1993 just called. It wants its IT systems back…

Your legacy systems probably are not as old as the IRS’ current systems (some are over 60 years old!). However, upgrading your legacy technology has been on your mind A LOT recently.

Because it’s a cybersecurity risk.

Because outdated platforms are costing more to maintain while generating even less functionality every day.

Because you’re ready to take your business's digital transformation to the next level.

We get it. You’re ready for a legacy system modernization.

But how do you get the buy-in you need from primary stakeholders—whether that is your business associate or the whole boardroom?

Continue reading for your legacy system checklist, so you know when it’s the right time for upgrading your legacy systems.

What is a Legacy System?

Legacy systems are IT systems. Oftentimes, legacy systems are obsolete systems since they are based on older technology; however, legacy systems, despite their age, limited functionality, and security risk, are generally essential to day-to-day business workflows, points out Gartner.

How important are legacy systems? In the commercial sector, business processes like payroll, inventory tracking and replenishment, and cashless payment transactions would grind to a halt without the legacy system on which they operate.

Legacy systems power public-sector infrastructure that we take for granted: telecommunications services, wastewater treatment plants, power grids, and air traffic control towers. Legacy systems are ESSENTIAL.

Nevertheless, the costs of modernization (including unsuccessful modernization efforts) and maintenance of legacy systems are cumbersome, totaling $35 trillion for companies and governments internationally since 2010.

It’s no wonder, then, that modernizing or substituting legacy systems with new technology, whether it be SaaS technology solutions, cloud computing, or local deployment is one of the greatest challenges CIOs in small and large firms confront in their careers.

What Are the Advantages of Upgrading a Legacy System?

“For many organizations, legacy systems are seen as holding back the business initiatives and business processes that rely on them. When a tipping point is reached, application leaders must look to application modernization to help remove the obstacles.” — Stefan Van Der Zijden, VP Analyst, Gartner

What “obstacles” could legacy system modernization expel?

In a nutshell, A LOT.

5 Essential Advantages of Legacy System Modernization

In the event that you go for legacy system enhancements or a complete digital transformation, modernizing your legacy systems can assist you in future-proofing your organization:

1. Optimize Your Business Processes

A legacy system modernization, such as the implementation of SaaS solutions, modern business intelligence software, or cloud computing, can refine your workflow and other business operations.

It is not out of the ordinary for organizations to expend more than half of their IT budget on backing legacy systems, for example maintaining data hubs rather than carrying out a data migration to the cloud for support ticket management.

CIOs who’ve applied technological improvements or even a full-scale digital transformation have reduced operational expenses in their companies by up to 500%.

2. Cut Down on Maintenance Costs for Your IT Systems

CIOs well know the costs of maintaining legacy systems, infrastructure, and applications can demand a large percentage of the organizational budget.

In fact, companies in the private and public sectors spent $26.25 trillion in legacy IT systems operations and maintenance costs over the 11-year period from 2010 to 2021.

3. Improve Your Business’s Customer Experience and Employee Retention

Glitches and malfunctions in legacy systems can lead to unforeseen downtime for your organizational workflows.

For airlines, IT systems instabilities can cause thousands of flights to be delayed or cancelled. It was a real problem for carriers. Outdated systems are bad for business.

Your employees certainly resent the downtime and awful user experience of the older technology too. And when the technology in their hands has developed quicker in the last decade than your IT systems—it’s time to upgrade. For your image.

4. Minimize Your Security Risk While Maintaining Compliance

If your existing systems are so antiquated that their original vendor no longer services them, they could pose a major security risk to your business.

Your legacy software, which is frequently ignored and out of date, does not receive the security updates and patches it requires to block cybersecurity threats.

Substantial breakdowns occur with legacy systems regularly. Remember Equifax?

5. Make Your Business Processes More Agile for Better Scalability

A single integration to your legacy system here, a hotfix for your legacy technology there. Before long, your company is stumbling on a Frankenstein legacy system.

Your old systems barely handle multiple data formats—much less the big data generated by your IoT devices.

Innovative CIOs understand that legacy software upgrading is necessary to enhance the compatibility of their IT systems with new technology solutions.

That’s exactly what the CIOs at LinkedIn did while the firm was scaling into the world’s largest professional network, moving its system design from a REST API or an event-driven architecture.

CIOs for Unilever, SAP, Netflix, the Federal Aviation Administration, and Amazon have all taken the same approach.

When Should I Consider Replacing My Legacy System? 6 Questions to Ask

When contemplating whether or not to modernize legacy technology, CIOs must assess three primary factors: technology, architecture, and functionality.

Below are six questions to keep in mind before any legacy system upgrade:

1. What percentage of your IT budget do you spend on legacy software maintenance or forced downtime due to a total or partial malfunction of your old system?

If the cost of keeping obsolete technology is depleting major resources, it may be time for a more cost-effective platform.

2. Do your legacy systems work with newer tech and recent IT advancements?

Or is it a pain to integrate with a new SaaS service or API? Because of too much old technology or ad-hoc customization? If you answered “yes,” it is time to modernize your legacy system.

3. Is your legacy system's original developer no longer in business?

Or are you having difficulty locating mainframe programmers to extend or fix your COBOL code? If this is the case, your legacy system poses a security threat to your organization and should be replaced.

4. Does your legacy system offer insight into real-time data transactions and operational patterns?

Because if you are unable to make the most of enormous data, you will not have the kind of business intelligence you need to stay competitive. Adieu, legacy systems.

5. Do glitches, failures, and forced downtimes with your old system coincide with an uptick in customer support tickets and complaints?

With such a poor customer experience, you won’t bring in new customers. It’s time for a fresh system.

6. Is your legacy system SLOW?

It may be time to take the plunge and make a change. The future is moving at a breakneck pace. And it’s here.

How Can I Modernize My Legacy System?

What are your modernization alternatives if you've determined that your legacy systems no longer fulfill your company needs?

1. Replace Your Legacy Systems

Out with the old, and in with the new—along with all the speed, flexibility, and versatility your CIOs have promised with such a digital transformation. Hello, workflow automation!

2. Rebuild Your Legacy Systems

Rewrite the software components, so you can integrate modern technology solutions, big data capacity, and business intelligence.

3. Rearchitect Your Legacy Technology

Do as LinkedIn along with many other world-class firms have done: rearchitect your legacy software architecture to improve agility and scalability.

4. Refine Your Legacy Systems

Restructure your code to eliminate technical debt.

5. Rehost Your Legacy Systems

Implement cloud computing with a data migration and application re-deployment to cloud infrastructure.

7. Encapsulate Your Outdated Systems Functions and Data

Incorporate your data and functions into the application, so that they may be accessed as services via an API.

8. Replatform Your Legacy Systems Application

Migrate your legacy systems program to a new run-time platform without extensively altering the code or losing functionality.

How Wave Can Be of Assistance with Your Legacy System Modernization in Arlington?

Do you believe it’s time to modernize your legacy system? Begin with Wave’s thorough system audit, so you can get insights into its functionality and expected lifespan.

In this way, you’ll know whether your business can cope with a few legacy system enhancements or if you require a comprehensive digital transformation now.

Whatever the situation may be for your legacy systems, Wave can perform the needed upgrades or replacements: from adding functionality that improves the user experience or simplifying processes with automation and Business Intelligence tools.

We will also offer you the sustained IT assistance you need to maximize your modernization investment.

The future is calling. And companyname is ready to help! Schedule a consultation today.