Email migrations may seem like a straightforward IT project, but the Newmind team can attest that there’s still plenty that can go wrong if you don’t plan appropriately. Breaking up your project into phases, making sure your data is backed up, and strategically planning your cutover of email service can all make the difference between a successful email migration or a failed one.
Google or Microsoft?
The age-old question (at least, as long as antitrust regulation stays in the mix): which platform makes the most sense for your team? In 2025, we see Google Workspace at about 50% of the market share, to Microsoft 365’s 45%, in terms of overall adoption (email, storage, productivity tools, etc). What does that mean?
Well, it means there’s no clear victor between either platform! We’ve had many clients hop the fence toward a different provider through their time working with Newmind Group, and we’ve gotten a pretty good handle on the migration game (we’ve even developed our own tools to help make the process easier).
All that is to say: this isn’t our first rodeo. So, in the instance that it might be your first rodeo, we thought we’d share some pointers. Members of the Newmind tech team gave us a few tips that they’d give to someone running an email migration for the first time:
“Email Migrations” are rarely just email
Email migrations are no longer just email—we consider these complete platform migrations that involve not just moving data, but also rebuilding functionality in the new platform. Today, this can include:
- Contacts
- calendar events
- Groups
- Chats
- Sites
- files/shared drives
- Automations
- Forms
- Staff devices
- Meeting rooms
…the list goes on. Be sure you’re aware of the entire scope you’re working with before jumping in to migrate your team to a new platform.
Email migrations happen best in phases
Migrating to a new platform like Google Workspace or Microsoft 365 is such a big, complex undertaking, that it really helps to plan phases into your process. One, complete cutover for everything is difficult and often time-prohibitive. Plan a big window of time, and take small bites out of the migration, depending on how much data you’re working with.
Seed your data in advance
Consider an approach that lets you seed the source data into the destination before you do the actual cutover. Ever hear the expression “measure twice, cut once?” Depending on how much time you have, this can ensure everyone is happy with the result, especially if your staff stakeholders have the opportunity to see things for themselves before you flip the switch.
Have your data backup strategy ready
Data backup is a vital piece of IT stability even on a good day: you want to be sure it’s airtight when you tackle a bigger project like email migration. Protect your business data with backps that are at least daily, on both platforms during the migration (the source as well as the destination. Mistakes can happen! When you’re moving data, reliable backups are more than essential.
Bonus: Are you actually ready for a migration?
It’s easy to push around ideas of swapping toolsets in your workplace—vendors will always stress the benefits of switching to their new platform, and with Google and Microsoft packing in different features every quarter (even moreso in the current AI boom) these “green pastures” are always finding ways to make themselves look greener from the other side. One factor you might be neglecting is that sometimes, your team will be most productive on the tool they already know best.
55% of millennials are excited about new technology, according to a 2025 workplace tech adoption survey, but only 22% of Boomers feel the same. And across all organizations, they found that 1 in 7 employees has refused to use new technology at least once. We have more than a few clients with an old-school holdout who can’t bear to give up their old email platform.
The same study found that it’s often a lack of confidence or clear instruction that staff struggle with, and it makes sense—it’s easy to get the ball over the finish line on a migration project but a major factor of your success will be in getting your team to actually want to use it. So be careful what you wish for!
Don’t be afraid to ask for help
If you’re worried you’re out of your depth, it might pay to ask an outside consultant to lend a hand or some advice—even you’d still rather own the project yourself. Newmind Group provides our own migration tools for Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 environments, and we have a lot of experience planning migrations for organizations of all sizes. Moreover, we can help your team hit the ground running with learning materials and training on your new tools you transition.
You can learn more about our approach to email migrations here. If you’re looking for an outside opinion on a migration project, please don’t hesitate to reach out! Get in touch.