Migration
When to escalate to a migration specialist
Afterstack’s funnel is replace → match → migrate, then escalate only if the cutover is too complex to DIY. Specialists are complementary. Paying for a profile cannot put a firm above Attio, Sierra, or anyone else on a software shortlist.
What this page answers
This guide answers when a human implementation partner should enter after the Migration Agent. Complexity comes from catalog attributes and editorial migration-difficulty labels — not from payout. Specialist matching uses product slugs, categories, and partner focus stacks.
DIY first
Pick a from → to pair. The Migration Agent writes a plan from catalog attributes, then coaches the cutover in chat. Without an OpenAI or Vercel AI Gateway key, the agent shows a setup state instead of a fake questionnaire. Affiliates never affect advice.
Escalate when complexity is high
High complexity usually means an incumbent with heavy customization, weak export/import scores, or a destination that is slow to live. Salesforce-shaped CRM cutovers, desk transformations, and messy knowledge permissions are typical. Low-complexity switches should not pull a partner just because a profile is claimed.
Product pages and agent results rank specialists for the pair. Product slugs score highest, then categories and partner focus. Generic “migration” tags do not win on their own. Canonical rules: methodology § specialist match.
Outside the software rank
The services directory is the firm list. Those records are never passed into `scoreCategory`. How scoring works is the software side. Claimed profiles still cannot mint a specialist into a quiz shortlist.
Questions teams actually ask
Do I need a specialist to leave Salesforce or Zendesk?+–
Not automatically. Use the Migration Agent first. Escalate when complexity is high — custom objects, weak export, or a destination that is slow to live. Afterstack does not publish a switching invoice.
Can a specialist buy a software rank?+–
No. Services are a separate content type. They never enter the quiz scorer.
How are specialists ordered?+–
Stack-tag matches for a from→to pair: product slugs, then categories and partner focus. Payouts are not inputs.
What if no firm matches my pair?+–
The agent still plans the cutover. The directory remains available. An empty specialist list is a valid result.
Keep going
Match software first- Migration AgentFrom→to plan and step-by-step chat
- Migration specialistsDirectory. Never a software rank.
- How matching worksStack tags, not payouts
- Services categoryCategory definition for specialists
- QuizzesMatch software before you escalate
- How scoring worksSoftware ranks stay separate
Trust: How we rank · data provenance · disclosure
More Afterstack guides
Capped editorial set. We do not sprawl this into a cloned directory.
- CRMReplace Salesforce with an AI-native CRMHow Afterstack scores Salesforce alternatives: 0–100 against a perfect match, hard filters, no affiliate weight. Compare Attio vs Salesforce, then plan the cutover.
- Customer supportLeave Zendesk for AI agents — only if resolution is the jobWhen an AI support agent is the Zendesk leave path, and when you still need a desk. Sierra vs Zendesk, Ada vs Zendesk, scored alternatives, Migration Agent. Affiliates never rank.
- Sales engagementOutreach vs an AI SDR: sequencer seats or digital workersLeave Outreach for an AI SDR only if the pod is the job. 11x vs Outreach, Clay for research, scored sales-engagement alternatives. Affiliates never rank either side.
- RecruitingGreenhouse alternatives when recruiting needs an AI-era ATSAshby vs Greenhouse for the ATS leave path, Eightfold when matching is the job. Scored recruiting quiz, Migration Agent. Affiliates never rank. Ashby’s editorial AI-native is 7/10 — an honest label.