Quick Overview:
With briskly evolving technology, companies in every sector are modernizing their IT assets to grow and maintain their market position. Each organization provides some services and utilizes some infrastructure for it, but only a few remember to advance it with time.
Eliminating the procedure to upgrade IT assets can be a potential reason behind the stopped growth of your organization. Every component comes with an expiry date; the same is true with business solutions. Therefore, mainframe modernization is essential, and one should know about it.
There can be multiple reasons why you never think about updating your systems.
The first can be that your software’s performance and quality have just dropped slightly. The second reason could be that you have focused on updating the hardware assets rather than the software element. And, the last can be you were unaware of legacy system modernization.
So, just by constantly reading further, you will learn about mainframe modernization and its advantages. After this, you will have the answer to why mainframe modernization is required.
Definition of Mainframe Modernization
Before moving to the definition, an overview of Mainframe Applications is necessary to understand their modernization and benefits.
Mainframe Applications are installed on a computer and used by several end-users in an enterprise. For Example, Inventory Control and Financial Transaction system is utilized by the accounts, manufacturing, and supply chain department.
Furthermore, these systems require continuous maintenance, up-gradation, and monitoring to ensure seamless and smooth execution of each process. And To accomplish these tasks, the concept of Mainframe Modernization is introduced.
Mainframe Modernization refers to analyzing the core systems to identify elements leading to performance degradation and updating them with appropriate technology to optimize productivity. In addition, it is also stated as a business strategy across various sectors for always complying with the latest industry standards.
The Purpose of Advancing Mainframe Legacy Systems
After reading the definition, a question must be raised, for which purpose an organization needs Mainframe Modernization? To resolve this query, you can go through the below-listed points:
- To aid the users in accessing the system over a secure network remotely.
- To ensure data integrity, confidentiality, and availability.
- To increase system scalability for integrating new technologies.
- For aligning with new guidelines defined by the government and other regulatory authorities.
- For handling a large number of transactions simultaneously without any error.
- To allow only authorized access to resources and data offered through the mainframe application.
- To reduce the cost of developing a new system from scratch due to dynamic business requirements.
- For providing a user-friendly interface to improve navigation and retain customers.
The Purpose of Advancing Mainframe Legacy Systems
After reading the definition, a question must be raised for which purpose an organization needs Mainframe Modernization. To resolve this query, you can go through the below-listed points:
- To aid the users in accessing the system over a secure network remotely.
- To ensure data integrity, confidentiality, and availability.
- To increase system scalability for integrating new technologies.
- For aligning with new guidelines defined by the government and other regulatory authorities.
- For handling a large number of transactions simultaneously without any error.
- To allow only authorized access to resources and data offered through the mainframe application.
- To reduce the cost of developing a new system from scratch due to dynamic business requirements.
- For providing a user-friendly interface to improve navigation and retain customers.
Mainframe Modernization Benefits: Why Modernization
There are several advantages that can be availed by advancing the Mainframe legacy systems. So, let’s go through them one by one.
Better Control Over the System
Having a single business software for linking and streamlining the work of different departments is becoming a basic necessity of enterprises. However, with traditional solutions, staff members cannot communicate with each other through ERPs and still use e-mail applications.
It slows down the process execution and increases the chance of data breaches.
To mitigate such risks, you must migrate your current mainframe legacy system to a new application crafted using the latest version of the programming language and development approach.
As a result of modernization, all your departments and remote offices will be connected through a single dashboard. Also, the process of assigning tasks, monitoring, and sharing files will become effortless by using the same system.
Cloud Integration is Possible
Predicting the accurate rate of the growing user base is a difficult task, but upgrading the IT resources for handling extensive user requests is just a click away.
Evolving mainframe systems enable your organization to benefit from Cloud Services by integrating APIs to link virtual machines with your core business software. As a result, scalability is increased, and server maintenance cost is eliminated.
In addition, you can be assured of the Quality, Security, and Stableness of your system, even during severe DDoS attacks. You will be assured of exponential business growth through better collaboration, superior accessibility, unlimited storage, economic engagement model.
Elevate the level of competition in the market by adjoining a cloud with a mainframe legacy system.
Remote Access is Enabled
Optimize and maintain productivity even during Pandemics and have complete control of logs over the network.
