business advice
7 Post-Office Relocation “Growing Pains” To Avoid
An office relocation can be quite exciting, especially for a company going through an expansion or just taking the next step to being a bigger player in its marketplace. But with growth comes various types of “growing pains” – some involving the productivity of employees, others relating to the existing physical and technical aspects of the actual office space. While there are many organizational management strategies in place to help the employees through an office expansion, very few businesses have a proactive strategy in place to deal with office space related issues…so I’d like to suggest a few.
First, if your organization is even thinking about going through office relocation, please take into consideration the following:
- Your company’s current and future business goals
- The physical and technological aspects a potential office space needs to have in order to best meet your current and future business goals
I can’t even count the number of companies that did not take the time to do the above but instead rushed into a relocation only to encounter one or more of the following problems:
- Insufficient office space to facilitate growth
- Insufficient electrical outlets and/or voltage for office equipment
- Noisy or disruptive heating/cooling system
- Telecommunications limited or not activated at new site
- Insufficient internet services available for business needs
- Lack of transportation options for staff to get to the new location
- Lack of parking available
All of the above could be avoided by simply taking a proactive approach to your relocation project. That is why over the next few blogs, I will outline more proactive strategies your relocation team can put into effect for each of the above problems even before your organization begins considering a new office space.
Watch for more blogs in the coming weeks!
Skimping on Quality Business Furniture Can Hurt Your Business
We see it all the time. Companies looking to change their office furniture will invest in higher quality new business furniture for areas that are often seen by visitors – like the reception area and the boardroom – but skimp on the quality and “newness” of the task furniture for their staff. That may seem like a great economical decision for the short term but in the long term, it could end up being one of the worst business decisions ever. Why?
1. It can send the wrong message to your staff.
While high quality business furniture in the “seen” areas will make a positive impression on your visitors, the lack of quality task furniture can give just the opposite impression to your staff. Think about it—your staff does all the work to make your company operate effectively. Making sure they have high quality business furniture to work with sends the message that you value them and their contribution in the success of your business.
2. Lower quality business furniture can eat up your profits…
(a) Through replacement costs
While investing in lower quality furniture may keep costs low in the short term, the “life” of the furniture is significantly less than that of higher quality furniture and therefore may need to be replaced much sooner or more frequently. Over a 10-year period, for example, you may find that you have spent more money replacing low quality business furniture than you would have if you initially invested in higher quality furniture.
(b) Through increased absenteeism and benefit payouts
Lower quality business furniture does not promote optimal comfort and positioning for everyday business tasks, hence there could be increased reports of back pain and carpal tunnel syndrome amongst your staff. In more severe cases, this could result in staff missing work for extended periods of time and your company having to pay increased disability costs.
3. It can contribute to lower productivity
Low quality business furniture will lessen you staff’s overall productivity. Lower productivity means less competitiveness.
So why take the risk? Invest in high quality business furniture for your staff’s everyday use. The continued success of your business depends on it.
Tax Deductions and Credits: Corporate Relocation in Canada
Last week we discussed Tax Credits and Deductions – Corporate Renovation in Canada This week, we are focusing on Tax Deductions and Credits in Corporate Relocation in Canada. With tax deductible expenses specifically for corporate relocation, companies should not worry about additional taxes and expenses that moving one’s office entails. In fact, with D.J. McGauley & Associates, the costs of your corporate relocation will be much more affordable than with any other corporate specialist.
Provincial Land Tax Rebate Program for Vacant Commercial and Industrial Buildings
When moving out and leaving an industrial or commercial property that you own either partially or entirely vacant, you can qualify for a rebate of Provincial Land Tax throughout the entire period of your vacancy. As long as a commercial building is entirely vacant for around 90 consecutive days and remains unused, you may ask for a rebate of your property tax until February 28.
If you’ve already paid the provincial land tax for the building you own and are currently occupying, there’s no need to wait until the end of the fiscal year before you move out and let it stop you from moving. Take note that this is only available for Ontario businesses.
If one of your fears in corporate relocation is that you might end up paying taxes twice, and even incurring additional taxes, the moving taxes deduction should put your worry to rest. This tax deduction is available for businesses that will be carried on in a new location that is at least 40 kilometers away from the previous workplace.
You can claim reasonable amounts for the following:
– Transportation and storage costs (including packing, hauling, in-transit storage, insurance, and storage) for all effects
– Travel expenses either through the detailed or simplified method. By using the detailed method, you can deduct expenses ranging from your meal expenses to the vehicle expenses, as long as supported by receipts and records. With the simplified method, you can calculate the number of kilometers from the takeoff place to the destination.
– Cancellation of lease cost is for the deductions on the rental period that you weren’t able to use up
– Incidental costs covers the fees for the change on legal documents, the replacement of driving licenses, and utility hook-ups
– Cost to maintain the old office of as much as $5,000, including the property taxes, the insurance premiums, the interest, and the utility expenses
Tax Credits and Deductions: Corporate Renovations in Canada
Without careful planning and a corporate specialist, the corporate renovation you’re planning might well drain your company’s finances. Most companies don’t realize it, but there are several tax deductions and tax credits by which they can benefit while undergoing a corporate renovation. With D.J. McGauley & Associates and the appropriate tax deductions, the costs of your office renovation will be much lower than usual.
One important deduction is in Line 8960 for expenses accrued in maintenance and repairs. This will allow you to deduct the cost of labor, maintenance and repairs for any maintenance work and minor repairs for the property you use to earn income. This applies to parts of your office that have not undergone major repairs but have nonetheless undergone maintenance and improvements. Excepted from this deduction is the value of your own labor and costs of repairs that are capital in nature, which are deductible in the next section.
Undergoing a corporate renovation will inevitably mean the acquisition of new capital assets, which may qualify as a deduction under capital cost allowance. This deduction applies to furniture, equipment, and technologies acquired for the use of business or professional activities. While you cannot deduct the entire cost of the property right away, you can deduct its depreciable cost over time depending on its estimated lifetime.
While undergoing a renovation, you might make use of supplies that would otherwise not qualify under the two preceding sections. This is where you can apply for a deduction under this section. Here, you can deduct items that the business used indirectly in its business, allowing certain refurbishments done to your workspace that are not directly related to your business goals to be deductible.
Accounting, Legal and Other Professional Fees
A renovation will require external professional advice or services that will entail consulting fees. For such expenses, you can apply for a deduction under this section. With this deduction, you can put to rest any fears that consultation with specialists will only increase the costs of your renovation.
If you plan on leaving the commercial building for a period of at least 90 consecutive days, you may qualify for a rebate of the tax you have already paid.
Make sure to tune in next week as we discuss Tax Deductions and Credits in Corporate Relocation in Canada.
Corporate Space Planning & Relocation Advice 