Cloud migration timelines: What do you wish someone had told you?

When mapping out your cloud migration timeline, what turned out to be the most valuable planning decisions you made?

We often hear the basics: break the process into clear phases like planning, migration, and post-migration. Prioritize which applications to move first based on business impact and complexity. And of course, make sure there’s enough time for testing and fixing any issues that come up. But what else matters in your experience? Are there any common mistakes you've seen that we should warn people about?

I’d really love to hear your thoughts, especially any lessons you’ve picked up along the way.

One key decision that really paid off was doing a detailed application dependency mapping—it helped us avoid surprises and downtime. We also ran a small proof of concept (PoC) before the full migration, which helped validate our assumptions and refine our approach. Another valuable step was involving security and compliance teams early, not as an afterthought. A common mistake I’ve seen is underestimating post-migration optimization—moving to the cloud isn’t the finish line, it’s just the start of tuning for cost and performance.

One key decision that really paid off was doing a detailed application dependency mapping—it helped us avoid surprises and downtime. We also ran a small proof of concept (PoC) before the full migration, which helped validate our assumptions and refine our approach. Another valuable step was involving security and compliance teams early, not as an afterthought. A common mistake I’ve seen is underestimating post-migration optimization—moving to the cloud isn’t the finish line, it’s just the start of tuning for cost and performance.

Thanks so much for this incredibly valuable insight bhavanikasthuri-amer ! 🤩 I love the idea of detailed application dependency mapping. Out of curiosity, who performed this task? Did you take care of it yourself, or was it handled by a specific team in your organization?
Also, getting security and compliance involved early was a really smart move 👏 I’m sure you just sparked an idea for the whole community. 💡💡💡
What phase of the migration are you in? Would you consider it completed, or are you currently in the "tuning" phase?