You can easily get along with work-from-home and remote work cultures and expand the possibilities of achieving significant milestones in a secure environment, conserving data confidentiality. Also, only authorized users can establish a communication channel with the mainframe application and perform assigned tasks from their desired location.
In addition, you can save the amount allocated for expanding on-premises infrastructure for residing staff members and use it for marketing and other business operations.
Working from anywhere is the trend and future of every developed organization.
Magnified Data Security
Storing and Backing up data is not enough to prevent privacy breaches and data theft. Nowadays, several institutions are worried about internal threats rather than external ones.
However, mainframe modernization provides edge-to-edge security from every kind of cyber-attack. As a result, only a legitimate person will access data and modify it.
For instance, in traditional software development, every staff member could read data available exclusively to higher authorities. In contrast, the latest systems enable access and read-write controls for each employee according to their level and responsibilities.
Be hassle-free from thinking about sending, receiving, and accessing data securely by facilitating new mainframe applications with cutting-edge automated mechanisms.
Cross-Platform Compatibility
Why lack behind when you can execute your business operations using any device and operating system?
Install, configure, and access mainframe application resources from desktop, web browser, and mobile devices. Remove the OS and specific firmware requirements, perform core operations from comfort, and save cost.
In addition, you will require a small team to maintain the overall system, as a single change in the codebase will be reflected across all platforms simultaneously.
As per the survey performed in 2021, the adaptability of cross-platform development languages and platforms is increased to 42%, as various organizations have analyzed optimized revenue and efficiency after advancing their legacy systems.
Improved Technical Support
Having 24/7 application support aligned according to your time zone and appropriate documentation is vital for maintaining any mainframe system.
Business solutions crafted using the latest technology have more technical experts, as people are learning currently utilized and emerging technologies. However, there can be a lack of professional human resource availability to resolve mainframe legacy systems errors.
Further, you can easily economically outsource the technical support team and concentrate on completing core activities with minimal or no downtime. In addition, it leads to improving the efficiency of staff members and maximizing flexibility in the enterprise.
To hold up the process execution flow and prevent system crashes, support from a dedicated team is a must-have.
Adaptability to link with other Technologies
IoT, Blockchain, Artificial Intelligence, and Machine Learning are emerging tech trends being opted for by enterprises to enhance speed and coherence.
Many enterprise systems cannot integrate these technologies, so the organization has to suffer losses because of it. But, by migrating and rationalizing the platform of provisional software, you can flawlessly automate your tasks and increase your market capital within a short time.
Moreover, you will be able to control and configure smart devices from the same application, which you will use for connecting departments, assigning tasks, accounts, inventory, and supply chain management.
Adapt innovative changes to be an authentic leader in your sector.
Recommended: Guide To Integrate AI and ML with .NET Applications
Budget-Friendly
Developing a futuristic mainframe system within cost constraints is still a complex task for many organizations, but modernizing the legacy system to utilize robust features is cost-effective.
IT firms, such as Positiwise, reduce the cost by streamlining the code and escalating it with customized APIs, plugins, and widgets for extending functionalities and making it platform-independent.
Also, several hybrid engagement models are available, such as time plus resource or resource plus milestone, which can aid you in complying with evolving market conveniently. As a result, your organization is enabled with an avant-garde system.
Superior Quality Output
Getting relevant output after data processing is crucial for making decisions and business strategies.
Updating your core mainframe system makes its backend logic more competent for building customer-centric, product-centric, or future-centric action plans according to business demands.
With an updated system, you will assuredly improve your relationship with customers, easily store and organize data, reach out to the targeted audience, and effective marketing.
Crafting Digital Excellence: Your Vision, Our Code – Tailored Solutions for Unmatched Business Success.
Wrapping Up
Mainframe systems are the primary point of interaction between end-users and business operations, which makes updating the system a mandatory task. Organizations must constantly analyze their systems and perform required updates to move forward with tech and market trends. An upgraded system offers several benefits, leading to data security, minimal downtime, seamless processing, collaboration, and improved stakeholder relationships.
Expert in Marketing Strategy and Brand Recognition
Jemin Desai is Chief Marketing Officer at Positiwise Software Pvt Ltd, he is responsible for creating and accelerating the company’s marketing strategy and brand recognition across the globe. He has more than 20 years of experience in senior marketing roles at the Inc. 5000 Fastest-Growing Private Companies.