Moving offices is a complicated task. Move management software involves relocating staff members and support materials from one space to another.
However, there are so many different facets of move management that facility managers must consider before implementing the actual move. Whether your organization is moving to a new building entirely or relocating up a few floors, there are many components for facility managers to consider.
That’s where move management software comes into play—and can make life significantly easier for facility professionals. Move management streamlines the entire moving process and ensures no critical components are left out.
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In this post, we explore the importance of move management further and some of the key benefits for facility managers.
Because there are several variables with a move— like creating seating arrangements, building floor plans, maintaining productivity during the move, getting people settled in, and coordinating the actual move dates—move management software makes it easier to keep track of these components.
There are tons of benefits from using a move management platform:
Move management software serves as your all-in-one solution for a seamless office move.
For example, say your organization is moving from a large office building to a smaller one and adopting a 50/50 remote and in-office hybrid work model. To coordinate the move, facility managers can use move management software to communicate with the employees scheduled to work in-office the week of the move to ensure they know where they’re supposed to be, how to book desks and shared meeting spaces, etc.
This software is a critical part of any type of move, but especially as the workforce enters a new working style.
Creating a detailed yet clear communications plan is a crucial step of any significant move. This should be done before you make any announcements—whether it be to employees or company stakeholders. Knowing exactly how and when you’ll communicate essential move information with your team will ensure nothing gets lost in translation and that everyone is on the same page.
Move management software can help you send communications on popular company tools like Slack and Skype, so the right people are aware of what’s happening at the right time.
Facility managers who use move management software can experience the benefits firsthand, including:
An example of this in action would be if you wanted to host a meeting for top-level management to discuss move logistics—you can coordinate this meeting via Slack or Skype with just a few clicks. Then, you can send notifications to the rest of the team when you’re ready, all from one platform.
Moving requires a lot of preparation. For most organizations, it’s not a matter of moving furniture or rearranging a seating chart. Moves are involved tasks, even if you’re just relocating up or down a floor within the same office.
A tool like OfficeSpace’s move management suite turns your floor plan into a powerful reporting tool. With it, you can search for and find people, rooms, and resources in just a few clicks. You can also visualize workplace data in any way you like or need and print customized views of your floor plan that highlight what you need to see in relation to your move.
In addition, move management software offers several benefits that supercharge your data visualization, like:
If you’re moving into a slightly smaller space because your team will be 50/50 remote and in-person, having data on your side to guide your move will make it easier to visualize your new plan and ensure you’re accounting for everything.
Logistics and communication aside, don’t forget about the main part of move management—the actual move!
OfficeSpace users can use features like scenario planning to build the perfect floor plan for the new space. Create different floor plan scenarios and experiment with different versions until you make a plan that everyone in your organization likes.
Move management software helps facility managers with things like:
Best of all, you can merge your existing floor plan with the new scenario plan, and OfficeSpace will identify each task required to make a successful switch.
After big moves, it’s not uncommon for employees to want to adjust their seating situation. Minor changes and adjustments are to be expected from employees.
With the request manager feature, you can quickly adjust your seating chart—or if you prefer to let employees change their seating assignment themselves, you can permit them to do so. Facility managers can modify, approve, or reject requests before they’re pushed live, so you always have the final say before employees start switching desks.
This is also a great feature if you have a smaller team or will have a reduced number of employees in the office and can allow for more flexibility with seating.
Employee permissions within your move management software offer several benefits, like:
Request manager is also a great tool for onboarding. For example, if a new employee wants to sit close to his manager for the first few months so he can learn from her, this can be easily administered with the request manager. Or if members of the marketing department and engineering department need to sit closely together for the duration of a project for easier collaboration.
As we mentioned earlier, there are many components to a successful move. Keeping them all in one place is a great way to stay organized while ensuring things are moving along as scheduled. Or, if you need to pivot, you can make those changes easily right within the move management platform.
Move Reports keeps your moves and move communication organized in one place. Facility professionals can manage various aspects of a move with benefits like:
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Whether you’re planning moves from one floor to another or orchestrating moves for several properties at once, move management software helps you keep everything organized.
The different features of a comprehensive move management tool, collectively, can streamline the entire move process and reduce guesswork or doubts.
Photos: Jud Mackrill, Austin Distel, Christina