A Microsoft 365 tenant-to-tenant migration seems simple in theory: just one big move. Don’t be fooled. Although everything is under a single brand umbrella, Microsoft 365 is actually an ecosystem of workloads—Exchange, SharePoint, OneDrive, and Microsoft Teams—all tied to identity, permissions, and compliance rules. It’s an interconnected system that requires careful migration planning.
If your organization is active in mergers and acquisitions, or planning a major reorganization, a tenant-to-tenant migration may be on the horizon. These are high-stakes projects that can enhance collaboration and productivity when they’re done right. The key is understanding how this kind of migration works and planning ahead.
Start with these five essential tips for executing a smooth Microsoft 365 tenant-to-tenant migration with MigrationWiz:
Tip 1: Plan your Migration by Workload
Any time you’re planning a migration—no matter the size—you don’t have to go it alone. BitTitan has advice and resources you can rely on, including our detailed Migration Planning and Strategy Guide. Our guides help you create a sequenced migration plan that will meet your specific needs.
When it comes to Microsoft 365 projects, your migration will roll out in layers, with mailboxes as the foundation. This is the order we recommend:
- Start with mailboxes. Move Exchange Online first, since it’s typically the most business-critical and time-sensitive workload.
- Follow with files and collaboration. Migrate OneDrive for Business and SharePoint next, ensuring user file access is preserved.
- Finish up with Teams. Migrate Teams last to maintain continuity of conversations, channels, and shared documents.
Tip 2: Leverage the Tenant Migration Bundle for End-to-End Coverage
BitTitan has multiple license options to accommodate the growing variety of migrations that can be accomplished with MigrationWiz. For tenant-to-tenant projects involving 50 users or more, the Tenant Migration Bundle is the most cost-effective and comprehensive license option. It’s specifically designed for multi-workload, enterprise-scale moves—no need to purchase separate licenses for each workload.
The Tenant Migration Bundle handles:
- Mailbox migrations (Exchange Online)
- Document migrations (OneDrive and SharePoint)
- Collaboration workloads (Microsoft Teams)
Tip 3: Maintain Coexistence for Business Continuity
A tenant-to-tenant migration is usually a big project, but chances are your stakeholders will have very low tolerance for disruption. Not a problem. You can keep both environments functional until the migration is complete with coexistence.
Read our Help Center documentation on coexistence to learn how MigrationWiz enables seamless mail routing between old and new tenants, and preserves collaboration in Teams and SharePoint during the transition.
Tip 4: Execute with Full Control and Real-time Visibility
With so many moving parts—users, workloads, licenses, timelines, and dependencies—a complex migration can go sideways without centralized control. Issues can easily to go unnoticed until you start getting complaints from users. By monitoring the MigrationWiz dashboard, you and your team can watch over the progress of a migration in real time, keeping stakeholders informed along the way.
MigrationWiz includes centralized reporting dashboards and real-time status tracking to identify and resolve issues at any point in the process. It also includes multiple automations to streamline nearly every task, including automatic discovery of users, groups, and resources.
Tip 5: Ensure Security and Compliance Throughout
When you’re planning a migration, all data should be considered sensitive, whether it’s corporate documents, regulated customer information, or everyday communications. Security can’t be an afterthought.
MigrationWiz protects data with end-to-end encryption. Permissions are preserved to maintain access controls, and detailed audit logs are easy to access so you can meet compliance requirements.
Migration as Strategic Transformation
A Microsoft 365 tenant-to-tenant migration is more than a data transfer—it should be considered a strategic transformation event because it impacts every employee, customer, and business process. When the stakes are high, meticulous planning following best practices will result in a migration that’s fast, reliable, and an overall positive experience.
Get your tenant-to-tenant migration done right with MigrationWiz. Contact us to start planning your project today.
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