Changing fund administrators is perhaps one of the most technically demanding projects an investment business can undertake.
Behind every successful transition is a combination of specialist expertise, fund administration technology, and careful planning.
When retirement savings are involved, success is measured not by how much changes but by how little disruption is experienced. Moving fund administration isn't like changing accounting software or replacing a CRM. It's transferring the systems that hold people's retirement savings, transaction histories, tax records, and investment instructions, all while ensuring members continue to receive the same service throughout. For members, the ideal outcome is remarkably uneventful.
Ironically, achieving that outcome is anything but simple. This is a practical look under the hood of our Mercer lift-out, and how specialist tech partner Novigi helps to ensure it runs smoothly. 
Moving data vs understanding data 
The phrase "data migration" might sound relatively straightforward, but it's only one stage of a much larger exercise. Before a single record is transferred, teams first need to understand how the existing environment works. 
No two fund administration environments are identical. Platforms accumulate custom processes, product variations, integrations, reporting requirements, and manual workarounds that reflect how that particular administrator has evolved. 
Similarly, the target platform that data will be migrated to has its own configuration requirements, administration processes, and data structure. Adapting to these differences requires careful planning and fund administration technology solutions that can accommodate the needs of the new environment. The challenge might be likened to fitting a square peg in a round hole. 
To make it fit, the first stage of any migration should begin with discovery. The discovery phase involves understanding how the scheme is administered today, what services and processes need to be supported, and where unique or fund-specific requirements may need to be accommodated.
It’s not uncommon for a fund to have features, services, or other characteristics that aren’t natively supported by the target environment. In these instances, additional design or uplift activities may be required.  This information supports the work that is then undertaken to map data between platforms. Discovery effectively informs the entire migration plan, providing the detailed understanding needed to sequence and execute the transition successfully while reducing delivery risk.
From discovery to migration
Only once the new environment has been designed does the migration itself begin. Rather than one large overnight switch, modern transitions are typically completed through carefully planned stages. 
Discovery is followed by the design, build, and migration phases.  During the design phase, the understanding gained through discovery is translated into data mapping specifications and technical requirements. At the same time, any gaps between the capabilities of the source and target environments are identified and addressed through solution design and platform uplift requirements. 
The build phase involves developing data pipelines to take the data from the source system format to the target system’s required structure. Detailed analysis of the source data and target system data requirements informs how the data will be transformed for use by the target systems. This phase also delivers any agreed platform uplift. 
The migration phase involves running the process that transforms data into the new system state and setting up the new systems. This is done through a series of trial runs and dress rehearsals before the live migration takes place. The live migration, or cutover, is a highly orchestrated activity informed by previous rehearsals and generally occurs over a short period of time to reduce any service disruption for members. The process requires a high level of governance and quality assurance to validate that data and services have been successfully migrated. 
 All of this results in administration platforms being essentially rebuilt to the needs of the new environment. It’s no small task. Platforms exchange information constantly with custodians, investment managers, insurers, employers, payment providers, regulators, and member portals, and every one of those connections needs to be considered and, if needed, redesigned. This is called interoperability, and it refers to the way systems communicate. That, in turn, enables members to receive faster responses, smoother transactions, and a consistent flow of information. Without good interoperability, claims take longer, transactions stall, different systems display conflicting information. Things can fall apart quickly.
Making smart use of tech specialists 
In our Mercer lift-out, Novigi is across an incredible depth of technology capability. Migration tooling. Cloud infrastructure. Data governance. Cybersecurity. Systems integration. Workflow automation. AI.
Beyond added capacity, the true value of a specialist technology partner lies in their combination of migration methodology, technical tooling, and the sector knowledge needed to coordinate work across data, platforms, integrations, and operations. That doesn't diminish our role as the administrator – it complements it.    
It allows us to remain accountable for operational delivery and client service while drawing on dedicated expertise to manage technical complexity and reduce transition risk. Specialist partners can apply experience from previous transitions through established delivery patterns, while increasingly using AI and fund administration automation to improve the process.  Automated quality checks, repeatable reconciliation processes, and proven delivery approaches can be adapted to the specific products, rules, and systems involved.
Our recent research found 76% of firms have used outsourced services in the past three years, with time savings, cost efficiency, and scalability among the biggest drivers. The same research found almost two-thirds of firms have already undertaken lift-out strategies, seeking access to specialist talent and advanced technology while retaining operational continuity. Rather than trying to develop every capability themselves, companies are partnering with experts whose focus is solving specific technical and operational challenges. 
The result is a more connected operating model that supports technology-enabled fund administration, allowing administrators to focus on client service while specialist partners bring the technology, data, and migration expertise needed to support change.
Success looks boring 
 The best administration transitions rarely make headlines once they're complete. Members continue accessing their accounts. Transactions continue processing. Payments continue arriving. Everything just works.  
Behind that seamless experience are months of planning, testing, validation, and collaboration, all designed to make change feel invisible. 
As New Zealand's retirement industry grows in both scale and sophistication, the ability to combine specialist expertise, technology innovation, and operational excellence will become increasingly important. 
The significance of our partnership with Novigi goes beyond the fact that a technology provider and a fund administrator are working together. It is that together we represent a new model for the industry: one built on collaboration, shared expertise, and a commitment to continuous innovation.  
The future of fund administration will belong to businesses that can connect these capabilities into a seamless, scalable, and resilient ecosystem, helping shape a stronger retirement outcomes framework for generations of New Zealanders. 
