Opening-critical, great-by-design, or can-wait

This triage runs through the entire resource. Almost every “is this a problem?” question resolves once you sort the item into one of three buckets — not two:

• Opening-critical — must be done for the office to be safely used on day one: power at the desks, building and suite access, working Wi-Fi, restrooms, the day-one meeting rooms, life safety, required approvals. This is your Minimum Viable Opening floor.
• Great-by-design — not required to open, but it’s what makes the office great and is hard to add later: the layout, power and data placement, the right chairs, real meeting-room audio/visual (AV), where teams sit. Prioritize these even under pressure — they’re the reason to aim to open great.
• Can-wait — genuine finish work and nice-to-haves: art, plants, extra lounge furniture, decorative signage, accent lighting, cosmetic paint. These go on the punch list.

Why the middle bucket matters

The old advice was a binary: opening-critical, or punch list. That protects the date — but it quietly buries the decisions that make an office great in the same pile as the plants. “Not opening-critical” is not the same as “do it later.” Some of it can’t be done later.

The two questions

1. “Can an employee safely use the office without this on day one?” No → opening-critical.
2. If yes: “Is this hard or expensive to add after we open?” Yes → great-by-design, decide it now. No → can-wait, punch list.

Pair this with reversible vs. irreversible decisions: the great-by-design items are usually the irreversible ones.