Start with the evaluation section even if a migration already feels inevitable. Name the failed handoff, its current owner and the evidence that a process change cannot solve it. A completed worksheet can support a decision to keep the existing stack.
Use the same scenario for every candidate
Rehearse a fictional client journey from incomplete brief to ready request, review, approval and a subscription change. Separate what you personally observe from what documentation says or a vendor needs to clarify. Do not enter real client information into a trial without the required permission and safeguards.
The stack guide explains which records need an authoritative home. Record failures and manual steps as well as successful transitions.
Plan an exit before cutover
If a candidate passes, inventory active work, account permissions, files and billing responsibilities before importing. Define a rollback condition and a responsible person, then test a limited move. Retain a usable export under your agreed retention rules.
Do not treat a billing migration as an ordinary file copy. Confirm any payment credential or mandate transfer with the providers through a supported process. Use the billing guide to reconcile entitlement and active requests during the change.
Use this template
Download the plain-text version, or select the text below and copy it into your own document. Replace the prompts with your studio’s decisions.
Download .txtSTUDIOSIFT | SOFTWARE EVALUATION AND MIGRATION WORKSHEET Use fictional trial data. Keep credentials outside this document. Complete evaluation before deciding whether to migrate. DECISION CONTEXT Decision owner / affected delivery owner: ____ Current failed handoff and evidence: ____ Process-only repair attempted and result: ____ Capability that remains missing: ____ Required permissions / data restrictions: ____ Candidate / account plan / evaluation date: ____ Evaluator / test environment limitations: ____ Acceptance condition and unacceptable failure: ____ REPEATABLE SCENARIO (record observed outcome, not a feature tick) Fictional client / request reference: ____ Incomplete brief -> intake / blocker outcome: ____ Complete brief -> ready queue outcome: ____ Priority change before start outcome: ____ Start under active-request limit outcome: ____ Blocked request / restart outcome: ____ Conflicting feedback -> consolidated instruction outcome: ____ Revised version -> explicit approval outcome: ____ Final files / history preservation outcome: ____ Pause or failed payment -> service-state outcome: ____ Guest access / account isolation outcome: ____ Export relationships and missing fields: ____ Manual steps and responsible roles: ____ Evidence reference / observation limitations: ____ Documentation-only claims / source / unresolved questions: ____ [ ] Same scenario used for each candidate [ ] No trial action charged or messaged a real client [ ] Failure cases included, not only the happy path Evaluation decision: [ ] Keep current [ ] Reject [ ] Investigate [ ] Pilot Reason / decision owner: ____ RECORD OWNERSHIP AND MIGRATION INVENTORY Client identity source / destination / stable reference: ____ Request status source / destination / mapping: ____ Approval history and version references: ____ Files / asset permissions / access owner: ____ Subscription and invoice responsibilities: ____ Integrations / event owner / duplicate handling: ____ Excluded or unsupported records and reason: ____ Export location / retention rule / access restriction: ____ [ ] Export opened and checked, not merely created [ ] Relationships and identifiers reconciled [ ] Payment credential or mandate transfer confirmed with providers PILOT AND CUTOVER (only after approval) Pilot scope / client communication owner: ____ Acceptance evidence required: ____ Write freeze / handover point / exception handling: ____ Authoritative system during transition: ____ Rollback trigger / decision owner: ____ Manual fallback and reconciliation method: ____ Duplicate-event prevention / recovery check: ____ [ ] Client and internal permissions checked in the new system [ ] Active work, files and billing states reconciled [ ] Team and affected clients know the new operating path Cutover approved by / recorded date: ____ Old access revocation owner / retained-history location: ____ Post-move review date / unresolved issue owner: ____