Data Migration Services
Salesforce data migration from legacy systems, proven in test before go-live
Migration from legacy systems to Salesforce
The practice from which every other Acellas data service descends: our experts rehearse each load in test until production repeats a proven sequence.
Why migration quality determines what follows
What determines the difficulty of a Salesforce data migration
A migrated record must still renew, amend, reconcile and roll up.
Sources
The number and kind of source systems, and whether records must be merged across them.
Product structure
Bundles, options, pricing models and the Salesforce quoting and contract functionality in use.
Billing
Whether billing runs in Salesforce, the ERP or a separate platform, and what must agree among them.
Condition of the data
Duplicates, hierarchies, merges and the fields upon which renewals and invoices depend.
From first load to go-live
Migrations delivered for technology companies
Trimble: Billing and Rev Rec
165,764 legacy subscriptions realigned for billing and revenue recognition
Viewpoint Construction Software: Revenue Cloud
From 4,085 legacy items to one governed quoting catalog
What each function receives
Owned
The org into which the data arrives and every automation that acts upon it.
Received
A system of record with the identity, matching and validation rules agreed for the project in place at go-live.
Asked
Field ownership, retention criteria and acceptance testing.
Owned
The accounts, hierarchies, territories and pipeline sellers work from after cutover.
Received
Hierarchies that roll up as the client defined them, in place at go-live; open opportunities and renewals with their history and dates.
Asked
Definitions of account, territory and stage, and a cutover window clear of quarter-end.
Owned
Contracts, subscriptions, bill-to and customer–subsidiary relationships, and reconciliation to the ERP.
Received
ARR, TCV and currency reconciled to source, on a signed sign-off sheet.
Asked
Definitions of bill-to and customer–subsidiary relationships, ARR and TCV rules and the signature on the sign-off sheet.
Owned
Environments, access and the integrations on which the migration depends.
Received
A cutover runbook with rollback conditions.
Asked
Orgs, API-capable users and the virtual machine that hosts the migration database.
Questions about Salesforce data migration
What does a Salesforce data migration involve?
Our data experts replicate each source system into a temporary database, map and transform the data there, load it into Salesforce with ETL tooling and validate every load. They repeat the test cycles until production can follow a proven sequence step for step, and every load in every cycle yields validation reports for the business to review.
How many test cycles does the project need?
It depends on the size and complexity of the project, and our experts can usually recommend a number in the first conversation. In the first test cycle our experts load key objects into a full sandbox, and in further UAT cycles all in-scope data, refining the mappings and retention criteria as they go. The client's users then test every business process in end-to-end UAT before a timed rehearsal and go-live.
What data moves to Salesforce, and what stays behind?
By default the core records move, from accounts and contacts to contracts, cases, files and Knowledge, while historical quotes and orders stay behind together with records beyond the retention period and data that no business process uses. The Scope tab above shows each object, and the retention rules for each object decide the rest.
Questions about the team and the cutover
Who does the work?
Acellas data experts, led by senior experts who specialize in data and bring two decades of Salesforce data work. The client's team takes part at every step: it names the field owners, examines the results in test and signs the sign-off sheet before go-live.
Can Acellas merge Salesforce orgs into one?
Yes. Our experts merge orgs after an acquisition by the same method, with questions added, chief among them for every record: which source takes precedence. Our data practice lead and several of our experts have consolidated as many as twenty-five legacy systems, from a company and the businesses it acquired, into one system of record, and Data U sets out the method for consolidating Salesforce orgs.
What does the client provide?
The client provides the orgs, API-capable users and the virtual machine that hosts the migration database, names the field owners and decides what data to keep. It chooses the super-users for acceptance testing and a cutover window clear of quarter-end. Our consultants configure the database. The environment remains the client's, and the client decides when to withdraw it; we advise keeping it until the end of the stabilization period.
How does the cutover avoid surprises?
Our experts repeat a sequence that testing has already proven. A cutover runbook fixes the sequence, timing and freeze windows, the rollback conditions and the go or no-go criteria. Before go-live they rehearse and time the sequence and review the sign-off sheet with the client, so nothing untested happens on the day.
Plan the migration
The first call is with the practitioners who would do the work, not a sales intermediary. The measures come first and the estimate follows.