Choose an IT relocation company based on four things: the specificity of their dependency mapping process and server migration planning approach, their track record with your infrastructure type, especially for enterprise IT relocation, their documentation methodology, and their post-move verification procedure. The final factor to consider is the price. The company that outlines the most detailed pre-move plan in the most specific terms is the one that's most likely to be the correct one; after all, that's where all of the failures that make IT relocation so expensive to get wrong. Before requesting proposals, an IT relocation risk audit of your environment will help you to understand what is at stake.
How to Choose the Right IT Relocation Company: The Evaluation Framework
Most companies evaluate IT relocation vendors and even generic IT equipment moving companies the same way they evaluate any contractor: references, price, and availability. These are necessary criteria. They are not sufficient. The choice of a qualified IT relocation company can be easily determined by hours of downtime and thousands of dollars in recovery costs.
The top indicator of a successful IT move is the vendor's IT move methodology, in that they have a documented, specific process for the IT tasks that general movers can't handle. That IT move methodology is what separates credible IT relocation services from vendors who treat your infrastructure as just another load to transport.
7 Questions to Ask Every Candidate
Walk me through your server dependency mapping process.
A genuine specialist describes a specific process: how they identify which systems depend on which, how they build the startup sequence, how they get sign-off from your IT team, and how that sequence governs execution. A vague answer about "experienced technicians" tells you everything you need to know. This dependency mapping is the beginning of an effective server migration planning, not with booking trucks.
How do you handle network configuration capture?
The response should include the following steps: export from all devices before moving them, store them securely, and ensure that they match a baseline after moving them. If they don't know the answer, your network is in danger. In any serious server migration planning, network configuration capture is an essential piece of the puzzle, and vendors who skip it are guessing.
What happens if something goes wrong during execution?
During the move window, look for: named escalation contacts, rollback procedures for critical systems, explicit go/no-go decision authority, and 24/7 availability. The answer isn't “we'll work it out,” and a fuzzy answer to this question is among the most telling IT relocation red flags that clients overlook until execution goes wrong at 2 AM.
What documentation do you deliver post-move?
A professional company provides: full asset inventory, pre/post-move pictures, chain of custody documentation, system verification sign-offs, and network as-built documentation. The word "invoice" is a red flag. Documentation quality is a good measure of the maturity of an operational IT relocation company. Companies that can't document a move can't manage it.
Have you moved infrastructure like ours before?
It's important to have specific industry experience. Dependencies vary from a trading desk to a law firm DMS. There are variations between a university SIS environment and a tech startup. Specific prior experience means specific prior knowledge of the failure modes that are unique to your environment. Enterprise IT relocation requires the specific expertise that most of the IT equipment moving companies can't offer.
What is your post-move verification process?
A professional will outline a sequence of checks to perform on IT systems after moving. They will not depart until they have received confirmation from a named representative that the equipment is operational. The post-move IT verification process isn't “when everything is plugged in,” it's a mistake you are going to make.
What exactly is included in your fixed price?
Be able to understand the scope accurately: pre-move assessment, documentation, execution, post-move verification, and stabilization support. Specifically inquire if a problem is found after the move is completed and the windows are covered. Make an agreement in writing. This is what sets a professional IT relocation company apart from a vendor that works on assumptions.
IT Relocation Red Flags That Should End the Conversation
Knowing the key IT relocation red flags before you sign a contract can protect your business from preventable downtime. A good IT relocation company will be able to answer each of the following questions with a clear and detailed answer; any vague answers are a red flag.
- Cannot describe a dependency mapping process in specific terms
- Quote arrives within hours of an initial call with no site assessment
- There are no fixed rates; only hourly rates
- Cannot name specific infrastructure types or industry environments they have moved to
- No post-move verification process
- References are exclusively from residential or general commercial moves
- Treats IT as an add-on to a general office move
Green Flags That Build Confidence
A trustworthy IT relocation company will show most of the following without being prompted. Professional IT relocation services providers will be honest about their procedure from the initial call. Watch closely how they talk about their post move IT verification process, because it lets you know if they are only verifying your systems go live or if they are still verifying after the trucks are gone.
- Ask your infrastructure providers questions in detail before giving an estimate
- Requests a site visit before quoting
- Describes scoping process, unprompted, which is clearly central to their methodology
- References specific systems matching your environment (iManage, Bloomberg, D2L, etc.)
- Name specific steps in their post-move verification checklist
- Fixed-price proposal delivered after site assessment
It's the right IT relocation company that asks more questions than you do. Before they tell you anything about price or timeline, they want to know what your infrastructure is, what it depends on, what compliance requirements you have, and what critical systems are involved. You don't want to leap to pricing without extensive discovery, only to find out how complicated your environment is at 2 AM on a Saturday night when you are executing the project.
What CrownTECH® Does Differently
As a provider of comprehensive IT relocation services specializing in enterprise IT relocation, CrownTECH® begins every engagement with a detailed scoping session and a complimentary IT relocation risk audit. Before quoting, we document your infrastructure, map dependencies, report compliance requirements, and create a move plan. Our fixed-price proposals are based on reality, not assumptions. Unlike most IT equipment moving companies, who are happy to sign off, our post move IT verification process needs your IT lead to verify that your IT system is up and running before we depart. It's the benchmark that all IT relocation company must meet.
Sources
- Gartner — Average cost of IT downtime: $5,600/minute (2014, widely cited through 2024)
- Ponemon Institute (2016) — Updated downtime cost: ~$9,000/minute average
- ITIC 2024 Hourly Cost of Downtime Survey — 90%+ of enterprises: 1hr downtime costs over $100K.
- Uptime Institute 2022 Outage Analysis — 80% of data center operators experienced downtime in the past 3 years; 60%+ of outages cost over $100K.
- LogicMonitor IT Outage Impact Study — 51% of IT outages are avoidable; companies with frequent outages face 16x higher costs.
- IDC Worldwide Data Protection & DR Survey — Nearly half of data disruptions cause lost productivity; Fortune 1000 downtime up to $1M/hour
- Atlassian — Cost of Downtime — Framework for downtime cost calculation.
- FM Guru / FMSystems — Each employee moved experiences ~4 hours of downtime on average.
- Oxford Economics (2024) — The Hidden Costs of Downtime: The $400B Problem Facing the Global 2000
- BigPanda / EMA Research 2024 — IT Outages: 2024 Costs and Containment — 60% rise in per-minute costs for mid-size orgs vs 2022
Get a Free IT Relocation Risk Audit
Before your next move, let CrownTECH® identify exactly what could go wrong- and how to prevent it. Free, no-obligation risk assessment for businesses across Canada.
Book Your Free Risk Audit →