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MIGRATION STRATEGIES
THE IMPORTANCE of a single source of truth
Andrew Carr, Managing Director, Camwood says ‘what isn’t known can’t be migrated’ and offers ways of overcoming this stumbling block
budgets. There’s little margin for error now when it comes to investments, but businesses also can’t stand still as technology evolves. Cloud migrations for example can remove the interoperability constraints posed by legacy equipment. Sticking to legacy applications can otherwise hold businesses back from moving forward with innovative automation, IoT and data analytics projects. But prior to any cloud project is
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a key requirement to have a single source of truth in regard to the applications already deployed, whether they’re owned, licensed or utilised. IT departments are unable to confirm exactly how many applications their company is using in as many as 53% of cases, according to Camwood research. There are likely to be hundreds across IT, sales, production and finance, and teams struggle to know which are in active use and which have become redundant.
Overcoming threats This poor level of transparency poses financial and security threats to businesses. The overwhelming lack of awareness is particularly risky as digital transformation projects take their next steps and
36 OCTOBER 2023 | PROCESS & CONTROL
he impact of economic uncertainty has been felt acutely by numerous sectors as rising energy costs have wiped out
applications are prepped for cloud journeys. In a nutshell, organisations can’t migrate what they don’t know. No migration strategy will go smoothly if teams have no clear steps of what needs to be done to ensure business continuity while major changes happen in the background.
Which applications are actually required? Fear certainly plays into this lack of knowledge. Many businesses are apprehensive of finding something untoward that then puts them off from embracing a proper applications audit and
inventory. It’s similar to avoiding a visit to the doctor for a regular check-
up. While it’s likely that everything is fine, there’s a chance that there’s an underlying issue that the patient wasn’t aware of. Ignorance is certainly bliss in this situation. It's also commonplace that an audit hasn’t
taken place in so long that the thought of even undertaking such a task is too daunting due to its complexity and time needed. But completely avoiding it can prove to be a costly mistake. While there are a number of reasons that
cause applications to proliferate to a point where IT teams can’t control them anymore, one concept remains consistent across businesses. Shadow IT is the term that so
often applies to these rogue applications. It makes up all the applications and services that companies typically use. These can be found on premise or via cloud subscriptions, but are usually firmly embedded in the working culture of the company. They’ve made their way into operations without the explicit consent, control or management of the IT team. Shadow IT is therefore a key concern when it comes to the security of an organisation’s infrastructure, and also poses a threat to migration and introduction of new innovative processes.
What needs to be considered? To deal with this situation, manufacturers must undertake a detailed and thorough audit and inventory of their IT estate before migration takes place. They need to know exactly which devices and applications are being used by which employees in which departments. Migration workflow may throw up a few surprises, but issues can be remedied in advance if they are flagged ahead of time. With full understanding of the entire
application estate, organisations can mitigate and manage any duplication and compatibility concerns. It pays to rationalise the application portfolio correctly the first time to keep migration timescales and maintenance, license and engineering costs to a minimum. Rationalisation of the estate, which includes optimising, bringing licenses and software versions under control, can help reduce it down and typically result in cost savings of 30%.
Truly knowing the IT estate inside and out While organisations are likely to focus on finished products as an indicator of value, it’s also critical to act with agility so they can latch on to any opportunities to present themselves, particularly in the challenging economic climate. Digital acceleration now hinges on control over applications in the IT estate and highlighting their importance in the list of business assets. The organisations that are future looking are searching for opportunities, such as chances to take business from competitors or even make acquisitions. Alongside this, understanding the IT estate paves the way for new innovative applications such as AI, advanced data analytics and IoT, allowing for new efficiencies and the chance to meet long- term sustainability goals.
Camwood
camwood.com
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