Data migration projects involve research and demos of different database products. Typically, you’re brought in and interview staff about what works/doesn’t work now, research features staff want a new system to do, and then recommend options for picking a new system or refitting their current one.
For one of our current clients, Lindsay Schroeder and I recently researched several systems that could manage grant data. Grant management databases typically have low price points (less than $10,000 USD), offer fundraising or open-call grant features, and don’t focus on data management per se.
It felt like a lot of our questions during demos threw off the vendor because we asked about features from a data management perspective: Can it store non-grantee contacts? Can we add custom fields to the grant records? Does the platform offer custom user permissions?
I found it really interesting that some systems had major data risks built by design (e.g., deleting a metadata field in the record template also deletes all data from all records). All systems have pros/cons and you want to pick one with that offers the most out-of-the-box features. In database terms that means it offers what you need it to do by default without needing the vendor to create truly custom features for you to use their database.
What are some shocking or deal breaker features you have seen in databases? What kind of questions do you ask vendors on demos?