Due to the absence of much helpful documentation, custom field migration as well as custom data migration process remains a cloudy concept in people’s minds. Being challenging work, customizing help desk data transfer is not as straightforward as you want it to be.
It is not easy to check every possible dataset of customers because of the nature of every unique data structure of consumer support software. It may also result in further adjustments or data remapping in the course of the migration.
To suit their own requirements and workflows, businesses generally tailor their help desk solutions. This is great to the point where you decide to switch the help desk.
Organizations migrating to the cloud from on-premises infrastructure are another great example. Their systems are frequently altered in terms of data structure and additional fields.
What Is Meant by a Data Migration Process?
Data migration is often a one-time task involving shifting business records from one system to another. It entails data preparation, extraction and (when required) transformation, and this project demands extensive strategy and preparation to be effective.
Data Migration for help desks is usually the part of a bigger business project, such as:
- Old software system replacement or termination of any used solution;
- Help desk software integration into the workflow;
- Blending of multiple instances of identical customer support software; and
- Changing a customer support solution by complying with acquiring company’s policies.
How Does a Migration Tool Help?
A Migration tool is a service or application that handles the movement of records from one system to another. The Help Desk Migration service, for example, makes data migration across systems automated by data import from databases or CSV files and records export from client support systems or email inboxes.
Types of Data Migration Tools
Companies can design their custom field migration scripts or use on-premises or cloud-based solutions to accomplish their goals. Consider self-scripted custom data migration as a do-it-yourself in-house tool suitable for modest jobs. However, it does not scale well.
On the other hand, on-premises services work well when all of the data is stored in one location. Finally, businesses looking to migrate data to cloud-based locations should consider cloud-based data migration solutions.
There is no doubt that IT experts can create custom data migration tools. However, this procedure could be both costly and time-consuming. Furthermore, ensuring that all of your records land in the correct places in a new help desk demands familiarizing you with the specifics of data structures in both present and new client service platforms. As a result, the best choice becomes using a data migration service.
Strategizing Data Migration
Companies can use a data migration strategy to complete all the steps required to prepare, migrate, and set up a new platform following a transfer. Processes are documented, and responsibilities are distributed.
This makes it easier to monitor and diagnose problems (such as neglected records, mismapped data, a lack of particular data types on a target system, and so on) and rectify them faster.
Companies that do not have a strategy:
- Waste more time during the data transfer process;
- See an increase in customer support inactivity duration; and
- Need to perform remapping records or data remigration and some extra steps on the platform targeted (such as making groups, agents, and some custom field migration).
Building a Strategy
Any software upgrade is a significant transformation, and regardless of your industry or the size of the company, you must:
- Make your team ready for the upcoming change;
- Review client requests and records related to them;
- Make a data migration checklist;
- Search for a migration option; and
- Customize the new platform.
The data migration strategy is an integral part of the project since it identifies the characteristics of your records and determines whether you require custom data migration. The internet is crammed with useful knowledge, and there is a lot that no one tells you about. Organizations can assure data integrity, decrease expenses, and remove manual effort with an effective data migration strategy.
Two Data Migration Strategies
Storage migration, data migration (such as help desk, live chat, ITSM, project management, invoicing systems, small business accounting software, learning systems, and so on), application migration, data center migration, and business process migration are the most prevalent types of data migration. Big bang migration and trickle migration are strategies included in every type of migration.
1. Big Bang Migration Strategy
It is a complete data replacement, and it actually takes a little longer than a simple bang. On the other hand, users will notice a swift transition from the old help desk to the new platform. As a result, the migration strategy is named the “Big Bang.”
2. Trickle Data Migration Strategy
It is a gradual data migration with both current and target solutions being maintained simultaneously. In short, you execute two help desk systems together and import data to the new tool in little pieces throughout several phrases.
For a custom data migration, Big Bang is more suitable. Although the risk is higher, that relies on how well you prepare. The Trickle requires more team effort, as it must keep track of each phrase and resource.
Significant Challenges of Custom Data Migration
Despite the fact that data transfer has become mainstream, some businesses still find it a challenging feat. We will go over some of the critical issues of custom data migration below.
Deduplication
Deduplication of records in the original solution prolongs the migration process, increases data transfer costs, and transfers the old system’s chaos to the new one. Take the time to audit your data, so you do not end up with a mess on a new tool.
Data Format
That is not the most shocking fact: Every help desk system, like any other business software, has a unique data structure, field names, and values that vary by vendor. Check how this factor is going in your case before putting up your custom migration.
Downtime
For anyone who manages a real-time business, this is a scary word. Downtime is expected to be part of the Big Bang approach. However, you are already aware of migrating your records without disrupting your workflow (take advantage of our service).
History Consistency
When two development branches are connected, manually linearising migrations is sometimes possible. You could mistakenly introduce history inconsistency while editing migration dependencies, and it means you have run a migration without all of its dependencies in place.
Planning Custom Data Migration
Making plans for custom data migration demands the execution of a few essential steps.
Preparation of Existing Help Desk Data for Transfer
Please do not believe that you have all the records you need in their places. A thorough customer and company data audit is required to avoid overlooking agents, groups, or other data objects. This double-check helps you understand your data structure and ensures that everything is in the right place and that the transfer does not disrupt anyone’s work.
What to Look for in a Current Vs. Future Platform
The core set of functionality for managing client data is shared by ticketing systems and support desk software. As a result, the internal data structure varies. Compare the data objects and develop a record-type correlation map. In addition, if you plan to use a new tool with fewer agents, you should reassign tickets to minimize garbage following the data migration.
Make a Workflow Compliant with the Migration Plan
The essential point is that you should sort out the processes that are related. This helps maintain a continuous level of preparation and address the issues (such as handling duplication, inactive agents, inspecting custom fields on your source system, etc.) that arise throughout the process without forgetting about them.
Conclusion
Custom data migration might cause many new problems when migrating data correctly. After all, in a world where the digital revolution is in full gear, copying and pasting records is a relic of the past. Invest in a data migration strategy and secure, automated migration software to save your company resources and get your transfer done faster with less wasted effort.
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