If you are relocating your Houston business, your first priority is to stay organized. Whether you hire an outside team or handle the move in-house, keeping people and tasks organized will ensure a smooth transition. This moving checklist and task timeline for business relocations can help you manage the challenging logistics involved in moving your Houston business.
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Business moving checklist
Form a committee to lead the effort. Typical representatives include staff from the IT, HR, and Operations departments, as well as anyone interested in helping out.
Set a budget for your move.
Consider hiring a moving consultant to help manage your relocation.
Work with your IT department to coordinate moving your servers.
Work with your telecommunications and data provider to stop existing services and set up new ones.
Get in touch with your phone provider to set up new numbers or move current ones.
List what parts of the new office might require a phone line (e.g., elevator, security system) and place orders for those.
Renew your long-distance carrier or secure a new one.
Contact vendors if any equipment needs to be moved, such as copiers, lab equipment, manufacturing equipment, or other electronics.
Check the existing lease for any restoration requirements or conditions for returning the current space to the landlord.
Reserve the building elevators in both the new and the old buildings for moving day.
Order keys for the new building.
Plan the signage for the new building: hire a vendor, secure approvals, and install new signs.
Interview two to four moving companies, or get quotes from multiple movers to help you compare their services.
Order updated business cards, letterhead, and other marketing material with your new address.
Update your website, email, and other digital channels with your new address.
Advise your bank and other contacts of your new address, and fill out the USPS change-of-address form.
Inform your coffee service and vending machine suppliers about your change of address.
File your change of address with the IRS, Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, and Texas Secretary of State.
Fill out any change-of-address forms for newspapers, magazines, and other publications delivered to your office.
Inform your insurance company of your new address, and determine any insurance requirements for the new office.
Secure certificates of insurance for your new landlord and any other entities, as outlined in your lease.
After you’ve worked through the business moving checklist, plot out a schedule of tasks using the following timeline.
Timeline of business moving tasks
60 days before move date
Work with IT to coordinate moving servers, desktop computers, PBX, and so on.
Form a Move Team, and designate a liaison from each department.
Hold a weekly move-management meeting. Take minutes of the meetings, and distribute last week’s minutes and revised schedules at every meeting.
Outline responsibilities for all staff.
Draft a moving-day schedule that outlines the sequence of tasks (this will be updated as moving day approaches).
Ask employees to plan the layout for the new space. Sketch out new common areas, such as break rooms, copy rooms, and meeting rooms.
List all equipment needing moving, and review requirements for installing special equipment.
Coordinate timing for everything that needs uninstalled at the old location and re-installed at the new location.
30 days before move date
Label everything that needs to be moved according to the floor plans.
Prepare instructions for employees on what they need to do for the move.
Develop the agenda for an employee orientation at the new building.
Draft press releases announcing the new location.
Set up security procedures for before, during, and after the move.
Make sure your company is added to the lobby directory at your new location.
Adjust and update the moving-day schedule as needed.
14 days before move date
Confirm the schedule for the move.
Run employees through relocation orientation.
Hand out move instructions to employees.
Arrange for delivery of packing material and mailing/packing labels.
Assemble a welcome packet for employees that includes information about the new building, such as the location of the restrooms, fitness center, copier area, and break room.
Arrange for on-site help for moving day.
List the emergency contact numbers, including the moving company, new building managers, and utility companies.
Set up a central command post for the move to handle inquiries from the movers or employees.
Identify a vendor for cleaning the new location after the move.
The week of the move
Label everything that is being moved to the new location.
Set dates for training on emergency procedures for new building.
Make all dates, times, and schedules final and distribute them to employees.
Prepare the new building for the move: put down floor protector mats and put up corner guards on furniture.
Adjust the new office spaces to fit equipment and users’ specific needs.
Distribute ID badges for the new building to all employees.
Establish locks and security codes for the new building (as close to move-in day as possible).
The day of the move
Assign on-site support to handle move-related questions and address concerns.
Throughout the day, continue to monitor progress, adjust the schedule, and assess any damage.
Confirm all keys and access cards have been handed out to employees.
Give employees their welcome packet at the new building.
After the move
Relocate your command post to the new location to handle employee questions, assign tasks, and coordinate schedules.
Allocate support for tasks such as hanging whiteboards and setting up equipment.
Gather all access-related items from the old building (e.g., ID badges, keys, and parking passes).
Contact former landlord for return of deposits.
Compare contracts to final invoices.
To help you keep your Houston office relocation on track, keep this timeline and moving checklist close at hand.
If you’d like to compare moving services in Houston, get a quote from multiple professional movers today.