Perform an Honest Evaluation of Associated Costs
Finally, many managed service providers will avoid spending money on the right tools for a document migration because they fail to appropriately weigh the costs and benefits against those associated with taking a manual approach and using free tools.
First, you need to ask how many hours your team will spend organizing and reviewing documents. Those hours cost you money. They can also cost your team its collective sanity and the ability to execute a timely migration. While some will resort to half-measures by leveraging a free software solution, such tools are notoriously difficult to use and extremely limited in terms of functionality.
The question becomes whether relying on free tools for document migration is worth the extra labor hours, frustration, and loss of sanity. Or is using an automated, third-party tool that subverts these complications more cost-efficient?
Document migrations are inherently complex, whether you're migrating 10 users or 10,000. The tools you employ should make the project easier, not harder. Beyond the advantages of employing automation to streamline the migration process, it helps to consider the additional benefits an automated platform can deliver that are not available using free software. For example, certain tools can automate an incredibly detailed, individualized report to end users, describing where everything has been moved and offering helpful information about managing their data. For most MSPs, manually providing such a report to every customer would be impossible and shortchange end users on post-migration best practices.
Document migration doesn't need to be an insoluble pain point despite its inherent challenges. By accurately evaluating the project scope, ensuring that end users are appropriately educated throughout the process, and leveraging the cost-efficiency of automation, you can turn a seemingly monumental undertaking into an attainable project.
STACEY FARRAR is product marketing manager at BitTitan, where he oversees go-to-market strategy and product messaging for MigrationWiz. His areas of expertise include cloud automation, SaaS, product marketing and management, digital marketing, customer engagement, and business development.
