What I Wish I Knew Before My Company Moved Offices

Moving offices-- just like moving your home-- is a huge choice, brimming with mistakes and headaches that can sap the resources of even the most prepared business.

We must know. Convene just recently moved our corporate head office from 2 offices in Midtown Manhattan to a brand-new flagship place in Lower Manhattan. It's a move of just four miles, but moving over 100 individuals, spread throughout several locations, is never ever an easy task.

To facilitate this relocation, and guarantee a smooth shift, the group here at Convene designated a move committee: a group of experts, selected for their specific knowledge around issues we knew would emerge with the big relocation. Believe of them as our moving all-star team-- the Office Move Avengers.

Four of these professionals were kind enough to share their ideas on the move-- what worked out, what didn't, and how other companies need to prepare to move. Find out from our successes-- and mistakes.

Start with "Why?".

The most crucial factor to consider our experts shared was the significance of "Why?".

" Why are we moving offices?".

" Ensure everyone knows the 'why' of the relocation," says Slater. "Individuals respect transparency. You require to describe whether it's going to be much better or worse for them.".

Let's face it, companies move for lots of reasons-- in some cases not-so-good and often good. Even if you have to move for a negative reason, it's crucial to transparently interact why the move is needed.

When the team was substantially smaller sized, we moved into our old office back in 2010--.

Obviously, lots of relocations come with great deals of great news too-- growing groups, broadening revenue, and new opportunities. Even when things are looking warm and intense for your business, do not take the 'why' for given. You're still asking people to change their routines, which in lots of methods is more tough in great times than bad.

" All interactions concerning the relocation should always start and end with the essential vision of why we're moving workplaces and why this is essential," says Wollemann. "Even when it's just an e-mail about logistics and timeline, it's important to keep in mind the 'why' when you're asking individuals to alter a major part of their regimen.".

" What remains in It for Me?".

Even the most generous group gamer will have one big concern about any workplace moving: "What remains in it for me?".

Shifts and regular modifications are tough for everybody, and some of the changes might make life harder for a part of your team (longer commute, less familiar community). While you shouldn't belittle or disregard those issues, make certain you're framing the walk around the specific benefits people can get out of the new digs.

Moving workplaces is a huge (and pricey) decision.

" If you're moving someplace with leading notch amenities, it's a huge message to people that our talent is the most crucial for us and we're going to take care of you," states Slater. "Whatever the advantage of your new space is, hype that up for the group: more area, better features, much better area, anything that frames up the all-important 'What's in it for me?'".

Choose Your Move Group Wisely.

Moving offices is a big choice-- a very expensive choice. Make certain you're choosing members of your move group sensibly, and not just tossing any ready volunteer into the mix.

Our group was purposefully selected based on their skillsets-- communications, modification expertise, design, strategy, etc. Each person had a function to play, and that function was crucial to an effective move. "Plan people's roles ahead of time on the move team," states Vassallo. "Make sure you have your needs covered.".

Regardless of the accumulated talent, there were a few areas our team could've used some additional assist with (operations being a big one). "Certain things I dealt with might have been better dealt with by an operations expert. Employing the mover, coordinating all the boxes, what teams require what, and what kind of things they own.".

" Having the right group of individuals to collaborate the move and divvying up responsibility is really crucial," states Christophe. "We had an actually good group, that made it much easier.".

Communicate Early and Often.

" Step one is developing an interactions strategy, where you describe the before, throughout, and after the relocation, and make sure everybody knows about essential dates," advises Wollemann. The team set out a detailed timeline, with corresponding dates for when crucial items would need to be interacted to the company-- scrap cleaning days, last day to pack your box, last day in the old workplace, very first day in the new office, and more.

When moving workplaces, make sure to thank those who check here made it occur!

Interacting early and often applies beyond simply your own business too-- make sure to confirm with outdoors suppliers like the moving business months in advance. "Start the move a minimum of 6 months in advance, not four weeks like we did!" states Vassallo. "When I called the moving company, they thought I was crazy.".

That goes for the building (really structures) included too. The majority of commercial office complex aren't going to let movers ruin their great elevators with moving carts and heavy furnishings. "You likewise require to collaborate with the building (both buildings) a lot," says Vassallo. "What time people can come, using freight elevators, what time people can use the freight elevators, extra cost for moving after hours, then coordinating with the new building to have that all occur on the exact same day.".

Know Your Employees ... and Their 'Things'.

