by Bernadette M. Heller

And then there's all the detail associated with the relocation. Some of the stress and worry associated with a move can be alleviated. For example, employee involvement reduces their fear of change, or racquetball may relieve some of the tension associated with the cost of the project.

But then, there's still the move. And easy? It's not. To alleviate the disruption and downtime caused by your pending relocation, use practical project management skills. This equates to assigning a good project coordinator, who will ensure the proper teams are established and who will use their project management training to coordinate and schedule events.

Take heed, too. You do need a project coordinator. Relocating any organization is a large task. It takes a great deal of time, effort, and organization. It's like putting together a giant jigsaw puzzle. To complete the big picture, you need to have a visualization of it. Not everyone in your organization will have the same picture or view. Too many hands trying to produce this particular puzzle will produce gaps and overlaps and subsequently big, expensive problems. A good project coordinator anticipates and pulls the project together, using all of the resources and individual elements needed to complete the job in totality.

The relocation process, after all, is a multitude of individual projects, which eventually merge to make the full event. If done correctly, various assignments will be handled by your internal staff (i.e. telecommunications, network, security systems, purchasing, layout and design, etc.) or your service providers may be asked to handle some assignments. At some point, however, these assignments will cross one another, and usually the point of convergence is where costs are driven upward unless scheduled properly.

Here's an example: Your network team addresses network services and equipment, and office services handles the telecommunication service and equipment. A number of data lines were ordered over the years for modem connections through Southwestern Bell by the computer department. The computer team assumes, though, that the telecom team will place the move order, when, in fact, the telecom team has no knowledge that these lines even exist. Assumptions are costly, but can be avoided through the proper teaming efforts.

There have been cases where the network team did their ordering for the data lines for the new facility, when actually it would have been much less expensive to run it though the existing phone system. Synergies are gained when these groups work together, and cost savings are usually imminent as well. At the very least, discounts are lost by not using a single-point provider for your services. One company learned it could save hundreds of dollars monthly by combining all their communication services on one T-1 circuit (local, long distance, 1-800, and Internet access). Cabling also becomes a common issue between security, paging, network and telecommunication installations. Bringing the entire package together, including service providers, will ferret out these issues and produce cost savings.

One organization forgot about printers that weren't on the network until they moved in. The network folks handled network printers, and office services handled the faxes. No one thought to handle the direct connect printer. They needed special cabling, too.

Furniture, space.

Teaming is necessary in every arena. Let's take the purchasing agent who scheduled delivery of the new furniture on the same day doors were being delivered to the space. The building has one loading dock and service elevator. The doors needed to be installed that day; otherwise the furniture wouldn't be secured. Meanwhile, the electricians, telephone and networking teams are on hold waiting for the installation of furniture to take place so they can make their connections. Little problems can quickly become big problems. A project coordinator will produce the schedules and time lines to ensure these mistakes don't occur and will be on the look-out for gaps and incompatible schedules.

Then there was the lack of coordination between the electrician and they systems furniture installers. The wiring was done opposite of what was needed. Coordination didn't take place, and it cost the company double-time as the electrician corrected the mistake.

I also recall a situation where a whole room of programmers couldn't work for a full day waiting for electrical circuits that were being reworked. The electricians were pulled to another floor, not completing the floor that was being occupied that evening. No one told the contractor the move date was moved up a day.

A point guard.

These are all real live and costly situations. The key is to assign teams and to assign one person to oversee those processes and teams in order to ensure that communication and merging of tasks takes place as necessary. Even if you go to the outside for the experience, one person internally needs to be your point guard.

The truth is, you probably won't usually find a person on staff who does relocations for a living. But, you may have someone who can adequately manage the burden--perhaps a facilities staff member.

Good communication.

Make sure your coordinator understands the role they will play. Statistics indicate that 68 percent of those charged with their organization's move are either fired or demoted after the move. Emphasize responsibility in coordinating assignments and events, and keep your project coordinator involved from the time of lease negotiations throughout the move process.

Good communication could have helped one firm that recently relocated to avoid a problem that caused major headaches. The architects developed a space plan based on intended new furniture purchases to be made by the company relocating. Expenses rose a little too quickly, so management decided not to buy new furniture. They moved in, and the old furniture didn't fit into the offices. Perhaps management didn't inform the project coordinator, who didn't inform the architect that the size of the furniture was changing.

Your project coordinator should also be involved in building and working with individual teams--both external and internal. The external team would include the general contractor, architect, and engineers. In remodeling existing space, change orders should be expected. A condition of the space may easily exist that wasn't accounted for in the construction plans.

The general contractor informs the architect, who writes a proposal for a cost proposal. This proposal goes to the subcontractors, who submit their pricing back to the general contractor. The general then submits the pricing to the client and architect for approval. Get the general contractor, architect, and engineers into the same room, and alternative fixes begin to fall out instantly. Usually they demand less time and are less costly than the original proposed change.

Take a recent situation: The air conditioning subcontractor conducted a review of the mechanical drawings and saw some questionable assumptions. Concerned, he informed the general contractor, who concurred, and contacted the mechanical engineer. The mechanical engineer blew him off, and the system was built as drawn. In the summer, it became quite clear that the system was not adequate. And, it had to be the executive floor where it proved most faulty. Bringing questions, fears and problems into a room of team players would have forced a second look.

Also, give your employees a chance to review their work area. I recently saw a set of plans that didn't include room for filing for the administrative assistants. They weren't given a chance to view the plans before construction. Common mistakes made are designing a right-hand station for a left-handed employee, or building non-adjustable work surfaces.

The key, absolutely, is finding the right person to coordinate the project--a person who will always keep the big picture in mind.

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This article appeared in the Volume 12, Number 12 issue of the San Antonio Business Journal on May 1, 1998. It has been reprinted by the San Antonio Business Journal and further reproduction by any other party is strictly prohibited. ©1998 by San Antonio Business Journal, 8200 I H 10 West, Suite 300, San Antonio Texas 78230. Their phone number is 210.341.3202.

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Berni Heller is President of Heller Corporate Relocation Services, Inc., which has been in business since 1997 managing numerous relocations in San Antonio and Austin. She is also a certified facility manager, and an adjunct professor at San Antonio College, teaching facilities management courses. Ms. Heller is also a current and founding member of the Facility Management Industry Advisory Council at Texas A&M University, and is immediate past president of the San Antonio Chapter, Int’l Facility Management Association.

Copyright © Heller Corporate Relocation Services, Inc.