Metadata Migration - Planning

Techniques and tactics to get organized and minimize risks

Metadata Migrations & Project Management

Before you make the leap…

Project Management Artifacts for Planning

Common PM artifacts for planning and scoping; could be one or more documents:

• Business case* or project proposal
• Charter*
• Scope Statement*

*Examples at website

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Questions

• What is your end goal, and why?
• What resources do you have for this work?
• Who needs to be involved?
• What risks/impacts are involved?
• When does this need to happen?
• Who approved the project request?
• Is there already a plan/schedule (e.g. vendor)?

Tactics

• What will you *not* do?
• YMMV. Use these artifacts as needed for the scale of your project: helps to surface issues in advance

Mobilizing - Roles & Responsibilities

Project Management techniques to document and clarify who is doing what:

• Project charter*
• Scope of Work (SOW)/Contract
• Team charter(s)*
• RACI Matrix* �(Responsible/Accountable/�Consulted/Informed)
• Decision Document/Log*

*Examples at website

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Questions

• Are you working with a project manager, �or are you the PM?
• Small team, big team?
• Working with a vendor/external organization(s)?
• Who are the approvers?

Tactics

• Find a project sponsor/champion in leadership
• Think about “hats” vs. people in small teams
• Make sure metadata expertise is a formal role!

Communications & Concepts

Make sure your team is on the same page, to avoid misinterpretations

Helpful to consider:

• Terminology and definitions*
• Content standards vs. encoding schemes �vs. application profiles
• Use cases/goals for your migration
• Learning & training needs
• Communications Plan*
• Question log/issue tracker*

*Examples at website

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Questions

• Does anyone need on-boarding to metadata/system concepts and lingo?
• What do you mean when you say “x”?
• How implementation-centric should you be at each stage of work?

Tactics

• “Semantic unit” concept
• Project Glossary - avoid “trigger” words!

Work Planning: Getting Down To It

Agile, Waterfall, Hybrid, Other?

• Backlog
• Project Plan
• Work Breakdown Structure*

Work Breakdown Structure

• Defining subtasks
• Sequencing & dependencies
• Task ownership and roles
• Estimating effort and duration
• Deliverables - clarify outcomes and artifacts

*Examples (website)

Questions

• Is your work a sub-project within a larger project?
• Is Agile appropriate for data migration?
• What is your definition of “done”?

Tactics:

• Create as a team, together
• Plan to be iterative, even if you’re not Agile!
• Don’t forget about handoffs and approvals - can stall the work
• Confirm your deliverables in advance: what’s really needed?

Project Management Tools

Lower-tech

• Spreadsheets

Software

• Asana
• Smartsheet
• MS Project

Examples: DLF PM toolkit

Questions

• What tools are your team members familiar with?
• What do you have access to already at your organization?

Tactics:

• It’s the thought that counts (not the software).

Common Metadata Migration Sequence

1. Planning and Scoping
2. Inventorying
3. Analyzing/Mapping
4. Cleaning / Transforming
5. Loading
6. Assessing/ Testing
7. Closeout and documentation

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• [begin planning for next migration...! ]

Activity

Common Metadata Migration Sequence

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1. Planning and Scoping
2. Inventorying
3. Analyzing and Mapping
4. Cleaning and Transforming
5. Loading
6. Assessing/ Testing
7. Closeout and documentation

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