The secret isn’t magic, caffeine, or bribing IT with pastries (though that doesn’t hurt). It’s a phased box system—a simple strategy that sorts your stuff by urgency, so you can keep working without accidentally packing your productivity in a box labeled “Misc.”
Why You Shouldn’t Just Pack Everything and Hope for the Best
Packing your entire office into identical brown cubes is a great way to lose your ability to function for a week. Or more. Laptops disappear. Chargers vanish into a tangle of mystery cables. That client file from 2018 that no one has asked for in years? Somehow it ends up on top of everything you actually need.The phased system prevents that. It breaks down the move into manageable categories that let you control what gets packed and when. Instead of chaos, you get structure. And instead of random desk ornaments being the only thing left unpacked, you get exactly what you need—when you need it.
The Three Box Rule: Immediate, Short-Term, Long-Term
Think of your move in terms of access, not location. What do you need **right now**, what will you need **soon**, and what can safely disappear into a cardboard time capsule for the next few weeks?Here’s the breakdown:
- Immediate Box – This is your lifeline. Chargers, mouse, sticky notes, key client files, your planner, snacks, maybe your backup snacks. It should stay within arm’s reach at all times.
- Short-Term Box – Stuff you’ll need within the first few days after the move. Extension cords, reference documents, extra pens, software dongles (yes, that’s still a word). Not urgent, but still relevant.
- Long-Term Box – These can live in packing purgatory for a while. Old paper records, spare keyboards, that unopened box of branded stress balls. They’re not gone forever, just not missed today.
How to Roll This Out Without Causing a Rebellion
Office moves tend to bring out both the pack rats and the procrastinators. Some people will start hoarding printer toner “just in case,” while others will forget they even have a desk until two hours before the movers arrive.To keep everyone aligned, distribute a simple guide outlining the phased system. Keep it short—anything longer than one page becomes scrap paper. Encourage everyone to pack their own immediate and short-term boxes, and assign someone (not you, ideally) to help oversee the long-term archives.
Host a quick meeting to explain the logic. Bribe attendance with doughnuts if you must. Emphasize that this isn’t a weird new productivity fad—it’s just a way to make sure nobody loses their headset, their favorite pen, or their mind during the transition.
IT Deserves Its Own Category (and Probably a Medal)
If there’s one team that can singlehandedly determine whether your new office functions or flatlines, it’s IT. They’re not just moving cables—they’re ensuring your systems come back to life without drama.Pack servers, routers, and networking gear in clearly marked boxes. Back everything up. Twice. Then make sure someone knows where those backups are, and that they don’t get stacked under ten boxes of branded water bottles.
Ask IT to prep their own phased boxes too. Immediate: test equipment, network switches, key cables. Short-term: software install media, backup hardware. Long-term: that one printer nobody can explain but everyone’s afraid to unplug.
Avoiding the ‘Where’s My Desk?’ Phenomenon
Even with the most orderly plan, someone will inevitably show up at the new office and look around like they’ve walked into the wrong building. Help your team orient themselves by packing a “Desk Restart Kit” into each employee’s short-term box. Think of it as the minimal viable workstation setup.This should include:
- Nameplate (because apparently those are still a thing)
- Essential accessories (laptop stand, mousepad, fidget toy shaped like a stress burrito)
- Caffeine delivery mechanism (instant coffee, teabags, or the address of the nearest café)
Long-Term Boxes Don’t Mean Lost Forever
There’s a risk that once the long-term boxes are packed, they vanish into an office Bermuda Triangle. They get shoved into storage, piled under a whiteboard, and slowly form a geological layer of forgotten office supplies.Don’t let that happen. Create an index—digital or otherwise—of what’s inside. Assign one person to track and manage access. If something ends up in deep storage, it should at least be findable without hiring a search party or opening every box like a chaotic cardboard advent calendar.
Schedule a follow-up one month after the move to review what can be archived, recycled, or—let’s be honest—thrown away with zero regret.
When the Coffee Machine Goes Missing
Expect the unexpected. Someone will forget their keyboard. Someone will pack their team’s router. Someone will bubble-wrap the office plant but leave behind their actual computer.It’s fine. The phased box system is designed to catch these moments and make them manageable instead of catastrophic. With the immediate and short-term boxes in place, work can limp forward even if half the team is operating out of cardboard cubicles for 48 hours.
Build in some breathing room. Not everything needs to be 100% functional on Day One. Focus on the essentials first—power, connectivity, and the sacred coffee zone.
A Moveable Feast of Mistakes
Every office move is going to come with a few wrong turns and minor disasters. But if your team knows what to keep close, what to prepare for, and what to box and forget, the disruption shrinks from a full-blown productivity blackout to a brief shuffle.The phased system doesn’t solve everything. But it does prevent your team from wandering around holding a monitor like it’s a lunch tray and asking strangers if they’ve seen the CRM server.
Because when it comes to packing an office, chaos is optional. Cardboard, however, is not.
Article kindly provided by removalsservicelondon.com