Application Modernization An approach for enterprise wide deployment.pptx

This is a deck to fecilitate a stakeholder conversation around app modernization

1. Application Modernization

2. 1. Business objectives and alignment Any app modernization strategy exists to serve an organization’s business goal, and as such, your assessment should be clearly focused on meaningful business outcomes. After all, upgrading for the sake of upgrading won’t support your business needs. When creating your business case for app modernization, consider: How existing applications fall short in terms of functionality and customer experience Stakeholder needs and user experience Current workloads and how cloud adoption can optimize them Ways in which modernization and adopting cloud-native apps can: Reduce dependencies Improve data collection and processing Offer access to Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology Increase automation capabilities Improve overall performance

3. 2. Cost analysis App modernization isn’t cheap, but when done right, it can offer a powerful return on your investment. Taking a strategic, framework-based approach means making a clear assessment of all the project costs associated with your initiative, including: Infrastructure costs for cloud services Labor costs for new app development, cloud migration, and managed services Costs to ensure cybersecurity and compliance standards are met Costs associated with Quality Assurance (QA) and testing You may not have the budget for a complete overhaul of all your apps, so you’ll want to prioritize the most critical upgrades. Refactoring (completely rewriting the code for each app to make it cloud-native) is the most comprehensive solution, but you may opt for less extensive solutions (like replatforming) for certain apps.

4. 3. Technology stack Choosing the right technology stack is key to achieving a competitive edge, and that means tailoring your software, programming languages, frameworks, databases, and cloud infrastructure services (e.g., AWS, Microsoft Azure) to suit your specific needs. Choosing the right tech stack can help you: - Reduce operational costs by creating efficient workflows with fewer workarounds - Achieve greater overall efficiency that can increase your bottom line - Reduce security risks by employing the latest cybersecurity principles Consider important factors such as cost, scalability, and any topics related to your industry needs. For example, U.S. healthcare companies will need to access technology that helps them remain HIPAA compliant by prioritizing patient privacy.

5. 4. App performance and scalability One key factor to consider when prioritizing app modernization projects is how scalable key legacy applications are within your current ecosystem. Scalability is one of the most important benefits of app modernization, thanks to the flexibility that comes with cloud-native apps based on headless, microservices architecture and containerization. Modern apps allow companies to: Add new features without completely reinventing a given app Avoid many issues with dependencies that are common to legacy apps Decouple the front end from the backend of a given app to serve different applications and multiple purposes

6. 5. Data security and compliance Data security plays such a pivotal role in today’s climate of phishing scams, ransomware, and other cybersecurity threats that it must be considered a top priority in your assessment phase. During your app assessment, identify any challenges your legacy applications may pose in the near-term and how app modernization can help solve them. Modern apps tend to be more secure than legacy apps, and keeping legacy apps secure once their creators stop supporting them can be even more time-consuming and costly. Compliance is closely tied to security, and modern applications often make it easier to address compliance requirements in industries like finance, healthcare, and eCommerce, where regulations abound.

7. 6. Data integration Outmoded applications often struggle to collect and process data, creating data siloes and making it difficult to learn the valuable lessons your data has to teach you. Modern apps are designed for data collection and processing, which means you can gain valuable insights about user behavior, current business processes, and customer drives. API integrations and advanced middleware make it all possible.

8. 7. User experience (UX) Another key framework that should guide your assessment roadmap relates to your overall User Experience (UX). Modern apps, with their flexibility, interoperability, and data-collection capabilities allow you to improve your UX in a variety of ways. A better UX typically means improved efficiency for internal operations and happier customers. App modernization helps improve the User Experience through: Responsive design Intuitive navigation Better data that shapes continual improvement efforts Greater efficiency for internal operations Improved Customer Experience

9. Obstacles

10. 1. Technical Debt Legacy systems often accumulate technical debt due to outdated programming languages, obsolete frameworks, and deprecated libraries. Addressing this debt requires significant resources and time, making modernization more complex and costly. 2. Integration Issues Legacy applications may be tightly integrated with other systems and processes that rely on outdated technology, challenging decoupling these applications for modernization. In contrast, ensuring continued functionality across systems can be delicate and challenging. 3. Data Migration Migrating data from old systems to new platforms can be challenging, including data loss, corruption, and compatibility issues. Ensuring data integrity and continuity is crucial but often complex, requiring careful planning and robust data migration tools.

11. 4. Skill Shortages The expertise required to maintain and modernize legacy systems may be scarce as newer IT professionals are more familiar with modern technologies. This gap can lead to difficulties in managing, updating, and replacing legacy systems. 5. Resistance to Change Organizational resistance to change can significantly hinder modernization efforts. Employees accustomed to the old systems may be reluctant to adopt new technologies, necessitating comprehensive training and change management strategies to ease the transition. 6. Regulatory and Compliance Issues Legacy applications often operate under stringent regulatory and compliance frameworks. Ensuring modernized applications comply with these regulations without disrupting service or exposing the organization to legal risks adds another layer of complexity.

12. 7. Security Vulnerabilities Older applications may have security vulnerabilities no longer addressed in updates or patches. Modernizing these applications requires updating their features and fortifying security measures to protect against contemporary threats. 8. Cost Overruns The financial aspect of modernizing legacy applications can be daunting. Budget overruns are common, as unexpected challenges can arise during modernization, requiring additional resources. 9. Downtime and Business Disruption Minimizing downtime during the modernization process is critical to maintaining business operations. However, transitioning from legacy systems often involves periods of downtime, which can disrupt business activities and result in revenue loss. 10. Scalability and Flexibility Issues Finally, legacy systems often need to be designed for the scalability and flexibility of modern business operations. Modifying these systems to meet current demands without compromising system stability poses a significant challenge.

13. Measuring Technical Debt

14. Selling the benefits of App modernization It Takes a First-Class Seat: Demonstrating the Benefits of Continuous Application Modernization Executive buy-in or the lack of leadership support contributes to an organization’s fear of change. Unless management participates in the process, employees hesitate to invest their energies because they do not see a benefit. The proposed change is another “fad” that will be replaced in a month or two. Why invest time and energy in a process that will disappear in a few months? To ensure project success, IT must first get executive support. Without it, IT departments will encounter employee resistance. So how does IT achieve executive and employee buy-in?

15. Before you talk about ROI, risk assessments, and budgets, consider the psychology of change. Change management gurus and psychologists cite fear of failure, fear of the unknown, and fear of job loss as reasons for resisting change. However, resistance indicates the reward is not worth the risk. For example, you have an aisle seat in coach on a full flight from LA to JFK. Just before take-off, the airline offers you a free upgrade to a first-class window seat. Are you going to turn down the upgrade because it requires a change? Probably not. The same psychology applies to leadership buy-in. If you want executive support, you need to offer them a first-class seat. The question is, how do you do that?

16. Leadership Support for Continuous Application Modernization Strategies Gaining leadership support means presenting information that demonstrates to executives that using a continuous application modernization strategy is in the company’s best interests. The rewards of a more agile development environment offset any risks associated with the strategy change. The secret to success is how the data is used to achieve buy-in.