What modernization means to your business, and the power of technology partnership

A 2020 Vanson Bourne survey of Global Business and IT Leaders found that 94% of the more than 1200 companies surveyed across 19 countries were in some stage of modernization of their business processes. A small percentage, especially in higher ed, life sciences, finance, and manufacturing, were nearly finished or well on their way, but most companies were just beginning their digital transformation.

Companies can sense when they aren’t working to their potential. They know they’re outpaced and outperformed by more digitally-driven businesses; their systems are outdated, cumbersome, siloed; and most critically, customer experience is not optimized. But frequently, they don’t truly understand what’s not working, or how to fix it. They feel overwhelmed at the thought of changing it all, at a loss for how to bring their business up to speed in an ever-evolving digital environment.

What is modernization?

Simply put, modernization is the process of replacing or transforming legacy systems with up-to-date, agile, scalable, and integrated technologies to enable data-led intelligence.

What are legacy systems?

Legacy systems are technologies (such as hardware and applications) being used by a company, which, though they may still function, are outdated either due to age or innovation. 

What’s wrong with legacy systems?

Remember your first cell phone? How you pulled up the little antenna, entered all your contacts manually, texted by tapping away on the T9 keypad? It worked. It was great for its time. You liked it, came to rely on it… but you’re not still using it, right?

It may sound funny, but many companies are using systems that, from a practical standpoint, are almost as outdated, out-of-sync, and incompatible with newer technologies as the Nokia 5110 you bought in 1998 is to the iPhone 13.

All systems eventually need updating or replacement. Legacy technologies create problems for many reasons:

• They create inefficiency: they may be slow, siloed, suited to a time when less automation was required, and with age, develop bugs and instability.
• They’re difficult and expensive to maintain:
  • As technology ages, updates become less available, more costly, and in some cases completely obsolete.
  • Fewer programmers and engineers have the expertise to maintain them.
• Companies frequently have multiple, nonintegrated systems, which prevents better automation and business process unification.
• They’re a security risk. Outdated systems are often unsupported, resulting in much greater vulnerability, particularly with regard to compliance.
• They’re incompatible with more modern technology. Lacking the flexibility to integrate with newer systems, legacy systems diminish your business’ scalability and agility.
• They’re not designed to provide the level of data insight and analytics we rely on today.
• Customer and Internal user experience are diminished.

In a nutshell, legacy systems slow your business down, inhibit growth, and cost you money.

So, why do businesses hang onto them?

There are numerous reasons companies get stuck in a rut with legacy technologies. Many companies are intimidated by the size of the modernization project—the time and effort it will demand (implementation, training, etc.) as well as the cost, both the price of new technology and the investment they’ve already made in systems that no longer serve them.

Additionally, companies may feel they lack the expertise to adapt to new technology. The outdated systems feel familiar and comfortable and may have been customized to perform very business-specific functions, which makes them difficult to abandon, even when they’re becoming obsolete.

What can modernization do for my business?

Modernization makes your business more efficient, flexible, and scalable. It ensures that your systems are compatible with the latest technology and that you have maximal security. Modernization, digital transformation, and business process unification can enhance your team’s performance and productivity, automating where necessary and reducing the number of tasks performed manually. In the long run, modernization actually saves significant money on system upkeep while allowing you to provide a superior customer experience. The bottom line? Growth and increased profitability.

How can Lukasa help?

At Lukasa, we are a boutique firm with a holistic mindset and partnership approach. We get to know your company intimately, taking a 360° view of your operations and technology, and listening to what you really need. Working side-by-side with your team, we bring business and tech together seamlessly and harness the power of modernization. We develop and implement innovative, integrated, custom solutions to transform your business, making it strong and nimble for the ever-evolving modern digital climate.

About Lukasa - lukasa.com
Lukasa empowers small-to-medium-sized businesses by designing and implementing custom business and technology solutions that drive efficiency, productivity, and innovation, enabling them to stay ahead in today’s rapidly-changing competitive landscape.