Relocating Your Office? Here’s Why 80% of IT Moves Fail (And How We Make Sure Yours Doesn’t)

Let’s be honest: Moving offices is stressful enough without your entire network crashing on day one. Yet, that’s exactly what happens to most businesses. You pack up the desks, haul everything to the new space, and then… silence. The Wi-Fi doesn’t work. The phones are dead. Your team is huddled in the break room, sipping lukewarm coffee and wondering if they should just work from home.

Sound familiar? You’re not alone. A 2024 report by CompTIA found that 80% of businesses experience major IT issues during office relocations, with downtime costing an average of $12,000 per day for small to midsize companies.

At IT Training & Consulting, Inc. (ITTC), we’ve helped dozens of Los Angeles businesses avoid this mess. Here’s why most IT moves go wrong—and how we make sure yours doesn’t.

Why Office IT Moves Turn Into Disasters (And How to Avoid Them)

1. Assuming the New Space Is “Plug-and-Play”

You wouldn’t move into a new house without checking if the lights turn on, right? Yet, most businesses assume their new office’s IT infrastructure will just… work.

Real-World Example: Last year, a downtown LA architecture firm moved into a “tech-friendly” building, only to discover the wiring couldn’t support their design software. They lost a week’s worth of client revisions.

How We Fix It: We conduct a pre-move network assessment, testing everything from internet speeds to power outlets. No surprises on moving day.

2. Letting Movers Handle IT Equipment Like Furniture

Your servers aren’t just heavy—they’re fragile, expensive, and full of data you can’t afford to lose. Yet, most moving companies treat them like filing cabinets.

Stat Alert: A 2023 TechCrunch article revealed that 1 in 3 businesses lose or damage critical hardware during office moves.

Our Approach: We pack, transport, and reinstall all IT equipment ourselves (yes, we geek out over cable management). Bonus: We track every piece so nothing “mysteriously” disappears.

3. Forgetting About Phone and Email Transfers

Nothing says “unprofessional” like a client calling your old number and reaching a disconnected tone. Most VoIP and email providers need weeks to reroute services—time you probably didn’t plan for.

Pro Tip: “The biggest mistake we see? Businesses assume phone transfers happen instantly,” says Maria Chen, ITTC’s VoIP specialist. “One LA medical practice lost patient calls for days because they didn’t coordinate with their provider ahead of time.”

Our Solution: We handle carrier coordination so your phones and email transition seamlessly. Temporary mobile hotspots keep your team online in the meantime.

4. Ignoring Cybersecurity Risks

Moving is chaotic, and hackers love chaos. Unsecured networks, unshredded documents, and misplaced devices are golden opportunities for breaches.

Scary Stat: The California Attorney General’s office reported a 40% increase in data breaches linked to business relocations in 2023.

Our Security Checklist:

• Encrypt all data during transit
• Sanitize old hardware (no leaving hard drives in the dumpster)
• Deploy temporary firewalls at the new location

5. No Contingency Plan for Downtime

Even with perfect planning, something always goes wrong. The difference? Whether you’re prepared for it.

Mini Case Study: A Beverly Hills PR firm’s internet was delayed by 48 hours post-move. Because we’d set up LTE failover, their team kept working without clients noticing.

The ITTC Relocation Playbook: How We Keep LA Businesses Running

Here’s how we make office moves painless for California businesses:

Phase 1: The “No Surprises” Audit (2-4 Weeks Before)

We scout your new space like tech detectives, checking:

• Internet bandwidth (Is it really “high-speed”? Spoiler: Often not.)
• Power capacity (Because tripping breakers is only fun at parties)
• Cell signal (Dead zones = unhappy employees)

Phase 2: The Organized Pack-Out

• Label everything (No “mystery cable” boxes)
• Back up all data (Twice. Because paranoia pays off)
• Pre-configure new network gear (Plug and play on day one)

Phase 3: Moving Day (Zero Downtime Mode)

• Our team supervises equipment transport
• Phones and internet go live first
• Workstations are set up in priority order (Accounting before the ping-pong table)

Phase 4: Post-Move Optimization

• Fine-tune Wi-Fi for your layout
• Train staff on new systems
• 30 days of “panic button” support

“But Our IT Guy Said He Could Handle It…”

We get it. Hiring pros feels like an extra cost—until you’re paying for:

• Overtime for employees stuck waiting
• Rush fees to fix botched setups
• Lost revenue from missed calls/orders

As one of our clients (a law firm in Century City) put it: “We thought we could DIY the move. After two days without email, we called ITTC. They had us back online in 3 hours. Lesson learned.”

The Bottom Line: What’s Your Downtime Worth?

Calculate it:
(Average revenue per day) x (Days of IT chaos) = Your hidden relocation cost

For most LA businesses, that number makes professional IT relocation a no-brainer.

Ready to Move Without the Meltdown?

If you’re a Los Angeles business owner planning an office move, let’s talk before you pack a single box. Call us at (844) 804-4882 or visit it-tc.com.

We’ll even help you convince your team that no, the new office doesn’t need a 10-gigabit connection just for streaming Spotify.

“Most IT disasters are preventable—they just require planning most businesses don’t know they need.”
— Jerry Duque, ITTC Field Technician