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Espoo, Finland - 20.02.2025 The Migration Phase of SAP S/4HANA is where preparation transforms into execution, requiring a balance of precision, speed, and the right tools. Successfully transitioning data from legacy systems to S/4HANA involves overcoming challenges such as managing large datasets, aligning with new data structures, and maintaining data integrity.
Traditional tools like the Legacy System Migration Workbench (LSMW) often fall short in handling the complexities of modern migrations, prompting organizations to seek alternative solutions. In this blog, we explore best practices for this critical phase, with insights into tools and strategies to optimize the process.
Data Quality Assessment Strategies for S/4HANA Migration
Migrating to S/4HANA requires organizations to address challenges that stem from the scale and complexity of modern data ecosystems. Transitioning from SAP ECC to the unified “business partner” structure in S/4HANA, for instance, demands careful attention to detail to avoid disruptions.
Data inconsistencies, outdated formats, and interdependencies across records can lead to bottlenecks. Furthermore, businesses often face tight deadlines, making it crucial to streamline workflows and reduce manual effort wherever possible. These hurdles emphasize the importance of planning, validation, and collaboration during migration.
Best Practices for the Migration Phase
Automate Bulk Updates
Handling large datasets manually—whether it’s material master records, sales orders, or contracts—can lead to avoidable delays and costly errors. Automation simplifies the process by ensuring consistent and accurate updates across interdependent fields, such as vendor and customer relationships. By reducing manual intervention, businesses can focus on more important activities, meet tight deadlines, and avoid common mistakes like incomplete data or formatting inconsistencies. Automation is not only about saving time, but also about improving quality, ensuring that migrated data is clean, reliable and ready for action.
Validate Data at Every Stage
Think of validation as the safety net for your migration. Pre-migration audits identify errors before they escalate into more serious problems. Real-time monitoring during the migration phase ensures continued accuracy, while post-migration audits confirm that all data has been successfully migrated and is functioning as expected. Validation helps organizations avoid system downtime, incorrect reporting, and inefficiencies after migration. Implementing a tiered validation strategy builds trust in your data and ensures that your S/4HANA system starts on the right foot.
Empower Business Users
Business users are the custodians of an organization's data, with the knowledge to ensure its accuracy and relevance. By equipping these users with intuitive, user-friendly tools, you enable them to take a proactive role in the migration process. This not only bridges the gap between IT and operations but also reduces reliance on IT teams, freeing up resources for more strategic tasks. Engaged business users foster better collaboration, faster problem solving and better decision making throughout the migration process.
Leverage Modern Tools
Tools like Automate Studio and Data360 Analyze bring powerful capabilities to the migration process.
Automate Studio simplifies mass updates by allowing business users to extract, modify, and upload data directly through Excel, eliminating the need for complex technical processes. This approach allows teams to handle large datasets—like business partner, material master and any other records—with accuracy and speed, even under tight deadlines.
Data360 Analyze complements this by enhancing data quality through robust cleaning, preparation, and governance capabilities. It ensures that all migrated data aligns with the new system’s requirements, giving businesses confidence in the accuracy and reliability of their data.
By leveraging these tools, organizations can streamline the migration process, reduce manual workloads, and maintain high data quality throughout the transition.
Case Study: Tuomi Logistiikka’s Migration Success
Tuomi Logistiikka, a Finnish logistics company, faced the challenge of migrating over 50,000 sales order lines and thousands of material master records under tight deadlines. By utilizing Automate Studio during migration phase, they streamlined mass updates and ensured data alignment with S/4HANA’s unified business partner structure.
The use of automation reduced manual errors, accelerated processes, and empowered business users to take an active role in the migration. This collaborative approach minimized delays and enhanced data quality, laying the foundation for a seamless transition.
For a detailed look at Tuomi Logistiikka’s migration journey, read the full case study here.
Conclusion
The Migration Phase is a critical step in the S/4HANA journey, demanding a blend of precision, collaboration, and effective tools. By automating workflows, validating data rigorously, and empowering business users, organizations can overcome migration challenges and unlock the full potential of SAP S/4HANA.
You can read the first part here: Why Data Quality Matters (Even More Than You Think!): Part 1 – Pre-Migration Essentials for S/4HANA Success
and the third part here: Why Data Quality Matters (Even More Than You Think!): Part 3 – Post-Migration
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