Moving your history across

How long a project management migration actually takes

Six weeks for a single team, eleven to fourteen for a twelve-project portfolio. The step that overruns is almost always the same one, and it is not the data.

Published Oct 2, 2026 · Cadenta

The phases, and what each takes

Elapsed weeks, single team and twelve-project portfolio
Phase	Single team	Portfolio
Decisions: projects, roles, guest access	0.5	2 to 3
Trial import into staging	1	2
Reconciliation and state mapping	1	2 to 3
Automations rebuilt and tested	1	2
Parallel running	2	3
Cutover and source freeze	0.5	1
Total	6 weeks	11 to 14 weeks

The step that overruns

Decisions. Not the import, which is automated and repeatable, but agreeing what counts as a project, which three roles map to which people, and whether clients get guest access.

On a single team that conversation takes an afternoon. Across twelve projects owned by different leads it takes two to three weeks, because the portfolio rollup requires every project to describe status the same way, and that agreement has to be reached before the mapping is written.

A portfolio migration that is running late is usually still in this phase.

Parallel running, and why it is not optional

Both systems stay live for two to three weeks, with Cadenta as the system of record and the source system read-only. Work happens in one place; the other is there to check against.

The purpose is to catch the automations. A rebuilt rule that fires on the wrong transition is invisible in a staging import and obvious within a week of real use.

What you have to supply

An export or API access to the source system, and someone who can authorize it.
A decision-maker per project for the state mapping, available in the same two-week window rather than sequentially.
A list of automations that matter, which is usually shorter than the list that exists.
A named cutover date, set at the start rather than when parallel running ends.

What shortens it

Fewer workflow states in the source system, a single owner empowered to decide the mapping, and a willingness to archive rather than migrate closed work older than the active window.

The largest single reduction is the decision phase, and it is reduced by having fewer people who can veto the mapping, not by starting earlier.

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to migrate off a legacy project tracker?

About six weeks for a single team and eleven to fourteen for a twelve-project portfolio. That covers decisions, a staging import, reconciliation and state mapping, rebuilding automations, two to three weeks of parallel running, and cutover.

Which phase usually runs late?

The decision phase, not the data. Agreeing what counts as a project, how roles map, and whether clients get guest access takes an afternoon for one team and two to three weeks across twelve projects, because the portfolio rollup needs every project to describe status the same way before the mapping can be written.

Do both systems have to run at once?

For two to three weeks, yes. Cadenta becomes the system of record and the source goes read-only. The purpose is the rebuilt automations: a rule that fires on the wrong transition cannot be seen in a staging import and shows up within a week of real use.