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Salesforce Org Consolidation and Lightning Upgrade
A top-five global event services company was running three separate Salesforce orgs. This case study shows how they were combined into one, and how Lightning adoption was accelerated, to give the business a single source of truth.
- Industry
- Event services
- Location
- Dubai, UAE
- Timeline
- 12 months
- Platform
- Salesforce Enterprise Edition
- Company size
- Over 5,000 employees
Results and business outcomes
Measurable Results
- 3 → 1Orgs consolidatedOne scalable Salesforce org replaced three fragmented instances.
- 100%Data migrated and deduplicatedMillions of records moved into an optimised structure with zero duplicates.
- ↑Higher Lightning adoptionTrailhead and sandbox training lifted adoption in every department.
- ↑Higher team productivityStandard workflows, automation and one platform made teams more productive.
Client and industry context
About the Client
The client is one of the five largest exhibition and event organisers in its industry, headquartered in the United Arab Emirates with offices in the United Kingdom, Saudi Arabia, Canada, Singapore, South Africa and Egypt. It runs trade exhibitions and conferences in major markets around the world.
Operating globally, the company manages hundreds of exhibitors, sponsors and attendees across many annual events, which puts heavy, continuous demands on its sales and finance teams.
Overview
Project Overview
One of the world's leading event services companies wanted a simpler, modern Salesforce setup by merging three independent orgs into one enterprise-wide platform. Data was fragmented, processes differed between teams and visibility was limited.
The project team standardised the data model, migrated and deduplicated legacy records, and moved users from Salesforce Classic to Lightning Experience. User adoption activities and tailored training supported the rollout. The company now has one unified, scalable, Lightning-ready Salesforce environment with stronger data governance, higher user productivity and a single source of truth for its global operations.
Requirements
What the Client Needed
- Three Salesforce orgs merged into one central Enterprise Edition org
- Millions of records migrated with data integrity intact
- One standard set of object schemas, layouts and record types
- An upgrade from Salesforce Classic to Lightning Experience
- Deduplication flows and matching rules to clean existing data
- Salesforce Flows to replace manual processes
- Lightning adoption across every department through targeted training
- Trailhead modules and sandbox walkthroughs for end users
Technologies used
Technology Stack
- Salesforce Enterprise Edition
- Salesforce Lightning Experience
- Salesforce Flows
- Salesforce Trailhead
- Data Loader
- Duplicate Management and Matching Rules
Business challenges and the Salesforce solution
Challenges and How They Were Solved
Still on Salesforce Classic
ChallengeThe older Classic interface held back productivity, blocked access to modern Salesforce features and gave users a poor experience.
SolutionThe whole organisation moved to Lightning Experience. Page layouts were reconfigured, Lightning components enabled and every customisation checked for Lightning compatibility before go-live.
Three orgs with conflicting schemas
ChallengeEach org had its own object model, field names, record types and layouts, making consolidation and migration complex and error-prone.
SolutionA single object model with standard record types was designed in one central org. All three orgs were mapped to that schema, so layouts, fields and data structures stayed consistent after migration.
Low Lightning adoption
ChallengeUsers were unfamiliar with the new interface and reluctant to change, so they risked falling back on Classic-era workarounds.
SolutionCustom Trailhead modules and sandbox walkthroughs, built around the client's own workflows, gave users safe hands-on practice before go-live and raised adoption across all departments.
Duplicate and inconsistent data
ChallengeYears of records across three orgs included many duplicates, inconsistent entries and poor-quality data that had to be fixed before migration.
SolutionDeduplication flows and matching rules found, flagged and cleaned duplicates before and during migration, so the consolidated org started with clean, reliable data.
Implementation details
Implementation Highlights
- Three Salesforce orgs consolidated into one Enterprise Edition instance
- Millions of records migrated with data integrity preserved
- Object schemas, layouts and record types standardised
- Classic upgraded to Lightning Experience
- Deduplication flows and matching rules applied to existing data
- Manual processes replaced with Salesforce Flows
- Lightning adoption driven through Trailhead modules and sandbox walkthroughs
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Salesforce org consolidation, and why do companies do it?
It means merging several separate Salesforce environments into one org. Companies do it to create a single source of truth and reduce complexity, often after acquisitions, regional expansion or years of separate implementations.
What happens to our data during an org migration?
Records are extracted, cleaned, deduplicated and mapped to the target org's unified data model. A full validation run in a sandbox comes before any production migration, so no data is lost.
What is Salesforce Lightning, and why upgrade from Classic?
Lightning Experience is Salesforce's modern interface, with better mobile support, Kanban views and productivity features. Salesforce has invested only in Lightning since 2016, so upgrading is essential for long-term support and new features.
How is data deduplicated when merging orgs?
Duplicate Management rules, matching algorithms and custom Flow logic identify and flag duplicate records across the source orgs before the merge, so the new org starts clean.
Why is Lightning adoption sometimes low after an upgrade?
Usually because users meet an unfamiliar interface without enough training before go-live. Targeted Trailhead training, role-specific walkthroughs and a network of champions make a significant difference.
How much does org consolidation and a Lightning upgrade cost?
It depends on the number of orgs, data volumes and customisations. See IT Offshore's engagement pricing and contact the team for a quote.
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