1993 just called. It wants its IT systems back…

Ok, maybe your legacy systems are not as outdated as the IRS’ existing systems (some date back 60 years!). But, modernizing your legacy system has been on your mind A LOT nowadays.

Because it poses a cybersecurity threat.

Because outdated systems are costing more to maintain while generating even less capability every day.

Because you are ready to level up your organization’s digital transformation.

We get it. You are ready for a legacy system modernization.

But how can you gain the necessary buy-in from primary stakeholders—whether that’s your business partner or the entire boardroom?

Keep reading for your legacy system evaluation, this will help you determine when it’s time to upgrade your legacy systems.

What is a Legacy System?

Legacy systems are IT systems. Legacy systems are obsolete systems seeing as they are derived from antiquated technology; however, legacy systems, despite their age, limited functionality, and security risk, are typically vital to everyday business workflows, points out Gartner.

How essential 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 fuel the infrastructure we take for granted in the public sector: telecommunications services, wastewater treatment plants, power grids, and air traffic control towers. Legacy systems are CRUCIAL.

But, the expenses of modernization (including botched modernization efforts) and maintenance of legacy systems are counterproductive, totaling $35 trillion for businesses and governments internationally since 2010.

It’s no wonder, then, that optimizing or replacing legacy systems with new technology, whether it be cloud computing, SaaS technology solutions, or local implementation is one of the greatest challenges CIOs in small and large businesses face in their careers.

What Are the Benefits of Modernizing 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 “hurdles” could the modernization of your legacy systems remove?

In a nutshell, A LOT.

5 Key Advantages of Upgrading Your Legacy Systems

Whether you opt for legacy system enhancements or an absolute digital transformation, modernizing your legacy systems can help you future-proof your firm:

1. Streamline Your Business Processes

A legacy system modernization, such as the implementation of SaaS tools, modern business intelligence platforms, or cloud computing, can enhance your workflow and other business processes.

It’s not unusual for companies to expend more than half of their IT budget on backing legacy systems, for instance maintaining data centers rather than performing a data migration to the cloud for managing support tickets.

CIOs that have adopted technological improvements or perhaps a comprehensive digital transformation have lowered operational expenses in their businesses by up to 500%.

2. Cut Down on Maintenance Costs for Your IT Systems

CIOs are well aware that the maintenance costs of legacy systems, applications, and infrastructure can eat up a large percentage of the organizational budget.

As a matter of fact, companies in both 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. Enhance Your Company’s Customer Experience and Employee Retention

Glitches and malfunctions in legacy technology can result in unexpected downtime for your business operations.

For airlines, IT systems instabilities can cause delays and even the cancellation of thousands of flights. It was a major issue for airlines. Outdated systems are bad for business.

Your employees unquestionably dislike the downtime and poor user experience of the obsolete technology too. And once the technology in their hands has seen more advancements in the last decade than your IT systems—it’s time to upgrade. For your reputation.

4. Reduce Your Security Risk and Stay Compliant

When your present systems are so old their provider no longer supports them, they can pose a major security risk to your business.

Frequently ignored and out of date, your legacy software, does not receive the security patches and updates it needs to block cybersecurity attacks.

Major failures happen with legacy systems all the time. Remember Equifax?

5. Make Your Business Operations More Agile for Greater Scalability

A one-time integration to your legacy software here, a hotfix for your legacy software there. In no time, your business is stumbling on a Frankenstein legacy system.

Your old technology barely handle various data types—let alone the enormous amounts of data your IoT devices produce.

Dynamic CIOs know legacy software modernization is mandatory to refine IT system compatibility with modern technology solutions.

That is indeed what the LinkedIn’s CIOs did when the company was growing into the world’s premier professional network, transforming its software architecture from a REST API or an event-driven architecture.

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

When Should I Consider Upgrading My Legacy System? 6 Questions to Ponder

Technology, architecture, and functionality are 3 major considerations for CIOs when deciding if it’s time for a legacy technology upgrade.

Here are some things to consider before upgrading any legacy system:

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

If the cost of keeping older technology is depleting considerable resources, it might be time for a new, cost-effective solution.

2. Do your legacy systems work with newer technology and recent IT innovations?

Or is it inconvenient to integrate with a new SaaS solution or API? Because of too much old technology or ad-hoc customization? If you answered “yes,” it’s time for a legacy system upgrade.

3. Is the vendor who designed your legacy system no longer in business?

Or are you having trouble locating mainframe programmers to fix or extend your COBOL code? If this is the case, your legacy system introduces a serious threat to your company and should be upgraded.

4. Is your legacy system capable of providing visibility into real-time data transfers and operational patterns?

Because if you are unable to leverage big data, you will not have the kind of business intelligence you need to be competitive. Adieu, legacy systems.

5. Do glitches, failures, and forced downtimes with your old system correspond with a spike in client complaints and support tickets?

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

6. Is your legacy system SLOW?

It might be time to take the plunge and make a change. The future is moving at a breakneck pace. And it has arrived.

How Can I Upgrade 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 scalability your CIOs have been promising with such a digital transformation. Hello, workflow automation!

2. Rebuild Your Legacy Software

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

3. Redesign Your Legacy Systems

Redesign your legacy software architecture to provide more agility and scalability, as LinkedIn and a slew of other outstanding firms have done.

4. Refactor Your Legacy Systems

Retool your code to eliminate technical debt.

5. Rehost Your Legacy Systems

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

7. Encapsulate Your Outdated Systems Data and Functions

Encapsulate your data and functions into the software, so that they may be accessed as services through an API.

8. Replatform Your Legacy Systems Application

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

How Wave Can Help with Your Legacy System Upgrade in Charlotte?

Think it’s time for your legacy system modernization? Begin with Wave’s thorough system audit, so you can get insights into its performance and expected lifespan.

In this way, you’ll know whether your company can get around with a few legacy system enhancements or if you need a complete digital transformation now.

Whatever the situation may be for your legacy systems, Wave can perform the necessary upgrades or replacements: from adding functionality that improves the customer experience or expediting processes with automation and Business Intelligence solutions.

We will also offer you the sustained IT support you need to see the greatest return on your modernization investment.

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