Nibletz Staff
There is no doubt that the decision to move to a bigger office space is a difficult one to make. Sure, your business has enjoyed success where it is now, but how will the uprooting everything to go elsewhere affect this? The whole process required in-depth project planning, solid communication skills with everyone involved and a full understanding of your individual business requirements. However, if you get everything right, you will put yourself in the strongest position to upgrade your company to the next level. In this blog post, we are going to be talking you through a few top tips to help you with your office upgrade.
Look at Your Current Infrastructure First
Before you do anything, you need to closely analyse your current office infrastructure. Have you outgrown it or is there still room to expand in-house? There is no point changing location unless you are sure that it will bring positive benefits to your business. It is an expensive and time-consuming process, so you really need to have confidence that you have gotten the most out of your current space.
If you feel like you have, now is the time to analyse your current workplace in detail to see what you rely on to run your business effectively including technologies, processes and stakeholders. You need to ensure that everything is fully transferable to prevent as many delays and drops in productivity levels as possible. Your IT systems may have been designed for your current size and specifications and you need to install entirely new ones in the future.
Choose a Location
Next up, you need to closely consider the location where you will be moving to. Of course, a lot of business is done online these days, so you may consider this to be not as important as it used to be, but there are still plenty of advantages to setting up in a good place. Issues like customer footfall, proximity to suppliers, transport facilities and accessibility for employees are all things which should be firmly on your radar.
Perhaps you are even thinking of having your own business premises built from scratch. This is likely to be a hugely time-consuming and costly process, but the major advantage is that you get everything exactly as you would like it. You may need to employ a professional project planner to ensure that everything runs smoothly, and you may also require some partner organisations and Veris use a variety of methods to perform Underground Service Detection Surveys before you even begin. There is a lot to think about so make sure that you have weighed this decision up in your mind thoroughly before getting started.
Perks of Moving
The whole point of moving office is that you are supposed to be going somewhere which is better than what you have already. As well as preserving the culture which you have built up in the life of your business so far, you will ideally be adding some features that both you are your employees can enjoy. Think bike storage, catering facilities, and access to exercise equipment etc. Perhaps the benefits simply come from where your office is located and the other businesses that are in the local area like cafes, restaurants, grocery stores etc.
Consider the Difference in Size
Just because the new office that you are currently looking at is bigger, it doesn’t necessarily mean that it will be more accommodating to your business needs. You need to do all your measurements carefully, checking the dimensions of your furniture and other larger items to ensure that it all fits comfortably in the new office. You want to avoid dead space wherever possible. After all, you are paying for every inch and you need to make sure that it is all being used in the best way. The effect that you should be aiming to achieve is a nice balance between emptiness and clutter. When you are showing clients around the place, it doesn’t look great is your office is packed with disused space. Remember, decoration can also be an effective use of space as well.
Consult with Your Team and Take Their Requests
Obviously, your opinions and ideas as the business owner are hugely important when you are creating your new office. However, it should also be a collaborative process as managers, employees, and even contractors all weigh in on how they would like the extra space used. Perhaps one department is pushing hard for extra desk space because they would like to expand. So, you should try to establish a smooth request management process which involves everyone being able to put their case forwards.
Make Your Moving Timetable
Your office move obviously needs to be carefully coordinated, and one of the best ways of achieving this is by creating a timetable that takes into account every little detail. You want the actual move to be completed over a short period of time – maybe even a weekend to minimise business disruption. However, there is a lot of preparation to make before you can get to this stage. Enlist all the professional support you can get as early as you can including moving companies, IT support technicians etc. When you make the timetable, ensure that everything is followed rigidly as you don’t want the process to be dragged out unnecessarily.
There is no doubt that upgrading to a bigger office can be a great decision for all kinds of business. Not only are you giving yourself room in which to grow, you are also giving yourself the option to improve your facilities and experience new location benefits. However, this is not something that you should be entering into lightly. To make sure that you enjoy a positive overall experience, you should put in place a strong project plan that takes into account all eventualities and leaves you with a transition that is both smooth and orderly.
