Still got Legacy? Make it Work for you

If you still have an application supporting your organization 20 years or more after it was built, it’s not legacy, it’s mission critical.

These systems are used every day, but the general public likely doesn’t know it. They are part of our tax systems, social services, and public safety. They run the stock market, our financial institutions, ATMs, transportation systems, and our utility grids.

That is not to say they are always used with ease. Although they have proved themselves quite reliable (with successful track records of 20, 30, or even 40 years), their rigidness and costly maintenance can be a challenge. Simply put, these systems are siloed and they keep their data locked inside – where it’s safe, but unreachable.

What if you could free your siloed data, along with the underlying business logic, user workflows, and IT structures? Then you could add newer technology without risk, avoiding pricey “rip-and-replace” strategies, and without altering useful custom code.

A 21^st century government faces multiple challenges related to the mainframe technology that is still essential to their mission. These include a smoothly functioning IT department, some system users’ approaching retirement, employee retention, and ever-changing federal regulations. Beyond these day-to-day challenges, there is the constant pressure for change – from politicians, citizens, regulators, or advances in technology.

Your mainframe systems are handling all of this adequately, but change is necessary to provide the best level of service possible. This means you must be able to interact efficiently with the latest technology innovations.

Humans are programmed to question change; knowing that it can be risky, complicated, and expensive. So, how can you achieve your agency’s goals, while avoiding the costs and risks of starting afresh?

Software AG can help your developers connect the old with the new – while eliminating the high-risk factors associated with change. You can enhance the lives of citizens, giving them easy ways to access the data and business logic of your mission-critical systems, while also upgrading their user experience.

There are three fundamental assets or “keys” to setting your legacy free that will help bring value to your agency and citizens:

• The Data Key: Provide real-time SQL access to non-relational data, giving your users the ability to share and consume data with desktop applications, data analytic platforms and even the cloud.
• The Business Logic Key: Allow developers to call procedures from a mainframe, so they can use those same procedures as building blocks for new applications. This helps you to increase agency productivity and gives your citizens new ways to connect for better services.
• The User Experience Key: Convert green screens into user-friendly web-based interfaces and redesign the user experience by improving how one navigates the screen workflow.

Meet your citizens’ needs with top-quality services, while your reliable existing systems continue as your solid foundation.

Download the 2020 Guide to Legacy System Innovation eBook here and find out how to make your mainframe systems young again.