Exit Strategy draft

Preparedness for migrating away from current providers, avoiding vendor lock-in

L0 Unaware

No exit plan exists; the organisation has not considered the possibility of migrating away from current providers

Criteria

EXIT-L0-C1 The organisation has no documented exit plan for any of its critical service providers
EXIT-L0-C2 No assessment has been performed to identify vendor lock-in risks or migration barriers

Indicators

Asking about provider migration plans produces blank stares or dismissive responses
Contract renewal happens automatically without evaluating alternative providers

Upgrade path

Identify the three most critical provider dependencies and assess the migration barriers for each. Document what data formats, APIs, and integrations would need to change in a provider switch.

Risk if stagnant

Without any exit planning, the organisation is entirely captive to its providers. Pricing increases, service degradation, or provider discontinuation would trigger a crisis-mode migration with no preparation, likely resulting in data loss and extended downtime.

L1 Dependent

Basic data export capability exists but no structured exit plan; migration would require significant effort and extended downtime

Criteria

EXIT-L1-C1 The organisation can export its data from critical providers but only through manual processes or provider-specific tooling
EXIT-L1-C2 No timeline, cost estimate, or resource plan exists for migrating away from any critical provider

Indicators

Data export has been tested informally but never as part of a structured migration exercise
Exported data formats are proprietary or require significant transformation to be usable elsewhere

Upgrade path

Negotiate contractual portability clauses with critical providers, including data export in open formats, API access for migration tooling, and transition assistance periods. Begin estimating migration timelines and costs for the top three provider dependencies.

Risk if stagnant

Having basic export capability provides a false sense of security. Without structured plans, cost estimates, and tested procedures, an actual migration would be far more disruptive and expensive than anticipated.

L2 Contractual

Contracts include portability clauses, data export in open formats, and defined transition assistance from providers

Criteria

EXIT-L2-C1 Contracts with critical providers include portability clauses requiring data export in open, documented formats within defined timeframes
EXIT-L2-C2 Transition assistance periods are contractually guaranteed, providing support during migration to an alternative provider

Indicators

Provider contracts explicitly address data portability, export formats, and transition assistance
Migration cost estimates and high-level timelines have been documented for critical provider dependencies

Upgrade path

Develop detailed migration runbooks for each critical provider. Execute a tabletop migration exercise to validate assumptions about timelines, data volumes, and integration dependencies. Test actual data import into at least one alternative provider.

Risk if stagnant

Contractual portability guarantees are only as good as the organisation's ability to execute on them. Without tested migration procedures, contractual rights remain theoretical and may prove inadequate during an actual transition.

L3 Controlled

Tested migration plans exist for all critical providers with validated runbooks, rehearsed procedures, and confirmed alternative environments

Criteria

EXIT-L3-C1 Detailed migration runbooks exist for all critical provider dependencies, and at least one full migration drill has been completed successfully
EXIT-L3-C2 Alternative provider environments are pre-configured and validated, ready to receive migrated workloads and data within defined recovery time objectives

Indicators

Migration drills are conducted at least annually, with results documented and runbooks updated based on findings
Data portability is verified by successfully importing production-equivalent datasets into alternative environments

Upgrade path

Implement continuous portability validation through automated migration testing in CI/CD pipelines. Architect all systems for provider-agnostic operation so that switching providers becomes a routine operational procedure rather than a project.

Risk if stagnant

Tested migration plans degrade over time as systems evolve. Without regular re-validation, runbooks become outdated and assumptions about alternative environments may no longer hold. Annual drills must be maintained to preserve readiness.

L4 Autonomous

Fully portable infrastructure with provider-agnostic architecture; switching providers is a routine operational procedure with minimal disruption

Criteria

EXIT-L4-C1 All systems are architected for provider-agnostic operation using open standards, portable formats, and abstraction layers that eliminate provider-specific dependencies
EXIT-L4-C2 Provider switching can be executed as a routine operational procedure with near-zero downtime and no data loss

Indicators

Automated portability tests run in CI/CD pipelines, continuously validating that workloads can deploy to multiple target environments
The organisation has executed at least one live provider migration with minimal business impact

Risk if stagnant

Maintaining full portability requires ongoing discipline to avoid introducing provider-specific dependencies. Without architectural governance, new features or integrations may reintroduce lock-in that erodes the organisation's exit readiness.