Inventory data before choosing what to move.
List source systems, exports, spreadsheets, file stores, owners, record counts, date ranges, sensitive fields, and known quality problems.
Not every historical record deserves migration. Some data should be cleaned, summarized, archived, or excluded according to business and professional requirements.
Map fields and transformation rules.
Define how source fields become destination records, how statuses change, how duplicates are identified, and what happens when required values are missing.
Operational owners should review mapping rules because technical similarity does not guarantee the same business meaning.
Test representative data and validate results.
Use a sample containing normal records, old formats, duplicates, missing values, unusual characters, and edge cases. Compare counts, totals, relationships, permissions, and reports.
Document rejected records and correction decisions instead of silently dropping or guessing data.
Plan cutover, reconciliation, and recovery.
Decide when source changes stop, how final records are captured, who approves the cutover, and how the team returns to the old system if critical validation fails.
After launch, reconcile important totals and workflows, retain backups according to the agreed policy, and monitor issues through Managed System Support.