Office Relocation Playbook

Pre-move planning (6–8 weeks out)

An office relocation lives or dies on the planning. The goal is to minimise interruption — staff working at 100% by the next business day.

• Notify your current landlord and confirm exit obligations
• Visit the new office, measure key rooms and get a detailed floor plan
• Inform your staff with a clear move date and FAQ
• Book a reliable commercial removalist — request a site visit
• Build a notification list of clients, suppliers and service providers
• Create an inventory of furniture, IT assets and storage
• Assign a colour or code to each department for unpacking
• Brief your IT team — server downtime, cabling, internet handover
• Complete permits, building work approvals and insurance updates
• Reserve loading docks, lifts and parking at both ends

Team & communications

Staff who feel informed pack faster, complain less and lose less stuff. Communicate weekly from 4 weeks out.

• Hold an all-staff briefing about the move date and process
• Form a relocation committee with one champion per team
• Distribute crates to each desk 1 week before the move
• Give every employee a desk number and colour code for their new spot
• Set a labelling standard for laptops, monitors, peripherals and personal items
• Decide who stays at the old site until the last truck leaves and who receives at the new site
• Send a moving-day comms pack: hotline number, address, parking, first-day arrival time

IT, servers & comms

IT typically goes first or last — never in the middle. Most disruption comes from underestimating cable management and internet provisioning.

• Order new internet and phone services 6+ weeks ahead — NBN business installs are slow
• Audit server room — decide what's relocated, replaced or migrated to cloud
• Photograph every cable patch panel and rack before disconnect
• Bag and label every cable, power brick and dock with the user's name
• Back up servers and key workstations the night before
• Set a date and time for phone numbers, MFPs and door access to cut over
• Have a 'tech triage' desk at the new site on day one

Floor plan & labelling system

• Number every room in the new office on the floor plan (R01, R02…)
• Assign each employee a desk code printed on a sticker
• Use coloured sticky tape — one colour per department
• Label boxes on the TOP and TWO SIDES, never the bottom
• Mark fragile, IT, and 'unpack first' boxes with a red dot
• Stick floor-plan printouts at every entry door on moving day

Moving day operations

• Print emergency contacts: building manager, lift tech, IT lead, removalist supervisor
• Provide refreshments for the removal crew and your internal team
• Move all IT and comms equipment first
• Confirm boxes and crates land in the correctly numbered rooms
• Activate new phone lines on schedule
• Have a single decision-maker on site (not three) — keeps the day moving

After the move (first week)

• Walk the new office and snag-list issues (lights, locks, leaks)
• Test all IT — printers, Wi-Fi, VoIP, door access, MFA on shared accounts
• Notify the removalist of any damage within 7 days
• Close out the old lease — get bond back, hand in keys, swipe cards
• Have new IT systems and meeting-room AV commissioned
• Send a client announcement and update the website footer, Google Business and email signatures

Minimising downtime

The lowest-downtime moves we run share three traits: phased moves of non-essential teams first, IT cutover overnight or weekend, and a 'soft launch' day with leadership only before all staff arrive.

• Phase the move — non-critical teams Friday, ops teams Saturday, leadership Sunday
• Pre-stage furniture and racking the day before where possible
• Pre-cable desks the day before — only laptops and monitors land on staff desks
• Plan a Monday morning hotline staffed by your IT and facilities leads

Compliance & lease handover

• Schedule professional cleaning at the old AND new office
• Confirm new building access codes, security passes and lift codes
• Update WHS first-aid signage and evacuation diagrams
• Return all access cards, keys, parking permits and remotes from the old site
• Confirm the bond inspection date with the outgoing landlord
• Update workers' comp, public liability and contents insurance with the new address