If you are moving a small business, you may be in for a shock. Moving a business is much different than moving a residence; it usually involves coordinating more people, and the longer a business is out of commission, the longer it isn’t making money. So moving an office is something you want to do quickly, professionally and efficiently.

Communication

Throughout the whole process of moving your business, you’ll want to make sure you are communicating clearly with everyone: employees, movers, landlords and anyone else that will be involved. You’ll want to first notify everyone of the moving date, at least 2 months before you move, and let all pertinent parties know what their responsibilities will be. For example, employees may need to pack up some or all of their own supplies and need to know when and how you want them to do this.

Organization

Moving an office takes a lot of coordination. Give yourself 3-4 months to coordinate everything so that when moving day arrives you’re ready for every scenario. Your goal, remember, is to be as cost-efficient as possible. Here are some of the situations you’ll need to coordinate:

1. Arranging for movers, particularly those with business moving experience.
2. Getting familiar with your new offices. Make sure you know where every piece of furniture is going to be placed. Draw diagrams and have them with you on moving day so you can tell the movers where everything goes. If your business is especially large, you’ll want a detailed floor plan for your new office space. You will also want your employees to have a copy of this floor plan so they can efficiently move about the space when they arrive.
3. Packing. Your movers should be able to pack your furniture for you. But you will need to deal with smaller items:
• You do not need to empty filing cabinets, but you will want to make sure they are locked.
• Desks need to be emptied.
• Lock away or transport yourself any private files you don’t want seen.
• Pack all contents of supply cabinets.
• Artwork and wall items need to be taken down, wrapped and labeled.
• Power down and disconnect all machinery.
4. Getting rid of garbage and unwanted furniture. You may need to rent some oversize dumpsters or get permission from the city to discard more than your normally allotted amount.
5. Labeling. Movers will need to know where everything goes, if something is not to be moved, or if something needs to be thrown in the dumpster. Label as much as you possibly can before the movers arrive.
6. Transferring utilities. You’ll need phones, electricity, an Internet connection, and plumbing to get your office working efficiently.
7. Changing your address. All clients, business associates and anyone who does business with you in any way will need your new address.
8. Getting new stationery and business cards.

If you are new to this sort of move, be sure to talk to people who have done it before. You may be able to get some great advice on methods for moving a business. Good luck!