Pismo has established a rigorous and effective migration process we apply to all our projects, no matter the size of the customer. For this new series of articles we spoke to our migration team to learn more about how they help clients transition to a next-generation platform.
In this first article, we look at one of the most crucial stages of a migration: planning.
From the beginning
All migrations start with an idea and plenty of goals in mind. This is the job for our engagement and pre-sales teams, working hand-in-hand with clients, to discover what their key milestones, objectives, and desires are.
From there, the implementation team takes over. There is a kick-off meeting outlining the migration process (just like this article, but in more detail) and how it will pan out. Of course, we can’t cover all the steps in just one meeting. But we start with a general overview. From there we schedule regular catch-ups to understand the business needs and the information our companies will exchange.
Clients gather this information from their previous provider or in-house systems. It includes details on their current software, business models (debit cards, credit, digital accounts etc.), and an idea of the data which will need to be migrated. Usually at this stage Pismo has an idea of the complexity of the migration and how long it may take.
If a client is already operating in an agile way, migrations can be very quick. Some straightforward migrations we can complete in two months or less. Obviously as things get more complex that timeline increases. Pismo’s goal is always to complete migrations in an effective, timely, and secure manner.
Key milestones & deliverables
Before the “go” button is pressed on a migration, there are a few steps that need to be completed. This includes configuring the Pismo platform to the client’s needs, exchanging access keys with processors and networks, or swapping PCI data. If files are sent, Pismo will set up S3 buckets (cloud object storage provided by Amazon Web Services) to host them.
Clients will set up processes to extract and send across their data either through files or API calls. Pismo may also develop new products and processes based on the specific needs of the customer. We run agile as standard. This means we are flexible when it comes to providing what customers want if it makes sense to our platform.
After the completion of these setup stages, the migration is put through its paces in a sandbox environment – a critical stage. It’s here that the migration team together with the ProductOps team can gain an overview of the process and eliminate any issues that could have arisen during a real-world migration. If the sandbox migration is successful, we proceed into the production environment.
Keeping transparent
Throughout the migration process, Pismo keeps key stakeholders in the loop. We provide migration timelines and send event updates as standard, allowing our clients to see account migration in real-time. This enables them to validate the process as it progresses.
Pismo is also open to engagement from across client organisations. This includes everyone from the C-suite to product, engineering and security. Diverse input creates a stronger end result!
Our migration process has resulted in several successful projects, and a few record-breaking months in which we moved more than a million accounts in a month. Some of our success stories include:
- A Tier 1 bank in Latin America (ongoing)
- One of Brazil’s largest retailers (ongoing)
- A fintech benefits platform
- A large BaaS company
- A digital bank aimed at Gen Z
Four key migration tips
Pismo has learned a lot in its journey to providing an effective and secure migration process. Here are four of our key lessons to take into all projects:
- It’s never too early to start cleaning up data
- There are no good substitutes for a full dress rehearsal preferrably with anonymised production data
- Portfolio analysis and data mapping needs to start from day one
- Be ready with alternative routes for all eventualities
