BUSINESS

Data migration: A guide for IT

Jul 09, 2025

Data migration is a critical moment for any business, bringing both opportunities and risks. Is your IT department truly ready for this challenge? In this article, you'll learn how to comprehensively prepare for data migration to avoid errors, data loss, and business disruptions.

How to prepare your IT department for data migration?

1. Key factors for successful data migration
2. Analysis of the current system and data preparation
3. Choosing a migration strategy
4. Technical preparation of the IT team and tools
5. Communication and change management
6. Schedule and migration testing
7. Pre-migration checklist—what to remember?

Summary

How to prepare your IT department for data migration? A comprehensive guide

Data migration to a new IT system is one of the most critical stages of implementation, which can make or break the entire project. Problems with data quality, consistency, and integration arise not only in manufacturing companies using old systems but also in service-based businesses that have accumulated data for years in scattered spreadsheets or inconsistent CRM tools. Therefore, it is crucial to prepare a well-thought-out migration plan that takes into account both technical issues and the readiness of the IT team and users.

Migration is not just about transferring information — it is a comprehensive process requiring strategy, in-depth analysis, and attention to every detail. Lack of proper preparation can lead to data loss, errors in reports, and even disruptions in the company's ongoing operations. Below, we present a step-by-step guide on how to prepare your IT department for a safe and effective data migration.

Key factors for successful data migration

Successful data migration is not just a technical matter — it requires good planning and the involvement of the entire organization. It is necessary to carefully assess the current system, clearly define the goals, budget, and timeline for implementation, thoroughly prepare the data, and plan how it will be transferred. Equally important are decisions regarding new system customizations, change management (training, communication), quality testing, and post-migration support. A consistent plan, incorporating these elements, significantly reduces risk and enables a smooth migration.

Analysis of the current system and data preparation

The migration process should start with a thorough analysis of the existing system and data. In many companies — especially those using older solutions — information is scattered across various tools: spreadsheets, ERP systems, CRMs, or specialized production applications. Each of these can store data in a different format, which complicates migration without prior preparation.

It is crucial to conduct a data audit: determine where data is stored, its condition, and which data is most important for the company's operations. Historical data often contains errors — duplicates, missing entries, or outdated records — therefore, it should be cleaned and organized before migration. This is also a good time to decide which information is worth transferring and which can be archived. It is also essential to make backups of all important data.

At this stage, it is also worth preparing data mapping, which means defining how fields from the old system correspond to fields in the new one. Incorrect mapping can lead to errors in reports and problems in daily work. Therefore, it is advisable to involve people who are familiar with the existing system in this process — their knowledge will help to better reflect the data in the new environment.

Choosing a migration strategy: one-time or phased?

One of the key choices is the data migration strategy. Two main approaches are available: "big bang" and phased migration. The choice of strategy depends on the system's complexity, the organization's scale, and the acceptable level of risk. Regardless of the chosen approach, it is advisable to have a contingency plan — for example, the ability to revert to the old system or specialist support in case of problems.

In the "big bang" strategy, all data is migrated simultaneously, and the company switches to the new system at a specific moment. This approach is faster but riskier — any errors affect the entire organization, and response time is limited. It also requires planning downtime, for example, over a weekend.

Phased migration involves gradually transferring data — e.g. by modules, departments, or types of information. This provides greater control, facilitates testing, and reduces risk, although it may mean temporary parallel operation of two systems, which can be logistically challenging.

Technical preparation of the IT team and tools

Migration is a major challenge for the IT department — it requires proper preparation of both the team and the infrastructure. It is worth appointing responsible persons for specific areas (e.g. databases, integrations, infrastructure) and ensuring they have access to the necessary resources. If there is a lack of competence or time, it is worth engaging external specialists.

Technically, it is crucial to use ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) tools, which automate the data transfer process — from extracting data from the old system, through transformation, to loading it into the new one. This reduces the risk of errors and speeds up the entire process. In parallel, test environments should be prepared to safely verify the migration progress. The new system — e.g. a Ruby on Rails application or ERP — must be ready to receive data: a properly configured database, sufficient resources, and integrations with other systems (e.g. warehouse, production, financial).

In industrial companies, integration tests are particularly important. In these enterprises, where IT systems are closely linked (e.g. ERP, MES, WMS), integration tests are crucial during data migration. Improper integration can lead to production downtime, errors in orders and schedules, and consequently, losses.

