Your Office Refurbishment Checklist (REDIRECTED)

At Fusion Office Design, we’re experts when it comes to office refurbishments, we’ve put together a step by step list of instructions to make sure that your office refurbishment is as successful as possible.

There’s a number of reasons why a firm may consider refurbishing their existing workplace, the space may not have had any attention in some time, a lease break or expiry may be looming or they may be growing as part of a business and need to make better use of their space.

Offices have evolved to a point where its now viewed as an asset that can be important when it comes to attracting and retaining the best talent, the lifeblood of an organisation and as a result, more and more companies are investing in creating a workplace that staff want to work in.

When you’ve been tasked with an office refurbishment project, it can be daunting especially if its your first time undertaking something like this. We hope that our office refurbishment checklist provides logical step by step instructions to follow and proves useful.

Why do you need a refurbishment?

Consider why, what’s wrong with your current space and what should a new refurbished office do for you and your organisation. It may be that your office has become dated, a little dilapidated and has seen any investment for a long time, it’s not a place where your staff are proud to be working. Essentially it is not an office that truly reflects your brand and corporate identity.

Why should you refurbish your office?

It’s so important that you define the reasons at an early stage as all organisations are different and have unique requirements. There’s no one size fits all solution when it comes to creating a workplace that will work for you, so keeping this list of reasons in focus throughout the project, this is key to its overall success.

Create an office refurbish project team

Once you’ve defined your list of reasons for refurbishing your office its time to put together a cross departmental team and most critically get a senior project champion on board. You should choose someone senior who can make decisions and communicate well, as well as experience in managing budgets and someone who wants to create a better workplace.

What type of workplace works for you?

Now is the time to get together as a team and discuss what you like and dislike about your current workplace and to develop a brief, detailing what you want to achieve. Lock yourselves away in a room somewhere, this doesn’t have to be at the office, make a wish list for your new workplace. This can include everything from embracing and adopting new technology, more flexible ways of working, increasing collaboration and creating to what type of reception area you’d like.

Speak with office refurbishment companies

The sooner you pick a partner to work with to design and build your new workplace, the better and sooner you can start planning. The more time you have to speak with your chosen refurbishment firm the greater chance of success as you’ll have spent time developing your brief and defining exactly what is going to work for your organisation.

Choosing the right office furniture

When the office design has been finalised and your project plan has been agreed and everyone is gearing up to move onsite and start the project, don’t forget to spend time selecting the right furniture to suit your office refurbish.

Your furniture selection is important as it should reflect your brand and will be the most visible element of your new workplace. Spending time appraising and selecting seating, desks, collaboration furniture and meeting room tables can make a big different and help you to create a workplace that reflects and works for your organisation.

Managing the office refurbishment

As the project moves and work begins, it’s essential that you make sure all staff are aware of what’s happening and that the programme of activity has been agreed and that the office refurbishment company are ready to move staff and equipment.

Moving into your new office space

It’s time to move and it seems like there’s a million and one things to do, communication is key at this stage, not just with the refurbishment company, but also with your project team and staff. Ensure that all staff know exactly what is happening and what to expect and who to direct questions at.

On the day of the final move, host a team breakfast and have your project champion speak to everyone about the new workplace and what is designed to achieve with some time for Q&A. It’s important that staff embrace new space and are aware of innovations and how to use them properly.