The team here at Valto have plenty of experience handling user adoption of Office365, but it’s still useful for your team members to know implementation best practices before the actual migration project begins. Read on for our ultimate Office365 implementation checklist to get you in the right place to get started.
Step 1: Initial planning – communication and getting the team on board
It might seem like common sense, but it’s really important to make sure all business users – the people who actually use Office applications day in, day out – are kept up to date and understand why you’re migrating the system.
Communicating timescales and setting expectations is a key step in your plan. Everyone in your organisation will need to know how they will be affected and when projects can be streamlined. This is where Valto’s Microsoft experts can help you draw up a realistic migration plan and map out the timeline.
Step 2: Create an inventory of your current environment
Before transferring everything over to the new Office365 landscape, make a list of everything your existing IT landscape. This might include:
User account data like logins and email addresses
File storage details (locations, intranet hosting, storage locations)
Network architecture (proxy and firewall configurations, DNS hosts, etc.)
Details of any integrated programs (e.g. CRM, workflow and mail enabled platforms)
All information for any programs you plan to migrate (this might include intranet sites, messaging apps, meeting systems etc.)
Collate mailbox details (quantity and size of each)
Identify all data required to move from on-premises system
Record network bandwidth for the migration
Decide mobile access requirements for each user
Assess any compliance issues or industry requirements that could affect migration (e.g. data storage)
Unsure which data you need to record and collect? Our specialist Office365 Consultants can take a full audit of your system and take care of all the details safely and securely.
Step 3: Prepare to move to the cloud
Next, you’ll need to set up the system to host your users and data. There are a number of steps you might need to follow for this process, including:
Verify your domain name via the Microsoft Online Services portal
Make sure Active Directory is clean and up to date – remove any inactive users
Enable single sign-on protocols and verify any identity requirements
Create DNS records in order to migrate domain traffic
Configure Exchange servers to work with email accounts
Migrate existing SharePoint content to the new architecture
Install and configure any messaging or client applications
Step 4: Migrate your on-premises data
At this point you’ll be moving on-premises business data over to the new cloud environment. You should have already mapped out this process during your initial inventory stage; this is actually a good opportunity for a bit of housekeeping – you only want to be bringing up to date, required and relevant files over to Office365. The shorter the list of things to move, the shorter the implementation process will be!
Licences will need to be assigned to each user, and services such as Exchange Online and SharePoint will need to be enabled. This is a cloud-based system after all, so you’ll want to check mobile devices are authorised and syncing correctly. At this point you’ll also want to make sure everyone in your team knows how to use the various Office applications and tools. Our Office365 deployment specialists can provide tutorials and training to get your team off to a running start.
Getting your Office365 implementation right is the first step in moving your business into the future. As you can see, it can be a complex process involving vital steps. Our implementation services will take into consideration issues and opportunities you might not have thought of, and will be on hand to ease any pain points and troubleshoot any and all migration issues.