Communication and change management

Even the best-planned migration can fail if the human factor is overlooked. It is crucial to involve end-users — especially those who work daily with the data and systems affected by the change. A clear communication strategy is needed: what will change, why the company is implementing a new system, and what the benefits will be (e.g. faster data access, less repetition, less documentation). Transparent communication helps reduce resistance and builds acceptance for changes.

Equally important is training. It should include both a general introduction and detailed instructions tailored to user roles. It is a good idea to designate power users already at the testing stage — these are experienced employees who deeply understand the existing systems and business processes, and their involvement in testing the new solution allows for early error detection and helps in preparing better training materials for other users. Throughout the entire project, it is worth maintaining constant communication — e.g. through meetings, internal newsletters, or company communication channels. Communicating progress, deadlines, and necessary actions increases transparency and supports inter-departmental cooperation.

You can learn about other aspects of implementing a new IT system here:
IT system implementation: A step-by-step guide

Schedule and migration testing

A detailed schedule is the basis of any migration. It should include all stages: analysis, development work (if we are creating an application from scratch), infrastructure preparation, test and production data migration stages, system launch, and stabilization time. It is advisable to plan buffers for delays — IT implementations rarely go smoothly. The migration of a complex system can take from 6 months to 2 years, and even simpler implementations should not skip the testing or training phases.

Testing is one of the most important stages. Simply transferring data is not enough — you need to check if everything works correctly. This includes both historical data and current entries already entered into the new system. Trial migrations in a test environment or on a limited amount of data are often used — this allows problems to be caught before they affect the company's operations.

It is worth planning different types of tests:

Unit — checking the correctness of individual functions.

Integration — verifying whether the system connects correctly with others (e.g. warehouse, finance).

Performance — checking whether the infrastructure can withstand the load.

Acceptance (UAT) — with the participation of business users.

Involving experienced operational employees allows for the detection of errors overlooked in standard scenarios. Only after successful completion of tests and confirmation that the system operates stably and without critical errors can the actual production migration begin.

Pre-migration checklist — what to remember?

Data migration is a complex process. The checklist below will help the IT team prepare for it step by step:

Data and system inventory — Identify data sources (ERP, Excel, SQL databases), assign responsible persons for each area.

Data quality audit — Check completeness, remove duplicates, fill in gaps, plan data cleaning.

Backup — Make backup copies of all key data — this is the basis of security.

Data mapping — Develop a field map between the old and new systems to ensure consistency.

Migration strategy selection — Decide: big bang or phased? Consider scale, risk, and team capabilities.

Schedule — Prepare a realistic plan with buffers for delays and plan the sequence of activities.

Infrastructure — Ensure the new system is ready: servers, databases, integrations, performance.

Migration tools — Select and test ETL tools or scripts — automation minimizes errors.

Project team — Assign roles (data, integrations, testing, user contact) and ensure communication.

Test migration — Perform a trial migration on a data subset. Verify correctness and fix errors.

Final tests — Perform UAT and load tests. Ensure the system works as expected.

User training — Train users from different departments. Provide a test environment for practice.

Communication plan — Inform about progress, switchover dates, and possible downtimes. Designate contact persons.

Go-live and support — Provide full IT support on launch day (war room, quick response to problems).

Post-migration monitoring — Observe system operation and integrations, gather feedback, optimize processes.

Summary

Data migration from old systems to modern solutions — such as an ERP system or a dedicated web application — is one of the most important and demanding activities in the company's digitalization process. Although it may seem purely technical, its success depends not only on the quality of tools or infrastructure but also on the involvement of the IT team and business users.

A comprehensive approach is crucial: from thorough data analysis and organization, through choosing the right migration strategy (big bang or phased), preparing tools and the environment, to conducting tests and training users. Equally important are clear communication throughout the organization and a realistic schedule, taking into account possible difficulties and downtimes. The post-migration phase should also not be forgotten — providing technical support, monitoring the new system's operation, and being ready to respond quickly to problems. Proper migration implementation is not just efficient data transfer — it is the foundation for the company's further development, enabling process automation, better data analysis, and faster decision-making.

Data migration, carried out with due diligence, becomes a real investment in the organization's future. It allows you to break free from the limitations of old technologies and fully leverage the opportunities offered by the digital ecosystem — increasing the company's efficiency, flexibility, and competitiveness.

We deeply understand the challenges associated with data migration and know how important it is for this process to run smoothly. We are happy to share our knowledge and experience to help companies go through this crucial stage efficiently and safely.

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