From a fixed deadline to a repeatable migration approach.Delivered wave by wave.
Facing an expiring Tableau Server license and a decentralized environment, Siemens went straight into production. Together, Siemens AG, the participating business units, M2 and Biztory established a wave-based migration approach that gave the entire program structure, repeatability and predictability.
A hard deadline.
A decentralized environment.
Tableau Server was deeply embedded in Siemens’ independently run business units, each with its own requirements, dependencies and timelines. At the same time, the program was bound by one non-negotiable constraint: the existing Tableau Server license was set to expire on March 31, 2026.
A separate proof of concept was initially considered. After aligning with stakeholders, however, Siemens chose to go straight into production. With no internal reference project to draw on, the first production wave had to establish a reliable method for every migration that followed.
What was at stake
From big bang to migration waves
Early in the planning phase, the joint project team recognized that a big-bang migration would not suit Siemens’ federated structure. The program therefore adopted a wave-based approach that allowed each business unit to prepare in line with its scope, dependencies and maturity.
The waves gave the overall program a clear structure, refined the migration process from one rollout to the next and provided the participating business units with the predictability they needed for their own planning.
Four perspectives.
One migration program.
The migration was delivered as a joint effort by Siemens AG, the participating business units, M2 and Biztory. Each party took on a clearly defined role, while decisions, preparation and delivery were coordinated as one team.
- Program sponsorship and decision-making
- Group-wide governance and compliance framework
- Alignment between central IT and business units
- Overall strategic direction
- Local requirements and dependencies
- Content ownership and validation
- User communication and migration readiness
- Coordination of testing and cutover windows
- Project, stakeholder and escalation management
- Wave planning and migration methodology
- End-to-end testing, governance and compliance
- Manual migrations and adjustments beyond the tooling
- TabMove as the migration technology
- Around 60% of content migrated semi-automatically
- Support for workbooks, data sources, subscriptions and custom views
- Technical troubleshooting and migration support
Success was built on shared responsibility: Siemens AG set the direction, the business units prepared and validated, M2 orchestrated delivery, testing, governance and compliance, and Biztory provided the technology foundation.
Structured for complexity.
Designed for repeatability.
The program succeeded because the team did not impose the same migration model on every business unit. A wave-based approach, flexible support models and a continuously evolving delivery playbook provided control while leaving room for local planning.
The existing Tableau environment was already distributed across independent business units, each with its own requirements, dependencies and timelines. A single big-bang migration would not have reflected this reality. The joint project team therefore structured the program into migration waves, allowing each business unit to prepare, test and cut over within a coordinated framework.
The result: clearer planning, reusable processes and a delivery model that matured from wave to wave.
Rather than prescribing a single delivery model, the program offered three clearly defined options. This allowed each business unit to choose the level of support that matched its internal capabilities, complexity and risk profile.
The business unit carried out the migration independently, based on the agreed standards, the governance framework and the defined processes.
A dedicated support package covered selected activities, while the business unit retained ownership of the overall migration.
The joint migration team managed preparation, coordination, testing, execution and transition end to end.
The fully managed model was chosen by the two largest participating business units.
Every wave fed into a continuously evolving migration playbook. M2 coordinated the test strategy, test planning, execution, support for additional testers and documentation. Governance and compliance requirements were embedded throughout the process, and activities beyond the reach of automation were covered by targeted manual migrations and adjustments.
What began as the first production migration became a repeatable method that could be applied with greater confidence and efficiency in the waves that followed.
Four capabilities that turned complexity
into a repeatable migration program.
From stakeholder alignment and wave planning to escalation management and structured reporting, M2 provided consistent delivery leadership across the entire program, multiple languages and several time zones.
M2 owned the test strategy, test plans, execution, coordination of additional testers and documentation. At the same time, the team ensured that every migration wave met Siemens’ governance and compliance requirements.
With each wave, a standardized process for preparation, validation, controlled content freezes, cutover and handover was refined further. This reduced uncertainty, streamlined delivery and gave subsequent business units a proven path to follow.
Turn migration complexity into a clear path.
Wave by wave.
M2 combines end-to-end program leadership, proven migration methods and the right technology partner. The result is a Tableau Cloud migration that is structured, controlled and repeatable.