Rethinking application modernization for CIOs

The current global crisis has only reinforced what was already true for many IT organizations—that they must increase agility and accelerate innovation to better serve customers and prevent future disruptions. But for many, maintenance of legacy IT systems has inhibited change and consumed disproportionate amounts of budget. Although CIOs have successfully migrated some applications to the cloud, according to a McKinsey study, around 80 percent of them report that they have not achieved the agility or business outcomes they sought from application modernization.

Today’s crisis has only increased the urgency with which organizations must modernize their applications in the cloud. By embracing public cloud technologies, organizations can reduce infrastructure costs and management overhead while increasing agility, scalability, and security. But change is not easy, and determining the right path forward can be challenging when critical systems are on the line.

At Google Cloud we’ve developed a number of best practices through our work with organizations of all sizes that we’re sharing in our new whitepaper, the CIO Guide to Application Modernization. In it, we share our insights on everything from modernizing your first applications all the way to transforming your entire software delivery strategy with a product delivery model. 

Getting started with application modernization

Most application modernization starts with evaluating your existing applications. By streamlining your existing application portfolio, you can improve efficiency, reduce complexity, and lower your Total Cost of Ownership (TCO). In our guide, we describe how to reorient your roadmap for application modernization through the lens of business services rather than applications.

Designing, building, and using your new application platform

Your digital transformation journey will begin to generate value even in its early phases. Focusing on low-hanging fruit early means every new capability improves the organization's ability to enhance business services to provide better value. In our guide, we’ll introduce you to what our Devops Research and Assessment (DORA) calls “The J-Curve of Transformation” which can help you determine the right path forward.

Adopting a new product delivery model

Ultimately, any changes to your organization’s IT structure must deliver value to your customers. In our guide, we share how we can help you reorient your IT organization to adopt a product-based model for delivering business capabilities quickly, efficiently and securely. 

Whether you’re an enterprise trying to untangle the challenges of a legacy Java environment or looking to adopt modern development principles, we’re here to support your transformation. Download the guide to view our in-depth recommendations and start your application modernization journey today.