After putting Google through the test in more ways than you can imagine we decided that Google Apps was the way to go – especially after we saw collaboration tools like Google Sites. Then our job was to migrate 15,000 users in 18 countries...no small feat.
We started with several pilots to pinpoint any issues up front, and we conducted user surveys along the way to be sure we knew what users were facing. Many users got very excited. They knew they could get email from anywhere, and have access to collaborative tools like spreadsheets and instant messaging. We also gained valuable feedback on workflows and other issues we'd need to have a plan for during the migration.
From the start, we provided more than just a "here’s what we’re going to do, take it or leave it” approach. We were serious about ensuring that a certain set of activities happened in terms of communication and training, and showing people the features of Google Apps so they knew they were not missing anything. Then we would migrate a whole plant in less than a week. But the upfront training and familiarization process was paramount to our success. In all, the conversion went faster and easier than we anticipated.
One of the key factors was support from senior executives, who helped us drive and obtain support across the organization. We did get pushback from some employees but we spent time with them and showed them that, from a user experience standpoint, it might work differently, but they weren’t losing functionality.
In the end, we came close to our goal of a zero-touch conversion process as an IT team. It was a pretty highly automated, self-service conversion in moving everyone over. There were some gaps, but overall we are pleased with how quickly and efficiently the conversion went.
I’d be happy to share what we learned at Sanmina-SCI as a large enterprise that has made the move to Google Apps. We hope that you'll join us for this live event.
Migrating 15,000 users from Microsoft Exchange to Google Apps, by Sanmina-SCIThursday, January 14, 20102:00 p.m. EST / 11:00 a.m. PST / 7:00 p.m. GMT
Posted by Serena Satyasai, Google Apps team
Find customer stories and research product information on our resource sites for current users of Microsoft Exchange and Lotus Notes/Domino.
Last year, Sanmina-SCI's IT team asked, "Could Google Apps really replace Microsoft Exchange for a global, multilingual workforce?" After careful due diligence, the team recently completed a phased migration for 15,000 email users, charting a new course for IT.
Tony and Elliot Tally, Director, IT Collaboration and Automation will be available on a live webcast on Thursday, January 14, to share their story and answer your questions.
Sanmina-SCI is a leader in outsourced electronics manufacturing providing Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) with highly complex design and manufacturing solutions. It is a very competitive industry, so we're always looking to reduce overall IT spending while improving service levels. We have to do it with care. We're a large enterprise with 37,000 diverse employees and operations covering every continent except Africa and Antarctica.
When we looked at email and calendaring, we asked, “What are the viable alternatives to our current on-premise Microsoft Exchange 2003 system?” Whatever we chose had to be enterprise-ready. We took several months to answer all our enterprise-level questions, and came away knowing we should seriously consider Google Apps.
We knew that a services-based model would help make our employees more productive not only as individuals but also as teams – not only within the company but also with customers and suppliers. The benefits are greater than simple cost savings. They include better customer service, streamlined business processes, and increased flexibility. Productivity is not easy to measure, but it is more important than other factors in the long term.
There were a few requirements we needed from Google’s offerings, mostly around managing user accounts and ensuring security, and we provided feedback in an iterative process and saw Google work quickly to address our issues. Convinced that Google Apps was right for us, we conducted two pilots and recently migrated 15,000 users from Microsoft Exchange to Google Apps. From a strategic standpoint, a main driver for moving to Google Apps was low Total Cost of Ownership (TCO).
I’d be happy to share what we learned at Sanmina-SCI as a large enterprise that has made the move to Google Apps. Please join me for “Migrating 15,000 users from Microsoft Exchange to Google Apps by Sanmina-SCI. Join us for this live event.
Migrating 15,000 users from Microsoft Exchange to Google Apps by Sanmina-SCIThursday, January 14, 20102:00 p.m. EST / 11:00 a.m. PST / 7:00 p.m. GMT
