Most companies require employees to move their office at work. This is a big, unpaid pain in the butt, but it is just part of being an employee. Most of us just want to say I’m a *insert profession*, not a mover, but trust us, this argument probably won’t work on your boss.
We’d like to tell you that there is some magical way to make moving an office easy, but the truth is it takes a little bit of hard work. By following this guide, you’ll at least have a systematic approach to getting this office move done as quickly as possible. Without further ado, here is our guide for employees to move their office space from one location to the next.
Discuss Detail With Your Boss
If your boss hasn’t briefed you on the move, or you have any additional questions, you should discuss things with them before you start packing and moving items. Find out if there are any restrictions or requirements on what you are supposed to/not supposed to take with you to the new office. Find out when the official moving day is, and when you are expected to move. Also, find out if they have a way for you to dispose of items that are no longer needed. Of course, if you don’t already know, find out exactly where your new office is and the setup; this way you can plan how to set up your new office before you move everything in.
Pack Up The Non-Essentials
Family pictures, calendars, decorations, extra office supplies and anything you do not have an immediate need for should be the first things that you pack away. Get this stuff of the way as soon as you know you’re moving offices, because that way once you need to worry about moving the bulk of everything, you won’t have to worry about smaller items. Put these in your car, at home, storage or in the new office, so that you don’t have to worry about them until it is time to re-assemble your office.
Pack Up The Files
When we said non-essentials, some of you may have already considered packing up files. Filing cabinets are pretty easy to pack up. Just put all the file folders into boxes neatly. Try to label generally what type of files are in the boxes to make the organization process a little easier when it comes time to actually unpack all of the files. You may even want to put which drawer the files going into if you know you’ll be using the same cabinets in the new office space.
The Desk!
If you are lucky, you are one of those people that keeps everything nice and orderly. If so, good for you! The process of packing up your desk will be easy. For the rest of us, it is going to take a little bit of extra time to unfurl our mess then pack it up.
While it can be tempting to just empty drawers into boxes and call it done, this is not the best approach to packing up the desk. Instead, take the time to organize the desk then start to pack it up. Separate off smaller office supplies into zip lock bags, so that everything doesn’t get tangled. Make sure that papers are clipped together in a way that makes sense. Basically, you want everything orderly when you pack it up, so when you go to unpack it you aren’t spending a bunch of time re-organizing stuff that already was disorganized. View this process as killing two birds with one stone: you are moving your desk and cleaning it out!