read this article about SKEPP Officekit to learn more about these tech solutions.

Look into applying the latest technological advancements in your new office space

Tech solutions for your new office space

Pay attention to the details while moving to a new office space. By now, you may have contacted a professional moving company, made a decision on whether to get a new office interior design and you will have communicated your new company address. Which means that all preparations have been made, you are ready for the actual move! At this stage, the relocation contact person and the relocation committee have arranged everything down to the last detail and have possibly used the experience of a professional moving company, everything should work out fine during the move. However, small details can always be overlooked.

Make sure, for example, that there are places where the moving company can park their trucks. Preferably close to the entrance of the building. Also colour code all the items in both the old office space and the new one, so that the movers know where all the items have to go. This will help save a lot of extra work and time. You should also not to forget to take care of the catering, which you can either do yourself or let another company do it for you. It is also wise to immediately create a positive relationship with your new neighbours, inform them of the move beforehand and on the day itself, you can ask them whether they are experiencing any inconveniences.

If your new office building contains a restaurant like the one shown above, then taking care of the catering services will not be a problem!

Almost done! Plan the opening of your new office space

When you are done with the move of your company to your new office space, there are still a few things to take care of, such as making sure everything you planned to do, has actually been finished. Also, check if all the items are in the correct place and if nothing has been left behind in the old office space. Speaking of the old office space, have you left it completely empty and clean? Ideally, when the move is completed, you do not have to go back to your old office space to pick up things every now and then.

Not quite yet ready to move and still looking for office space?

In case you are not quite yet ready to move your company

Now that you are fully up-to-date with all the ins and outs of moving your business, it is possible that you still have some questions. Have you not found your ideal office space yet? SKEPP is happy to help, contact us today to find your ideal office space for the lowest price possible. Our real estate experts will happily help you if you are still left with any questions regarding the relocation process. Our services are completely non-binding and free of charge. Contact us now and get more information on how to successfully move your company!

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