Now that we’ve determined a strategy for moving forward with updating and maintaining core business systems and software, including legacy systems, it’s time to consider the implementation of these strategies. As you progress as a government agency, it’s important to plan ahead to ensure compliance, data preservation, and a smooth transition across the board. After goals have been defined and your agency understands how we will be pursuing modernization efforts, ISF will begin implementing our roadmap, or plan for success. This clear outline will determine what processes and procedures we will use to successfully modernize the systems within your agency.
Here are a few of the techniques we use to meet your modernization goals:
Rehosting
One of the simplest methods of legacy system modernization is shifting the application to another platform as an entire unit. By doing so, we can assist your agency in keeping up with the evolution of technology, while still retaining any application customizations. This method simply uses a different platform to run the same data and is often implemented alongside other modernization techniques like replacement and rearchitecting. Our extensive experience enables us to know how much of a system will need to change, and how much of a system can be safely kept.
Rearchitecting
Rearchitecting is one of the most effectual modernization techniques used to transform legacy software and applications. Here, we will redevelop existing legacy applications using newer technologies, and incorporate legacy system data into the new program. The business code and data may even be able to remain intact, while the technological code is rewritten and reconfigured. Technology is always evolving, and this approach harnesses the new technology to serve the needs of the old in a way that will increase efficiency and productivity across the board.
Replacement
When there are unique agency features or data that the legacy application does not incorporate, replacement of certain applications is often a wise choice. When the legacy application lacks these features, a commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) replacement may improve the application’s functionality considerably. This approach focuses on building software that will remain versatile and ensure your objectives for years to come.
Reinvention
Some legacy applications can be completely migrated to new technologies, often using a type of migration that will not fundamentally change the application’s function and design. This process keeps your systems intact, while updating and reinventing them for the future. We have a long history of helping state and local agencies migrate from one technology to the next and reinventing your processes from the inside out to achieve success.
As the Modernizing Government Technology Act goes into effect, technology modernization will become a high priority for government agencies at all levels and of all sizes. With the license to reprogram unused IT budget allocations now available to fund modernization projects, it is expected that we will see growth in modernization efforts across the board. If you’re a local or state government agency looking to migrate from one technology to another, we can help.