One Year in Review After the Cloud Move – an iManage Success Story

A key challenge was ensuring full compliance with data protection and regulatory requirements, particularly with regard to attorney–client privilege. It was essential that all data be stored exclusively in Switzerland and that a Swiss Microsoft data center be used.

The objective of the cloud move was to build a future-ready, modern IT platform. The focus was on adopting the cloud version of iManage Work, improving integration with Microsoft 365, and increasing efficiency and user-friendliness. At the same time, it was critical to ensure that all data remained stored in Switzerland with Microsoft and that the highest security and compliance standards were met.

Drivers for Change

The existing on‑premises iManage Work environment increasingly reached its limitations. The solution is only being further developed to a limited extent, while the vendor’s strategic focus has clearly shifted to the cloud. As a result, key innovations and modern functionalities were no longer available.

In addition, integration with Microsoft 365 was restricted, negatively impacting collaboration and productivity. Operating the on‑premises infrastructure also resulted in high maintenance effort and rising costs.

Against this background, moving to the cloud was considered a strategic necessity to ensure future viability, scalability, and a modern working environment.

Yes. Prior to the cloud move, it was verified that the solution fully complied with Swiss data protection law (revDSG) and attorney–client privilege. A critical requirement was that all data be stored in Switzerland at Microsoft.

Walder Wyss selected Morae based on a long-standing partnership. Morae has extensive experience with the firm’s on‑premises iManage Work environment and a deep understanding of its systems and requirements. This close collaboration and proven expertise made Morae the ideal partner to implement the cloud move efficiently and with minimal risk.

Morae worked closely with Walder Wyss on the scoping and solution design. In structured workshops, requirements were gathered, the target architecture was defined, and integrations—particularly with iManage Work and Vertec—were aligned. The collaboration was highly structured, pragmatic, and efficient, resulting in a solution precisely tailored to the firm’s needs.

Morae also supported Walder Wyss with change management, especially in preparing users for the transition to the new environment. The transition proceeded smoothly, and users were able to work effectively with the new system very quickly.

In addition to the standard steps involved in migrating to the cloud, a comprehensive data cleansing and transformation was carried out to ensure full cloud and SPM readiness. This significantly improved overall data quality and consistency.

The Security Policy Manager (SPM) was also introduced, providing clearer control over access policies and a more automated and scalable approach to permission management.

The project was completed as planned. After go‑live, no issues occurred—the cloud move was smooth and stable. This was largely due to thorough planning and the high-quality implementation delivered by Morae.