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Ok, maybe your legacy systems aren’t as outdated as the IRS’ current systems (some are over 60 years old!). Still, revamping your legacy system has been on your mind A LOT lately.

Because it poses a security threat.

Because obsolete platforms are racking up maintenance costs while delivering 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 key stakeholders—whether that is your business partner or the entire boardroom?

Continue reading for your legacy system checklist, so you know when it is ideal to upgrade your legacy systems.

What is a Legacy System?

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 Oftentimes, legacy systems are antiquated systems since they are derived from outdated technology; however, despite their age, limited functionality, and security risk, legacy systems, are typically essential to daily business operations, points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

How important are legacy systems? Without the legacy system on which they rely, commercial business processes such as payroll, inventory management and replenishment, and digital payment transactions would come to a halt.

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 CRUCIAL.

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

It’s no wonder, then, that upgrading or replacing legacy systems with innovative technology, whether it be cloud computing, SaaS technology solutions, or on-site deployment is one of the greatest challenges CIOs in small and large companies face 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 “barriers” could the upgrading of legacy systems expel?

In a nutshell, A LOT.

5 Essential Advantages of Modernizing Your Legacy Systems

Whether you go for legacy system enhancements or a complete digital transformation, upgrading your legacy systems can assist you in future-proofing your firm:

1. Streamline Your Business Processes

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

It is not unusual for organizations to expend more than half of their IT budget on sustaining legacy systems, for example maintaining data hubs rather than carrying out a data migration to the cloud for managing support tickets.

CIOs who’ve adopted technological advancements or even a full-scale digital transformation have cut operational costs in their businesses by up to 500%.

2. Reduce Your IT System’s Maintenance Costs

CIOs well know legacy system, application, and infrastructure maintenance can eat up a substantial 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-year period from 2010 to 2021.

3. Enhance Your Company’s Customer Experience and Employee Retention

Glitches and malfunctions in legacy systems might cause unforeseen downtime for your organizational workflows.

If you’re an air carrier, IT systems instabilities can result in delays and even the cancellation of thousands of flights. It was a serious issue for airlines. Outdated technology is bad for business.

Your employees unquestionably resent the downtime and unsatisfactory user experience of the obsolete technology too. And once the tech in their pockets has advanced faster in the last decade than your IT systems—it’s time for an upgrade. For your image.

4. Minimize Your Security Risk While Staying Compliant

When your current systems are so antiquated that their manufacturer no longer supports them, they could constitute a serious security risk to your business.

Your legacy software, which is frequently ignored and out of date, doesn’t receive the security patches and updates it needs to avoid cybersecurity breaches.

Substantial failures occur with legacy systems all the time. Remember Equifax?

5. Make Your Business Operations More Agile for Greater Scalability

A one-off integration to your legacy software here, a hotfix for your legacy technology there. Before long, your business is stumbling on a Frankenstein-style legacy system.

Your outdated technology barely handle multiple data types—let alone the big data produced by your IoT devices.

Innovative CIOs understand that legacy software modernization is mandatory to refine the compatibility of their IT systems with innovative technological solutions.

That is exactly what the LinkedIn’s CIOs did while the organization was scaling into the world’s premier professional network, moving its software architecture from a REST API or an event-driven architecture.

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

When Should I Replace My Legacy System? 6 Questions to Ponder

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

Here are some questions to ask 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 complete or partial malfunction of your outdated system?

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

2. Do your legacy systems work with the latest tech and recent IT innovations?

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 to upgrade your legacy system.

3. Has the vendor that originally designed your legacy system folded?

Or are you having difficulty finding mainframe programmers to fix or extend your COBOL code? If so, your legacy system poses a serious risk to your organization and should be modernized.

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

Because when you can’t make the most of large data, you won’t have the kind of business intelligence you need to be competitive. Bye-bye, legacy systems.

5. Does your old system’s forced downtimes, failures, and glitches coincide 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 modern system.

6. Is your legacy technology SLOW?

It might be time to jump in with both feet and adapt. The future is moving at a breakneck pace. And it has arrived.

How Can I Upgrade My Legacy System?

If you’ve decided your legacy systems are no longer meeting your business needs, what are your modernization options?

1. Replace Your Legacy Systems

Out with the old, and in with the new system—with all the speed, agility, and versatility 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 integrate new tech solutions, big data capacity, and business intelligence.

3. Rearchitect Your Legacy Technology

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

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

7. Digest Your Outdated Systems Data and Functions

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

8. Migrate Your Legacy Systems Application

Move your legacy systems program to a new run-time solution without extensively altering the code or compromising functionality.

How Wave Can Help with Your Legacy System Modernization in St. Louis?

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 performance and expected lifespan.

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

Whatever the situation may be for your legacy systems, Wave can handle the necessary upgrades or replacements: from adding features that improve the customer experience or streamlining workflows with automation and Business Intelligence tools.

We'll also offer you the ongoing IT support you need to maximize your modernization investment.

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