Easier is better!

Office moves – they are a major pain! We’ve all had to deal with them at some point of our professional careers. They are stressful and disruptive, and they make our business life temporarily exasperating. Nobody likes them to last a long time and the sooner we are done with them the better for everybody involved.

There are three things that help to make the process less onerous. It all really boils down to assessment, planning and organization. Here are the examples:
1. Assess before you chose a new space.
2. Plan what to take with you and what to replace, plan your purchase schedule.
3. Organize setup and installation of IT infrastructure in the new space.

The good news is that we, usually, have quite a lot of time to plan and if we utilize it properly our move will be more efficient and less stressful. Let’s take a closer look at the above points.

Choosing a new location – among other considerations such as the location, its size, accessibility, parking, rental costs, etc., one should check availability of internet services as well, and a good IT provider should be able to help you do an assessment. There may not be a fast speed internet available in the considered area and obtaining such service may require several weeks and/or substantial investment. If investigated ahead, it may save you some time, money, and a big headache.

When you’ve finally decided on the new location, it is a good idea to have your trusted IT provider assess the existing IT infrastructure. Is there a sufficient network cabling provided to all the spaces where it is needed? Are there any security measures that will be needed? If yes, a separate network needs to be setup in coordination with security company to ensure network security. This requires special network components that might be difficult to obtain nowadays. Giving yourself lots of time for planning will allow for time and money savings when sourcing such equipment (current situation with short supplies causes significant delays, in some cases lead times are measured in months). It is a good idea to assess your own network infrastructure – what can you take with you to the new location, what will you need to purchase to accommodate current and planned future changes. Again, ordering ahead of time will save you unnecessary expenses caused by delays.The same goes for any other computer hardware that you are planning to upgrade/replace. Quite often, when moving to a new space you will want to update your computers, monitors, printers. Some products are more difficult to get than previously and may take much longer to arrive. To avoid delays it is important to have all these items ordered well in advance, especially when they are not standard. With enough time to plan, a good IT partner should be able to source all that you need so that you should not be plugged with many delays.

Finally, when all the moving parts are in place, it is time for the move and a new setup and, with luck, it can be all accomplished over one weekend and made ready for your employees to use first thing on Monday morning.
So, don’t despair! With lots of time to plan and help from a good IT provider, things will move smoothly, and you will be able to enjoy your new space within reasonable time and much less stress.
And if you need help in planning, do not hesitate to contact us! We are here to help!

Everyone does IT we make IT simple!