ERP migrations are one of the highest-risk projects a manufacturing business can undertake. The failure stories are everywhere - months of delays, corrupted data, production halts, customers missing shipments.
Most of these failures share the same root cause: the migration was treated as an IT project instead of a business continuity project.
Start with data quality, not data migration
The single biggest mistake is moving bad data from your old system to your new one. Before you touch the migration, audit your source data. Find the duplicates, the orphaned records, the fields that have been used inconsistently for years. Clean them in the source system before you extract anything.
Run parallel systems longer than you think you need to
Set a readiness criteria and let the data tell you when you are ready - not a calendar date. We typically run parallel systems for 30 to 60 days before cutover, with automated reconciliation reports comparing outputs from both systems daily.
Automate the reconciliation
Manual spot-checking is not enough. Build scripts that compare key tables between old and new systems every night and flag discrepancies. By the time you cut over, you want zero unexplained differences.
Define your rollback plan before you start
Know exactly what you will do if something goes wrong on cutover day. Keep your old system in read-only mode for at least 90 days after go-live and have a tested process for reverting if needed.
Cut over during a natural break
Month-end, quarter-end, or the start of a new fiscal year. Give yourself a clean break in the data. Migrating mid-month means reconciling partial-period data across two systems, which is exponentially more complex.
Every ERP migration is different. If you are planning one and want a second opinion on your approach, reach out. We have been through this process enough times to spot the risks early.
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