FOCUS CHANGE MANAGEMENT
It can be particularly useful to identify
a handful of employees who have strong
networks among their colleagues. They will be
in a position to engage with others, listening
to their ideas and acting as a bridge between
employees and senior leadership.
CREATE A DETAILED CHECKLIST BASED ON
GOALS AND TIMELINE
We have guidance for relocation and workplace
transformations that breaks down each stage
of the process. Such a checklist is a way to
bring together targets, budgets, and your
timeline into a single, coherent plan.
It needs to be detailed and reflect the ROI
and KPIs set out. Elements should include:
Costs including refit CAPEX (new
furniture, design, technology and the work
of the transformation team) and OPEX
(new design, space use, and technology
may change ongoing costs).
Timeline. Detail each element of
the transformation. Where
possible, this should be
down to the hour when
considering any activity
that will disrupt the
workspace.
Communication. It
is essential to have a
strong comms plan. This
needs to be a dialogue
with employees. Plan how to
communicate changes but also how
to take and integrate feedback.
IT infrastructure. Any downtime of IT
will impact the bottom line so data and
telecom migration should be prioritised.
Physical assets. If a move or refit is
involved, furniture and physical assets
should be comprehensively audited.
Decide what to keep, store, refurbish,
recycle, or donate. Specialist items such
as fragile equipment, sensitive data or
valuable artwork may need specialist
handling.
CREATE AN AGILE STRATEGY
Even with all this planning, not everything
will run smoothly. Your organisation is almost
certain to face some unforeseen challenges or
changes of opinion.
Our work with clients during the pandemic is
a perfect example. Our teams had to readjust
26 SEPTEMBER 2021
how moves were carried
out to allow for social
distancing and other
safety precautions.
Oƒ ices were emptied
virtually overnight with
many personal belongings
le¥ on site, so we developed
a detailed auditing strategy
to record and store thousands
of personal items that would be
returned to client employees a¥ er the
move.
This is where working with an external
team can be particularly helpful; they
can take an objective view and won’t get
caught up in lastminute
stress. Our team
could manage changes to the moves
strategy while the client could focus on the
other challenges posed by the pandemic.
For those looking to create a more agile
strategy from the start, we oƒ er some
suggestions to stay agile while leading
change.
BUILD STRONG PARTNERSHIPS
You will likely turn to at least one external
organisation during the course of the move,
for advice, budget or comms management,
storage facilities, or redesign. Look for
strong partners whose priorities are aligned
with those of your own organisation. It
can be tempting during a pricey change to
opt for the cheapest provider but lack of
organisation or communication on their
part could become a significant cost of
money, time, or stress.
Find a communicative, agile, and
transparent partner organisation and work
with them from the start of the process if
possible.
A storage partner, for example, will do
much more than just store assets during
a project. They should advise you on your
storage options, monitor item conditions
and the time each individual item has spent
in storage, and flag a review when the
agreed storage time is coming to an end.
Look for partners that oƒ er added value and
ensure they are happy to work to your goals
while also feeling comfortable to advise
adjustments.
TAKING A STEP BACK
Overseeing a workplace transformation
demands a balance between a holistic
approach and an eye for detail. The right
team and management can be hugely
impactful. It is undeniable that well
designed and managed workplaces are more
important than ever to draw employees
together and encourage collaboration
and community. Many organisations are
taking this time to upgrade their spaces
and technology, but fewer understand
their organisation and workplace as an
ecosystem. Now is the time to change the
way organisations understand their assets
and utilise the innovation and creativity that
rises from turbulent times.
Overseeing a workplace
transformation demands
a balance between a holistic
approach and an eye for detail.
7he right team and management
can be hugely impactful.ƌ