An office move is judged by one thing: how quickly people are working again. The packing matters far less than the planning that happens before it.
Appoint one move owner
One person on your side should own decisions and communication. They work with the mover's project manager so that questions do not bounce between departments.
Map the new office first
Prepare a floor plan with every desk, cabin, and meeting room numbered. Each crate and workstation is tagged with its destination number, so nothing has to be sorted on arrival.
Treat IT as its own project
- Back up servers and critical data before anything is unplugged.
- Confirm that internet and power are live at the new site a few days early.
- Label cables and peripherals per workstation and pack them together.
Move over a weekend
A phased move works best:
- Friday evening: staff pack personal items; the crew starts with common areas.
- Saturday: workstations, files, and IT equipment are moved and placed.
- Sunday: IT reconnects and tests every desk; snags are fixed.
After the move
Keep a small support team on site on Monday morning. Most issues are small, such as a missing cable or a chair at the wrong desk, and are sorted in minutes when someone is there to help.