Migration
Migration and modernisation
Move workloads on a schedule you control, with a way back if a wave misbehaves.
Overview
What this service is for
Migrations rarely fail on the technology. They fail on sequencing — a dependency nobody mapped, a cutover scheduled during month-end close, an identity change that locked out a department, a rollback plan that existed only as an assumption.
We plan migrations around business risk first and technical elegance second. That means discovery deep enough to know what moves together, pilot groups chosen because they will surface real problems, cutover windows agreed with the people whose work is affected, and a documented route back for every wave.
Modernisation is treated as a separate decision from relocation. Lifting a workload as-is and improving it later is often the right call: it shortens the risk window and gets you off ageing hardware sooner. Where re-platforming genuinely pays for itself — licensing savings, resilience, or maintainability — we make that case with numbers rather than fashion.
What you receive
- Dependency map and agreed move groups
- Wave plan with cutover windows and rollback procedures
- Pilot outcome report and go/no-go recommendation
- Data validation evidence per wave
- Post-migration operations handover pack
Outcomes to expect
- Cutovers that land inside their agreed windows
- Dependencies discovered in discovery, not during a cutover
- Old infrastructure actually decommissioned so you stop paying twice
- Operational documentation your team can run from on day one
Capabilities
How AAG can help
The specific work covered by this practice area.
Discovery and dependency mapping
We establish what talks to what before scheduling anything, so move groups reflect reality rather than the org chart.
Wave planning and pilots
A representative pilot first, then business-aligned waves with defined entry and exit criteria for each.
Identity and hybrid directory
Active Directory and Entra ID designs that keep authentication working throughout the transition.
Email and collaboration migration
Exchange, SharePoint, OneDrive, Teams, and file server moves with data validation at each step.
Application and database migration
Rehost, re-platform, or refactor decisions taken workload by workload, with rollback defined up front.
Hypercare and stabilisation
Heightened support immediately after each cutover, when the issues that matter actually appear.
Delivery
How the engagement runs
Phases with clear entry and exit points, so you always know what is being decided and what happens next.
Assess
Inventory, dependency discovery, and migration-readiness scoring per workload.
Pilot
A representative group migrated end-to-end to prove the runbook and expose surprises early.
Migrate in waves
Sequenced cutovers with communications, validation, and rollback ready for each wave.
Stabilise and optimise
Hypercare, decommissioning of old infrastructure, and tuning once real load arrives.
Who this is for
The people who usually sponsor this work
CIOs and IT managers
You need architecture that your team can actually run, vendors consolidated, and a partner who escalates instead of deflecting.
CFOs and finance leaders
You need licence spend that reconciles, renewals without surprises, and a cost model you can defend in a budget review.
COOs and operations leaders
You need uptime, continuity that has been tested, and fewer working days lost to technology friction.
Founders and SME owners
You need enterprise-grade security and collaboration without building an internal IT department to run it.
Risk and compliance leads
You need identity controls, retention policies, and recovery evidence that stand up to an audit.
Questions
Frequently asked
The questions clients ask before committing to this service.
Some cutovers need a short window, typically outside business hours. We identify which ones, agree the windows with you in advance, and design the rest to run without interruption.
Works well with
Related services
These practice areas are commonly delivered alongside this one.
Like to know more?
Talk to us about migration
Send a short brief and we will come back with a considered response, not a generic brochure.