Five Tips to Consider When Moving or Opening a New Office

Our team is constantly working on new network build-outs for clients who are either moving their offices to a new location or for clients who are opening up an entirely new business. We've compiled five tips to consider when opening up a new business or moving to a new space.

• Internet Service Provider (ISP) and Telco Options: This is the number one factor that goes overlooked. Before you sign a lease, contact your sales rep and see if the ISP will service the new area. If they can, great! Make sure you place an order to move your service and pay attention to install and cutover date. Chances are, you'll need an IT tech on the ground to change settings on the internal network. If they can't service the new area, you'll need to reach out to other ISPs for bids. Installation can take weeks and sometimes months, so be well-prepared! Finally, make sure your bandwidth is sufficient for the number of users you'll have. If you're growing your office, you'll probably need to pay for faster service and often, a dedicated connection like a T1 if there is VoIP involved.
• Wiring: Does the new office space have sufficient wiring? Do you have enough ethernet ports in your offices? Has the existing cabling been tested by a cabling expert? Wiring is the backbone of your network infrastructure, so this is key!
• Networking Needs: Do you need your employees to have VPN access? How about wireless connectivity? Do you need to have a guest network for your customers and visitors? This needs to be factored into the network design and will probably require new hardware. For example, if you're moving into a much larger space, you'll probably need an additional wireless access point (WAP) or two.
• Desktop/end-user setup: Once you're all moved in, will your employees need help setting up their computers to print or scan? Do you have a server to move in? How about specialized databases that end-users need access to? 
• Project Management: Do you have an employee who will be in charge of managing this move and all of the vendors involved? Will they help coordinate and understand the technical needs enough to ensure that your office will open on time? Xceptional provides full service IT consulting, so you'll have a dedicated project manager who can take care of these details for you.

If you're considering an office move or getting ready to open up a new business, give us a call! We'll discuss your options and help you get going!