Traditional batch systems - while robust, are legacy systems that have been relied on for decades in the banking industry. While designed for older systems, these systems were created when real-time data wasn't feasible and the technological demand for consumers hadn't progressed to today's standards. Modern consumers expect real-time data, seamless experiences, and enhanced security. With iDENTIFY being a Snowflake Select Partner, our expertise with Snowflake's data lake has shown that the solution to modern banking lies within the cloud. As banks migrate their CORE data to Snowflake, here are 5 tips for a successful cloud migration.
Roadmap your Migration
Preparation is everything before diving into a cloud migration. It's essential to understand the legacy infrastructure, applications, and accessible data. Similar to a resource allocation plan, a migration plan should identify all the resources currently in place and the resources needed to deliver a successful migration, including compliance standards.
Key Steps to Roadmapping:
- Assess Current Systems: What parts of the legacy system must we keep, and what can go?
- Define Clear Goals: What are the main goals behind the migration?
- Engage Stakeholders: Make it a relatively all-hands project, ensuring that pieces don't fall through.
Pro Tip: Piece the migration into different phases. Focusing on clear objectives in each phase will minimize challenges that may arise from the project as a whole.
Choosing A Cloud Provider
Choosing the infrastructure for your cloud migration is a make-it-or-break-it decision in our 5 tips for a Successful Cloud Migration. Each cloud provider is different, and the tech stack used in the data cloud can inadvertently cause challenges. Some essential notes when choosing a cloud provider are as follows:
- Compatibility: Ensure the new provider aligns with legacy systems.
- Scalability: Look for a cloud provider that can scale as you grow.
- Security Standards: Verify the security protocols and certifications.
- Industry Expertise: Cloud providers who have completed similar projects in the banking industry can be solid resources.
While we utilize Snowflake's Data Cloud Platform, we've chosen this cloud provider primarily because it is supported by traditional companies such as FiServ and Jack Henry. Further, Snowflake's capabilities to scale operations are supplemented by its Data Sharing initiative.
Prioritize Data Compliance
As noted in our post about Data Governance and Compliance for Bank Transitions, remaining compliant while migrating CORE data is equally as essential as the migration itself. In banking, compliance is non-negotiable. Data may be susceptible to security issues during the migration process, and remaining compliant while migrating is vital. Some things to note to stay compliant during the data migration are as follows:
- Implement Access Controls: Ensure that access is limited to the required stakeholder.
- Report Data Movement: Utilize your tech stack to track data as it moves through the pipeline.
- Encryption: Ensure sensitive data is encrypted in transit and at rest.
- Maintain Audit Trails: Check and maintain logs for audits and/or troubleshooting.
Through successful projects with extensive data sets migrating data from companies such as Jack Henry, Fiserv, and Marqeta, our team members have done an exemplary job migrating data into Snowflake's data lake while maintaining compliance standards.
Streamline Systems for Efficiency
While artificial intelligence (AI) has become quite the buzzword, the benefits of utilizing AI should be taken with a grain of salt. Considering legacy systems in the banking industry, data hygiene may be susceptible to improper querying after migration. On the other hand, the team at iDENTIFY utilizes a modern tech stack to automate processes that are impossible to do manually. Some of the methods we automate include application rehosting and querying processes that can be simplified with a comprehensive script.
While not directly related to our 5 Tips for a Successful Cloud Migration - our data validation platform points out where data may be incomplete, ensuring that the integrity of the data is a report away. All while in a new interface that's accessible securely online.
Post Migration Steps
After migrating CORE data to the cloud, this process is just the beginning of the advancements possible with the new infrastructure. Post-migration steps are essential to our 5 Tips for a Successful Cloud Migration.
Post Migration Checklist:
- Test Systems: Query the data and ensure the validity of reporting. While testing, it's also a good chance to see how infrastructure can translate the CORE data schema to ship to third-party integrations.
- Monitor Performance: Utilize your infrastructure to track system reports and identify bottlenecks.
- Cost Efficiency: Querying large data sets can be expensive. Ensure that data sets are accessed as needed and that layers are implemented.
- Generate Insights: Lifting the data effectively into a report in Power BI - such as our Data Analytics service, should show the validity of the data migration and present actionable insights.
5 Tips for a Successful Cloud Migration
With banks migrating their CORE data to Snowflake, traditional batch systems are robust and capable of handling large volumes of data. However, with real-time data in plenty of banking service offerings, the legacy systems in banks inherently do not keep up with consumer demand. Sponsor banks typically opt to utilize modern fintech with big data cloud providers—such as Snowflake's Cloud Platform—for access to real-time data, which opens possibilities for further integrations that appease consumers, such as mobile banking and additional data security.
Strategizing your migration plan, choosing the right cloud provider, considering data compliance, utilizing automation, and testing are all essential when migrating data to the cloud.
While the migration isn't as seamless as we imagine—considering the legacy infrastructure—our 5 Tips for a Successful Cloud Migration should be referenced when banks migrate their data to the cloud. iDENTIFY has extensive experience and many successful projects for banks utilizing modern fintech.
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