subject: Organize Before You Move - Tip For A Successful Office Move From An It Provider's Perspective [print this page] Running a small business is filled with big challenges.
In fact, the more your business grows, the more you may find yourself wearing a wide range of hats. With the rapid changes today in information technology (IT), staying abreast of industry trends and knowing how they impact your business can be intimidating.
Does this challenge sound familiar to you?
If it does, you know the stress of managing your IT systems is magnified when it comes to the decisions and logistics involved with moving your business.
As your business grows, you may find that you have to change offices frequently. If you have experienced this with your organizationcongratulations! It means your business is a success.
However, the success of your office move will be impacted heavily by the effective transfer of your information technology to your new location. This is an area of critical importance, and also an area where many small business owners lack experience and confidence.
Based on our experience managing the technology needs of hundreds of small businesses in a wide variety of industries, we have developed recommended practices that will help small businesses conduct a smooth and cost-effective move to a new location.
All of our recommendations are simple. So simple in fact, that most businesses tend to neglect them.
Tip #8: Organize your licenses, warranties and vendor contact information before your move
When planning an office move, your goal is to avoid headaches. And nothing can be more aggravating than having to find paperwork during a move that is probably buried deep in a box labeled, Vendor Stuff.
The absolute worst time to track down and find licenses, warranties and vendor contracts is in the middle of a move when something has gone wrong.
Heres what you do to avoid this situation.
Well before your move, create an Excel spreadsheet that lists key contacts and product information, including your license keys and passwords. Secure it electronically, and print a few hard copies to give to trusted people for safe handling until your move is complete.
In addition, create a binder of all your software media to be used for any necessary program reinstallations. Be sure to store this information away from your office so it does not get packed and moved with the rest of your materials.
