Migrating to Azure: Lessons from the Trenches

Cloud migration is rarely as simple as "lift and shift." After leading multiple enterprise migrations, here are the lessons that matter.

Assessment First

Before moving anything, understand what you have:

• Application dependencies
• Data gravity
• Compliance requirements
• Performance baselines

The 6 Rs of Migration

1. Rehost - Lift and shift
2. Replatform - Lift and optimize
3. Refactor - Re-architect
4. Repurchase - Move to SaaS
5. Retire - Decommission
6. Retain - Keep on-premises

Migration Waves

Don't try to migrate everything at once. Group applications into waves based on complexity and dependencies.

The Human Factor

Technical migration is the easy part. Change management, training, and organizational alignment determine success or failure.