Legacy modernization services

Common approaches to modernization are: 

• Retiring the legacy application while preserving its data for future analytics and business needs. 
• Retaining the mainframe while modernizing the peripherals. This approach typically adds another expenditure to IT spending, as well as ​the potential for additional​​ vendor lock-in. 
• Replacing the legacy system with a commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) product from a reliable vendor. This approach typically involves unpredictable timelines and outcomes. 
• Rewriting the legacy application​, essentially replacing it​​ with a bespoke solution. This approach is suitable for smaller applications as the development costs increase quickly with rising software complexity. 
• Rehosting the legacy software by porting it to a new platform. It’s best considered as a temporary solution until the organization can replace or rewrite the legacy system. 
• Rearchitecting the legacy system by converting its components to a modern tech stack using automated tools. This approach ​is lengthy​​ and may result in a codebase that’s difficult to work with. 
• Reengineering the legacy system. This is a combination of all approaches that can be used as a last resort. It may be costlier than rehosting but can also reduce spending in the long run. 

Here are the four most common reasons why legacy modernization projects fail: 

• Stakeholders don’t have a clear understanding of the scope of work that the project should entail. It may be due to a lack of technical expertise or reluctance to turn to a consulting partner at the planning stage. 
• They underestimate the effort that has to be put into the modernization project to attain its goals. As a result, the project is under-resourced. 
• Senior management has overly high expectations towards the chosen modernization approach. Or, they rely on a ‘magic solution’ that they want to easily resolve all issues and allow them to quickly attain the project goals. 
• Senior management and the IT team are disconnected, leading to misunderstandings of the technical viability of suggested solutions and unrealistic demands or goals. 

We advise considering the following nine questions when embarking on a legacy modernization project: 

• What is your definition of the desired state after modernization is complete? Is it clear and specific? 
• What are your application’s performance requirements? 
• What are the implications of modernizing your system regarding business logic, data storage, security, and other aspects? 
• How prepared is your team for the modernized system? Will they need additional training? 
• What is your contingency plan in case critical issues arise once the modernized application goes live? 
• What is your plan B in case the chosen approach doesn’t deliver the results you expect? 
• Who will conduct the migration itself and the associated activities, such as quality assurance and testing? Will you turn to a vendor or do it in-house? 
• How will you assess and ensure the quality of the modernized system? 
• Are you allocating enough resources to the upfront solutioning and Proof-of-Concept before kicking off the full-scale modernization? 

Here are ten signs an application is legacy and requires modernization: 

• The application is slow, cumbersome, and error-prone. 
• Its performance leaves much to be desired: it crashes often, uses hardware resources inefficiently, and hinders users’ productivity. 
• The software itself or its underlying technology is no longer supported by the vendor. 
• It doesn’t run smoothly (or can’t run at all) on modern hardware. 
• It is incompatible with more modern software systems, making its integration into a unified digital ecosystem impossible. 
• Users have to complete advanced or lengthy training or obtain specific skills just to use the system. 
• The application no longer aligns with business needs or helps attain the business goals it was designed for. 
• It lacks scalability and can’t keep up with the current rate of business growth. 
• The operating, support, and maintenance costs are astronomically high compared to its more modern counterparts. 
• Obsolete or outdated technologies used in the application pose security threats.