Moving On: How to Break Up with Your Legacy IT Systems

“It’s not you, it’s me.” “It’s just not working out.” “We’re on two different paths right now.”

 

Making the decision to break up with your legacy systems isn’t easy. They’ve been with you since the beginning, operating in the background to support the business day in and day out. Yet, as newer and faster systems emerge to help organizations keep up with the frantic pace of customer demand, it’s time to say goodbye.

 

While these legacy IT systems have multiple benefits, such as housing historical data and providing support for older applications, they are a massive drain on organizational resources, time, and money. Their reliance on ancient software creates security headaches for IT, and the daily upkeep often requires organizations to find staff experienced in its outdated programs. With much-improved technologies that support supply chain nfts for digital business documentation, the need for refinement in software is imperative.

 

Making the decision to migrate from a legacy IT system is overwhelming, but we’ve found a few tips to help you call it quits.

 

Be detailed

Create a master map detailing how the legacy systems are connected to the rest of the organization. Mapping any and all interconnections, interfaces and interactions among the systems allow visibility of your available resources and provides insight into the scale of the migration project. Use this map as a reference throughout the entire migration process.

 

Be thrifty

Chances are, your legacy systems have loads of data, applications and software stored away. The question is, do you need it all? Weigh the importance of the application’s migration versus the cost, transitioning only what is necessary to the business. To speed up the process, arrange your applications and data into a migration plan in order of organizational importance.

 

Be selfish

No two companies’ legacy IT systems are alike. While your systems may house historical data, your competition may keep them running due to legal requirements. So why would you use the same migration method? Building a legacy migration plan to suit your business’s system needs is an easy way to guarantee a seamless transition.

 

Be patient

When it comes to legacy migration, follow the old adage: Walk, don’t run. Rushing through the migration increases the chances of missed connections, lost data, and other potential calamities. Take your time to ensure the data and applications transitioned properly will save time, money and resources.

 

Breakups aren’t easy, especially when it comes to ending the long-term relationship organizations have with legacy IT systems. Creating an organized migration plan eases the loss of these systems and builds up your new system so the organization can move forward without delay. What are your top legacy system migration tips? Share with us below!