Data and Software Migration
What are the benefits of outsourcing data migration or software migration?
- Avoiding downtime — Data migration and software migration are a breeze for knit’s experienced IT consultants. We can usually complete your migration and run tests to verify the completeness and accuracy of the migration outside your regular business hours so you never have to sacrifice productivity or sales.
- Preventing risk — knit uses methods called procedures with good test coverage which minimize risk to your data and data systems, such as data loss and corruption. Skilled IT professionals will only use proven data migration and software migration techniques because less reliable procedures could cause major losses for your company.
- Cost savings — When you outsource your data or software migration to knit, the process will be completed correctly the first time without causing any downtime for your business. Save time, money, and peace of mind with our expert team.
How expensive is data migration or software migration?
Business owners often procrastinate when investing in a new database or operating system because the cost seems prohibitive, and the resulting data migration or software migration process feels daunting. Though the cost of databases and operating systems varies greatly depending on your industry and needs, there are a few cost saving techniques we always recommend:
- Calculate your opportunity cost — It can be tempting to delay a technology upgrade for short term cost savings, but how will postponing the update hurt your bottom line in the long term? Instead of thinking about the opportunity cost in abstract terms, do some research on the actual dollar amounts to decide on the best time to make the transition.
- Know your “must have” functions and benefits — Marketing pieces for new technology can draw you in with an impressive list of features and functions that you may never actually need to use. As you research new databases, operating systems, or hardware, consider which components are “must have” versus “nice to have” features.
- Develop a migration timeline — Based on the skills and experience of your IT staff, how long do you think it will reasonably take to complete a data migration or software migration to your new technology? When is the best time for the migration to take place so your operations experience minimal downtime? How long will it take for your staff to learn the new system, and what training will they need?
- Bring in a technology expert — If you aren’t sure where to get started with our first three tips, we’re here to help. knit offers free initial consultation calls to help you evaluate your company’s technology needs. We can also expedite your data migration or software migration to prevent disruptions to your daily operations.
How does outsourcing a data migration or software migration work?
There are several ways knit can assist with your data migration or software migration:
- We can facilitate just the data or software migration after you’ve completed your IT system upgrades and replacements.
- We can also take care of the upgrades and replacements for you before completing the migration.
- We can even take a further step back and help you determine whether you need a database, Operating System (OS), and/or hardware upgrade, and whether any of these elements needs to be completely replaced.
Here’s an example of a full service data migration we recently completed:
We worked with a meteorology company which needed their database software upgraded because they hadn’t made any major updates in ten years. After discovering several performance issues in their online platform, we researched solutions and found that upgrading their database would be the easiest and most cost effective response.
We coordinated the database upgrade overnight to avoid disrupting the company’s workday. Then we carried out the migration of their data to the new database and performed tests to ensure the new system functioned properly.
From beginning to end, this upgrade and migration process only required four hours of work which were completed outside the company’s office hours, so the company never experienced downtime in their normal operations.
By upgrading to new database software,
- Our client can perform database tasks at 2-3x their previous speed.
- The new database offers dozens of new functionality features, like the ability to store JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) data directly in the database.
- The new database is also able to receive updates from the developer, such as bug fixes and security patches, to maintain high performance. Their previous database was so old that it was no longer supported by the developer.