How Do I Reduce Downtime During Office Relocation?
With regard to corporate relocation, there is more to it than just planning and budgeting, downtime being one of the major concerns. In order to successfully relocate and avoid excess losses, downtime must be reduced, for you lose money on every unproductive hour. That being said, you need to be completely prepared for it, as this is something that can't be reduced completely. However, there are certain measures that you can take to reduce it, thus making relocation more efficient.
Plan Strategically
Planning is the most critical tool when relocating. With the correct planning, you can determine the expected downtime, and take preventive measures to minimize it. Identify a period when downtime is already planned, such as public holidays or seasonal holidays, and schedule your move accordingly. Relocation during these occasions helps in reducing the downtime.
Make Use of The Work from Home Idea
Provide remote working resources to your employees to encourage them to work from home during the relocation process. Most of these remote working tools are easily available in the market, so choose one that is most suitable to your needs, and train your staff on how to use them. The major benefit of remote working is employees have the flexibility to work either from their home or any other location. It ensures continuous work during the shift, reducing downtime as a result.
Communicate with Your Staff
Communication is crucial in every step. Inform workers in advance of the relocation, so they can prepare their work schedules accordingly. Share dates and timelines for the same to prevent confusion. You may also create teams and delegate your employee's certain tasks to speed the relocation process. One such job is to arrange and label products that will help the movers and packers' company to recognize items that need to be moved. It also saves their time, thereby speeding up the process.
Follow A Schedule
Apart from communication, having a well-planned timeline is also crucial to the process. You need to ensure every staff member is involved in the relocation process and updated with the timeline. Make sure the crew has the right details, and try to keep everything ready so less time is consumed when packing and moving. An organized schedule will ensure every process is completed on time and will prevent any unnecessary delays. Follow the schedule to ensure a streamlined process.
Shift in Stages
It is advisable to move in stages, rather than shifting everything on one day. It's easier, practical, and will enable your employees to stay productive. Alternatively, you could move department wise, so by the time the company reaches the last department in the office, the first few teams will already be up and running.
Keep Backup Ready
Be prepared for contingency and ensure to always keep a backup plan. While shifting, your organization may face unsightly difficulties or challenges such as delay in work, connectivity issues or disruption in the systems. These can cause unnecessary delays and an increase in downtime, further resulting in failure. When you have a contingency plan in hand, you are assured of dealing efficiently with the problem, thereby reducing downtime.
Final Thoughts
If not planned well, office relocation can be a time-consuming and daunting task and may affect productivity. It can cause downtime, which further leads to losses to the organization. Albeit, it can't be avoided, the steps mentioned above can aid in reducing it to a great extent.