How to Keep Your Employees Motivated During an Office Relocation

As a business owner, relocating your company offices to a different town may be a great move. There are many reasons why you could make such a decision ranging from financial and legal to entirely personal ones. But your employees will take it as the worst news of the year. They may need to travel to their new workplace daily. Alternatively, they will have to uproot their lives and move to another city if the new office is too far for commuting. It is of utmost importance that you do everything you can to keep your employees motivated during an office relocation. Here are some guidelines to get you on the right track.

Present office relocation as something exciting and not scary

The unknown is always scary, and to the employees, so is the new chapter that starts with the relocation. As the owner, try to convince your employees that good things are coming. Positively talk to them, mentioning how the company will now grow and develop, which is something they will benefit from. It would be good if you could present the good sides of living in the new city you are moving to. Try to answer every fear they have with a solution and a hope that the new path the company is taking is a beautiful new beginning for all of you.

To keep your employees motivated during an office relocation, involve them in the design process

Involving the employees in the new space design process will make them feel appreciated and lift their morale. Ask them for ideas about what the new offices should look like. If you intend to get corner desks, for example, instead of the regular, rectangular ones, ask them what they think of it. After all, they will be the ones that will spend time in those offices the most. It is only fair that they participate in decorating it and choosing the furniture and its layout.

Keep them up-to-date during an office relocation

Until the relocation is over, the employees will go through an emotional rollercoaster, primarily due to the uncertainty of it all. Try not to keep them in the dark for too long. Make sure you share all the information related to the impending move. That will keep them calmer.

Make sure they are busy and focused on the business goals

They say an idle mind can come up with questionable ideas. You don’t want that to happen with your personnel. Keep your workers busy at all times and focused on business goals. Their thoughts must be on the right track and not getting around to doubting the point of working for you. Besides, even though you are at some crossroads, the show must go on. Your company must continue with its operations. Otherwise, you will be experiencing losses in terms of profit and the number of your employees.

Provide more support during these challenging times

One of the ways to motivate your employees to stay positive and productive during the trying times of office relocation is to organize celebrations at the office. Everyone loves to have fun, and places where they have fun people later associate with positive emotions. Employee birthday is a great cause to introduce festive moments into a dull corporate atmosphere. Use other suitable occasions too, to organize a little office party. All of that will make your workers glad they are working for you and more motivated to remain doing so even though the office relocation is happening.

Make a good relocation plan and handle the logistics of it

Moving an entire office to another building, let alone another city is stressful and complicated. But some good planning can mean a lot. Your job as an employer is to ensure it is done in an organized manner with minimal disturbance for the employees. The one thing they should do about it is to be present when all the items are being packed for the move. The experts in relocation from City Movers advise that the employees label the boxes with their stuff, so nothing gets lost. If you plan to have them participate in the packing, at least give them time to do it slowly. In any case, take care of all the logistics so this stressful change can go as smoothly as possible.

Handle their new housing, at least for the beginning

Once you finish the move, the people working for you will have to find a place to stay. They probably weren’t planning on doing that, and some might even hate it. To show them you understand their struggle and to keep them, it would be good if you took care of their new housing in the beginning. It will make them feel safe, and all that talk about how all of you working together are a family will no longer sound like empty words.

Give them time to adjust

The last but not least thing you can do to help your employees stay motivated during the relocation ordeal is to give them time. Do not expect perfect results right away. Let them adjust to their new routines and the changes that just happened. Their well-being directly affects your company’s well-being. When your employees are feeling low or anxious, their productivity drops significantly. Their creativity leans towards the negative, resulting in your business taking the wrong path. Your empathy and patience will stop that lousy trend in this situation.

Final thoughts on keeping your employees motivated during an office relocation

You’ve probably noticed that to keep your employees motivated during an office relocation. You’ll need to be sensitive to their needs and their feelings. You’ll need to include them in the decision-making process when deciding what the new offices should look like. And most of all, you’ll need to be understanding and patient with them. That will make the relocation successful, and your personnel will see you as a great boss and human.

Meta: To keep your employees motivated during an office relocation, you’ll need to put in some serious effort and display human traits. Here’s how.

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