Recently our corporate headquarters moved to a larger space more suited to our business. Our old office was missing a room where applicants could meet with our staff, and our file cabinets were sandwiching some of the staff between the marketing items and event supplies. It took a while, but a space was eventually found that met all of our needs and even had the perks of a top-notch space.
When the announcement was made that a space was finalized and we had a moving date, our team was excited to hear about the larger desk spaces and prime location but I could only think about how big of a project this was going to be. Did I mention that we were only a month away from the move date?
The biggest part of our project was ensuring our internet and phone system was working when our team showed up for work on moving day. Thankfully we had a great partner that was able to spearhead this task and get every workstation up and running and the best decision we made was asking everyone to be in charge of their own belongings. We each had a box or two and packed up our computers, files, and other accoutrements and were asked to set up our own space. By giving everyone the responsibility of moving their own workspace, the burden didn’t fall on just one person.
Here is where it gets hairy. You can never plan for the things that will go wrong. And there will be things that go wrong. You have to just move on and deal with it the best way possible. In our case, the reception desk that was ordered was not the color we thought it was once it was delivered. Rather than settle for something that we knew wouldn’t look best in our space, we arranged for another desk and a nearby cubicle is serving as the reception area for a few weeks. We also have only half of the phone lines that will eventually be functional. To help reduce the line burden, we’re using more cell phones at our desks. These solutions aren’t ideal but we’re getting by and our business isn’t suffering.
All in all, our move went pretty well. The majority of the office is put together and most importantly, there is actual work being done. Moral didn’t suffer too greatly with the changes, and we have a great space that we have room to grow in. I am still in denial that our file room is still in boxes- but that is a conversation for another day! We all learned a few things from this experience: how to work from Panera when you don’t have internet at the office, how to pack (or over-pack) a box of files, how to break down and set up computer components, and most importantly, how to relax and do your job even though everything is upside down!