Moving to a new commercial real estate space requires a lot of planning and hard work. Pick the right employees for the job and your business move will go more smoothly.
Moving a company from one commercial real estate space to another is purely an exercise of logistics. It’s identifying what you need to know, doing it and following up.
To that end, three groups of people within your organization are essential:
- the person in charge of the move.
- a move committee
- move coordinators.
Person in Charge
This person has the job of moving the company. The person you select, whether yourself or someone else, needs to have the
- authority to make final decisions regarding the business relocation, even if a move committee exists
- time to get the job done properly, taking into account that unexpected events will happen
- organizational and coordinating skills to handle hundreds of details.
Move Committee
The purpose of the move committee is to
- establish priorities
- obtain information
- determine critical issues that only people inside your company can know
- identify conflicts in schedules
- provide solutions for resolving those conflicts
- act as an information conduit to the rest of the company.
The move committee should reflect a cross-section of the company. Select dependable, take-charge, get‑it‑done people. Remember, everybody will be adding to their existing responsibilities.
The final size of the committee is a matter of judgment, based on the
- number of things that need to be done
- type of decisions that need to be made
- time available to each committee member to work on the move.
Each committee member must have a well-defined area of responsibility. For instance, each department head can be a member responsible for the respective department or one person from each floor would represent the employees on that floor.
A successful move committee requires a clear-cut chain of command with the shortest line of communication possible.
Move Committee Tasks
Master relocation schedule. The committee’s very first goal is to prepare the details of the entire business relocation. List everything that has to be done and set target dates for completing each item. Suggestions for the list can come from anywhere, but be sure to specially consult your in-house or outsourced
- accountant
- architect/space planner
- attorney
- building managers at both the new and old location
- communication consultant
- contractor
- commercial real estate tenant representative.
Assignment of tasks. When everything has been listed, the committee begins to assign tasks to committee members, move coordinators and others. Be sure to provide the appropriate level of authority when delegating tasks. Delegation can be made at three levels:
- Ask Level: “Produce this result, but ask me before you take action.”
- Inform Level: “Produce this result and keep me informed of what action you have taken.”
- Do Level: “Produce this result. I don’t need to know what actions you have taken, just that it was done.”
Move Coordinators
As soon as possible, identify department move coordinators. You cannot have too many move coordinators, who will help you double-check that items on your check list are getting done properly and on time.
These key people within each department or floor will be responsible for
- communicating information about the move to their department’s personnel
- distributing employee move instructions
- answering questions
- making sure boxes and furniture are correctly packed and labeled.
For a checklist to get you started on planning your move, contact Michael Coretz, broker with commercial Real Estate Group of Tucson, michael@cretucson.com.
Part 1: “Business Relocation Requires Planning“
Part 3: “Plan Out Your Business Move, Avoid Surprises.”
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