Best practices for an ERP data plan system migration
If you need to migrate existing ERP (perhaps it’s the same software but migrating from on-premise to the cloud) or start from scratch and rip and replace legacy systems; there are key areas to consider in order to avoid disruption and set you up for a successful deployment and implementation.
Migrating to a new ERP is not simply an IT project but by its nature encompasses multiple stakeholders across your organization and supply chain. It is therefore important to put a plan, people and process together in order to have a better data implementation.
Getting ready for your ERP data migration plan is vital to its success, for preparation and project methodologies head to our dedicated ERP project page.
Strategic planning and evaluation
- Put together a change management plan integrating data migration strategy
- Communicate early and often across the organization, emphasizing ERP implementation
- Execute, test and learn new processes at strategic times
- Constantly evaluate your plan during and after the ERP migration against your business objectives and milestones
ERP data migration plan
At the heart of every ERP system is a shared database across the organization, ensuring that the quality of input data directly influences the quality of output information.
What data do you hold that you need to migrate into the new ERP’s database?
Data migration plan often involves moving data from a variety of different systems, formats and storage types into a single, common structure. Employees may have used role-based applications that suited just their own department’s needs or perhaps they used spreadsheets to keep a record of their work. Each team may have had their own records of one customer or supplier, but the records may be structured differently and contain different information relevant to their business process.
Strategic steps for effective ERP data migration plan
- Before any data is cleansed or appended before migration, new taxonomies, attributes, fields and hierarchies must be defined in order for planning to take place in order to harmonize data sets
- Take a methodical approach to your data migration: encompassing data analysis, mapping, extraction, deduplication and cleansing the data from each of these applications before implementing into the ERP database
- A data migration team (part of your ERP implementation project team) must be formed early on and include representatives from across the business in order to provide insight into how the data has been generated and used and how best to plan and cleanse for future use
- Consider using automation tools to help ease the mapping of the legacy data using your decided structure adapted to your business plan.
- Be aware of GDPR / data protection guidelines and conditions for consent when augmenting and transforming your data. Appoint a person responsible for data governance and compliance across the business
- Avoid data duplication and define a clear and accurate cut off time
- Do not underestimate the time and cost associated with data migration (allocate a minimum of 10% of your ERP implementation budget) and prioritize this important step, starting as early as possible
- Be clear about the criteria for bringing over historical data in order to avoid redundant data being put into your new system
- Think about how data will be used for decision-making across the whole business, as well as by each department – this will affect what data you map, your data cleansing and structuring
- Consider data transformation as part of your data migration plan, your ERP vendor can suggest great sources of data to enrich the information you already hold with appending additional attributes and intelligence on customers, partners and suppliers
- Before going live in a production environment, run tests on your migrated data for every business team in the test environment
- If you decide not to migrate all legacy data, if it falls outside the scope of your new ERP, you might want to create an archive database for a set period of time in order for employees to access on an exceptional basis
ERP migration checklist
Defining your current state
- To gather organizational information, including locations, structure, operating markets, and specialisms, assess departmental ERP usage and employee involvement. Develop a list of ERP-compliant certifications, such as ISO standards, and outline the infrastructure scope of your current ERP, including servers and network setup. Identify and prioritize existing ERP challenges and their impact on business operations.
Validation and testing
- Collect user feedback and assess acceptance levels, prioritize bug fixes, refine UI/UX elements, prepare documentation, and conduct workflow testing against business scenarios.
Team assignment
- Assign a core ERP project team, develop an internal communication plan, and select an ERP service provider along with key team members.
Data migration
- Data migration is a critical step in ERP deployment, involving the extraction, transformation, and loading of data from various sources into a common structure. Dedicated teams, automation tools, and meticulous planning are essential for ensuring the success of this transition.
Planning
- Business Process Optimization is key to maximizing efficiency and effectiveness in your organization. During the scoping and discovery phases of ERP implementation, it’s crucial to identify modules and functionalities by priority and specify features accordingly. Deciding on your ERP deployment strategy is essential, as is planning data migration aligned with business areas and timeframes. Confirming budget and ROI expectations and identifying baseline measurements for success are integral parts of this process.