Not all departments in your business are produced equal-- each team has their own needs and equipment. Designers need special displays and locations to sketch. Sales individuals require a quiet office for making calls to clients. The HR team requires a space with some personal privacy for interviews and other delicate meetings. And the finance team requires filing cabinets for accounting documentation. "We did interviews with each department to find out about what they require and how they work," recommends Vassallo. "That went a long way in being ready for day one.".

Knowing what they'll require in the new location, be prepared to manage devices and other miscellaneous products that go unclaimed at the old workplace. "I found that a lot of things weren't declared by anyone, and someone needed to decide what to do with it. For example, all the workplace materials in the office that technically didn't come from any one person. Somebody had to choose what gets tossed and what needs to come with us.".

Nail Day One.

You never get a second chance to make an impression. The first day of a move will be chaotic no matter what, however do everything you can to make it a celebratory atmosphere and a smooth shift.

Creating a celebratory atmosphere on get more info the first day was a critical element of our office relocation.

" It's easy to get lost in the logistics however when it boils down to it, individuals appreciate a few things that will impact them on the first day-- how do I get in the building and where am I sitting?" says Wollemann.

The moving committee produced a welcome packet that had directions on all the basics of arriving to work on the very first day and paired that packet with a live discussion a couple of weeks before the move letting people understand what to expect-- where they would be sitting, how to get in and out, public transportation alternatives, and more.

" You need to instruct individuals on how to prepare, and how to be effective in the brand-new environment-- how to set up their desk, their tech, their chair, whatever," states Slater. "Take some time to solve even the smallest of concerns and look after the requirements (not the desires) of people, either through design, technology, or education.".

There were a few items the moving group, in retrospect, wishes were dealt with differently. Relocating to a new office, for us, implied great deals of new IT systems to implement-- brand-new printers, new docking stations for laptops, brand-new building security, and more. The IT group set-up a war space where people could come by for support on the spot, however many problems might've been avoided by perhaps a team-by-team technology orientation.

Regardless of that minor trouble, the team nailed the very first day experience. "We had an actually celebratory first day (and week) at the brand-new office," says Wollemann.

The Lunch Crunch.

Among the most unexpected elements of our move is simply how invested people would remain in checking out the lunch spots in our new area. Of all the regimens being changed for the folks in our office, lunch unquestionably generated the many excitement and suffering.

" We create a truly good welcome package that included details about the community, however I want we included more options for lunch," states Christophe. "The alternatives we put in there were more unique celebration type of places (i.e.-- more costly), and not every day lunch options.".

Prepare individuals for their brand-new cooking surroundings. Search Yelp for the very best sandwiches, salads, tacos, and ramen, and make certain you communicate that information to the group. Food is a big deal, and you 'd be well served to set minds at ease about where your team can consume in their brand-new digs.

This reaction did generate a fun and creative service-- our team has now begun a shared spreadsheet where individuals can go into fun, affordable lunch areas they have actually discovered with a short evaluation that anybody on the team can browse for some brand-new alternatives to try.

The Work's Not Done After The first day.

At 5PM on the first day, it's easy to breathe a sigh of relief and think the relocation is over with.

Not so quickly, says our move group.

" Individuals forget that the move and modification isn't over on the first day," says Slater. "Sustaining modification is the greatest difficulty and it's not normally done well by most business. People will start to leave cups and garbage around or use the areas wrongly. You need to continuously iterate and deal with concerns the very first month as people get utilized to the space and make adjustments so that the area works efficiently.".

The day one breakfast spread. Stay alert, the work's not even close to complete!

" The biggest difficulty is getting people to alter their behavior," states Wollemann. "One method to encourage that is actually to focus the communications. Even if the sole function is to communicate the date of something or action they require to take, always bring that interaction back to why this change is going to be terrific for the future.".


Don't Forget to Make It Enjoyable.

Do not kid yourself-- moving offices can be a huge old pain-in-the-ass. Everybody understands it.

After investing years in one workplace, we had all collected a lot of stuff that plainly didn't need to move to the new area. Because no one really likes cleaning, the group made it fun.

Big garbage and recycling cans were brought in and everybody in the business was encouraged to let go of all the junk they have actually accumulated for many years. Old documents was shredded, conference boodle donated, and drawers filled with napkins and plastic spoons from lunches previous were discarded.

Throughout the first week in the brand-new workplace, special surprises were planned, like afternoon cookies or catered lunch, in addition to unique welcome bags for each employee including novelty chocolate business cards-- featuring the new address, obviously.

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