Whether you are a professional or a budding entrepreneur, if you’ve come to a point in your career where you have to set up a new office, then big congratulations are in order. At this stage of the career, it is natural to think that you’ve finally arrived. However, as much as you may feel like it, resting on your laurels isn’t something that you can do right now.
Despite all the time and effort you spent building up to this point in your career, the real work begins now. How you set up a new office will end up defining how successful you are, how much you grow, and where your new efforts lead you. For this reason, it is of utmost importance for you to really hunker down and put your back into this effort. The following are some tips that will guide you in your bid to set up a new office.
Set up a New Office Tip #1: Figure out The Primary Purpose of Your Office
Of course, it’s obvious that you want to set up a new office so that you can work there. As obvious as that is, there are different types of offices out there on the basis of the specific requirements of respective businesses and employees. All offices are not the same.
You don’t want a situation where you set up a new office on the recommendation from a below par architect or through a free layout plan only to realise that it is not exactly suited to your needs. What you need to do is make sure that the design of your new office reflects what your business’s and employees’ needs are going to be.
For instance, all offices don’t need to entertain clients and customers all the time so don’t really need elaborate waiting and reception spaces.
Some offices are purely for working behind the scenes and, hence, focus more on functionality of equipment and comfort of employees rather than gloriously lush interiors. Make a list of all the tasks that will be done at the office as well as the basic creature comforts of your employees before you actually commission an architect to do the job for you.
Set up a New Office Tip #2: Account for Multiple Settings and Requirements
When you start noting down your projected needs from your office, it is possible that you will feel overwhelmed with all the functions and elements that your needs are shouting out for. The simple advice here is: don’t. There’s a simple way of beating that feeling.
Take your list of requirements and start categorising it into groups that make sense to you on the basis of your visualisation of your office. You’ll be able to sift through your list and club requirements together.
If you think you will need conference rooms but don’t think that they’ll be in use all the time and are constrained for space or finances, it would be possible for you to set up some communal machines in that room.
For example, imagine you only need the conference room once at the beginning of the day and once in the end with all your employees being present. In such a scenario, placing commonly used printers and scanners in the conference room can be a really money saver!
There are many other things you can do that can simplify the whole process behind setting up a new office.
Set up A New Office Tip #3: Consider Well before Leasing or Buying Office Space
Creating a list of requirements and then consolidating them into something coherent will help you determine how much space you really need to set up a new office.
This will also give you the freedom to shortlist appropriate office spaces without any confusion.
Additionally, once you conducted a reconnaissance of the available options, you’ll also get an idea of the extent to which this decision will affect your finances.
Apart from choosing an office space on the basis of the requirements you’ve listed, you need to consider a number of other things as well.
The foremost of these is the location. A lot of entrepreneurs disregard location in favour of other things but this isn’t advisable. Your office’s location will not only determine what impression people get about your business but also how willing employees are in joining you.
Another thing you should consider is the kind of control you’ll get over the office space. Will the landlord allow you to modify the space according to your needs or will he object to it? Does gaining that kind of control of the office space even matter to you? These are some questions you need to answer.
Finally, if you’re signing the lease then you’ll need to consider the time factor as well. How long a period are you ready to commit to? Will your business sustain or grow in that period. Does your chosen area factor in potential growth? These are some other questions worth asking yourself before putting your name on the dotted line.
Set up A New Office Tip #4: Make Sure to Set Aside Storage Space
One of the mistakes entrepreneurs make when they set up a new office is that they don’t take into account storage space. Some people do this because they don’t think they’ll need a lot of storage space while others simply forget about it.
Every office, no matter how large or small, requires a certain amount of storage space. Whether your requirement is for a large cupboard, a whole storeroom, or even a whole floor, take that into account before leasing or designing your new office.
Set up A New Office Tip #5: Carefully Evaluate and Manage Office Equipment
While the office space will seem like the most expensive element when you set up a new office, once your office is functional, that won’t be the case. In the long term, the biggest drain on your business’s finances will be the office equipment and associated intangible services.
However, you can save up in advance for that. In the start-up phase, don’t buy brand new workstations or any other office equipment. You should try to get second hand office furniture.
These aren’t that hard to find as there are always offices closing down due to one reason or another. The same applies to electronic equipment such as computers, printers, and scanners. You should also remember that multifunction printers are much more cost effective and user friendly than individual units for faxing, printing, scanning, and copying.
In terms of printing consumables, it is better to buy them in bulk and from generic suppliers than original ones as that would end up saving you up to 83 percent on the original cost. Such savings can really add up in the long term.
Set up a New Office Tip #6: Always Factor in Extra Costs
It can be very tempting to spend all the money you’ve laid aside to set up a new office. After all, this is an exciting time for you. Even so, you need to rein that excitement in a little.
The reason for this is that even after you’ve taken everything into account, there will always be something that you missed out. Such items show up later to become a drain on your resources. However, if you factor in extra miscellaneous costs, then this problem can be handled deftly.
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