1993 just called. It wants its IT systems back…

Ok, maybe your legacy systems aren’t as outdated as the IRS’ current systems (some are over 60 years old!). But, upgrading your legacy technology has been at the back of your mind A LOT lately.

Because it is a cybersecurity threat.

Because obsolete systems are costing more to maintain while providing less and less functionality every day.

Because you are 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 important stakeholders—whether that is your business partner or the whole boardroom?

Keep reading for your legacy system assessment, this will help you determine when it’s the right time for upgrading your legacy systems.

What is a Legacy System?

Legacy systems are IT systems. Legacy systems are outdated systems since they are derived from outdated technology; however, despite their age, limited functionality, and security risk, legacy systems, are usually essential to day-to-day business operations, points out Gartner.

How relevant 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: power grids, telecommunications services, wastewater treatment plants, and air traffic control towers. Legacy systems are VITAL.

However, the modernization (including failed modernization efforts) and maintenance costs of keeping legacy systems are troublesome, totaling $35 trillion for firms and governments internationally since 2010.

It’s no surprise, then, that upgrading or rebuilding legacy systems with new technology, whether SaaS technology solutions, cloud computing, or on-premise implementation is among the most challenging issues CIOs in small and large organizations confront in their careers.

What Are the Advantages 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 “barriers” could the modernization of your legacy systems expel?

To put it briefly, A LOT.

5 Essential Benefits of Modernizing Your Legacy Systems

Whether you opt for legacy system enhancements or a complete digital transformation, modernizing your legacy systems can help you future-proof your business:

1. Streamline Your Business Operations

A legacy system update, like the deployment of SaaS platforms, new business intelligence tools, or cloud computing, can refine your workflow and other business processes.

It’s not out of the ordinary for businesses to expend over half of their IT budget on supporting legacy systems, for instance maintaining data hubs instead of carrying out a data migration to the cloud for managing support tickets.

CIOs that have implemented technological upgrades or even a full-scale digital transformation have lowered operational expenses in their businesses by up to 500%.

2. Reduce IT System Maintenance Costs

CIOs well know legacy system, application, and infrastructure maintenance can demand a significant percentage of the organization’s budget.

Frankly, businesses in the private and public sectors spent $26.25 trillion in legacy IT systems operations and maintenance costs over the 11 years spanning 2010 to 2021.

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

Legacy technology glitches and failures can lead to unexpected downtime for your business processes.

For airlines, IT systems outages can cause thousands of flights to be delayed or cancelled. It was a serious issue for airlines. Obsolete systems are bad for business.

Your staff unquestionably resent the downtime and poor user experience of the older technology as well. And once the tech in their hands has developed quicker in the last decade than your IT systems—it’s time to upgrade. For your reputation.

4. Lower Your Security Risk While Staying Compliant

If your existing systems are so old their provider no longer supports them, they could pose a serious security risk to your business.

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

Big failures happen with legacy systems regularly. Remember Equifax?

5. Increase the Agility of Your Business Processes for Better Scalability

A one-time integration to your legacy system here, a hotfix for your legacy system there. Before long, your company is stumbling on a Frankenstein-style legacy system.

Your obsolete systems can hardly handle numerous data types—let alone the enormous amounts of data your IoT devices produce.

Forward-thinking CIOs understand that legacy software upgrading is necessary to enhance the compatibility of their IT systems with innovative technological solutions.

That is indeed what the CIOs at LinkedIn did as the firm was developing into the world’s largest professional network, converting its system architecture from a REST API or an event-driven architecture.

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

When Should I Upgrade My Legacy System? 6 Questions to Contemplate

CIOs must evaluate three primary factors when assessing if it is time to modernize legacy technology: technology, architecture, and functionality.

Here are six questions to ask before upgrading any legacy system:

1. What percentage of your IT budget are you spending on maintenance costs for legacy software or forced downtime as a result of a complete or partial malfunction of your out-of-date system?

If the cost of maintaining outdated systems are eating up major resources, it might be time for a more cost-effective platform.

2. Do your legacy systems support the latest tech and recent IT advancements?

Or is integration with a new SaaS solution or API a nightmare? Because of too much old technology or haphazard 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 difficulty sourcing mainframe programmers who can extend or fix your COBOL code? If so, your legacy system poses a potential threat to your company and should be upgraded.

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

Because if you are unable to leverage large data, you won’t have the business insight you need to be competitive. Adieu, legacy systems.

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

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

6. Is your legacy technology SLOW?

It might be time to jump in with both feet and make the change. The future is approaching at a frenetic pace. And it’s here.

How Can I Revamp My Legacy System?

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

1. Replace Your Legacy Systems

Out with the old, and in with the new system—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 application components, so you can integrate new technology solutions, big data capacity, and business intelligence.

3. Rearchitect 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 get rid of 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

Encompass your functions and data in the software, so that they may be accessed as services via an API.

8. Replatform Your Legacy Systems Application

Transfer your legacy systems application to a new run-time solution without dramatically modifying the code or compromising functionality.

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

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

In this way, you’ll know whether your business can get by with a few legacy system tweaks or if you need an extensive digital transformation now.

Whatever the case proves to be for your legacy systems, Wave can handle the needed upgrades or replacements: from adding attributes that improve the customer experience or streamlining workflows with automation and Business Intelligence platforms.

We'll also offer you the continuous IT assistance you need to maximize your modernization investment.

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