Data Migration and Integration: A Marriage of Convenience

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Although data migration and data integration are two different processes, there’s a lot of overlap in terms of what they accomplish. When used together, they can bring about many positive benefits to an organization and simplify the way that data is retrieved.

Data migration, which is “the process of transferring data between data storage systems, data format or computer systems” is often used for server maintenance, upgrading servers or for relocating data. Data integration, which is “the combination of technical and business processes used to combine data from disparate sources into meaningful and valuable information” is typically used to consolidate and more efficiently manage information and is common when two businesses merge together and want to place all relevant information into a centralized database.

Now that we’ve covered the specific purposes of these two processes, let’s discuss how your data migration and integration work hand in hand when integrating technologies/data.

 

Ensuring High-Quality Data

For a business to run effectively, its systems and applications must contain high quality, trusted and accurate data. Otherwise, the time and money spent on acquiring and storing information will be squandered and operations can suffer. When data migration and integration are done in tandem, it becomes easier to manage and monitor data and ensure the highest possible quality. That’s because the two processes create a framework where data can be properly standardized, cleansed and ultimately reconciled.

 

An Example

Say two companies had a large volume of unstructured data from different sources. They could extract all of this information from existing databases and migrate it to a destination database. Along the way, the data can be standardized according to specific terms that will simplify the search process and prevent duplicate entries.

From there, data cleansing can be performed to correct incorrect on incomplete information, eliminate duplicates and resolve any other issues. Finally, data will be reconciled to ensure that the information in the destination database matches that of the original data sources.

 

Improved Collaboration

The end result of data migration and integration is streamlined collaboration between team members. When data is migrated to a destination database and quality rules are set in place, it means a higher level of consistency and that data is kept in optimal condition. In turn, employees who access the database will receive accurate information – and it’s easier for everyone to stay on the same page.

This reduces the potential for confusion and misunderstandings from arising, and employees can focus on what’s most important – core operations. That way, team members can collaborate with one another with greater and ease and at the same time provide customers/clients with the best possible experience.

Although data migration and integration projects can often be time-consuming and costly, the results are undeniable. When businesses utilize both of these processes, it creates a new, unified database of high-quality, standardized and accurate information. This ultimately makes everyone’s life easier and usually makes for a more productive workforce where profitability is maximized.

 

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