The Progress BravePoint Approach to Smarter Modernization

In this post, you’ll learn how a project-based approach to modernization is the smarter approach, and how to implement it with Progress BravePoint.

Progress technology is known for its reliability and simplicity. Applications built with Progress are rock solid, run right and keep on running. In a world where so many products contain built-in obsolescence, reliability builds trust, and trust keeps your customers close. If it isn’t broke, people say, why should we fix it?

But unfortunately, reliability can be a double-edged sword. Business doesn’t sit still. Organizations modify operational structures, hire new people, divest products, merge with or acquire other companies, move into new markets and are challenged by aggressive competitors. New and differing functionality is demanded.

Situations sparked by such change then spawn the question: “Why are we running this legacy application?” Then the “It’s not broken” argument doesn’t fly. For example, adjusting to the demand for mobile end-user applications is a common challenge representing an enormous competitive upside.

The Typical Application Modernization Scenario is Risky and Costly

Typically, IT begins addressing modernization by sending out a request for proposals (RFP). I call this the Big Bang approach, because vendors come in and offer solutions to rip and replace your legacy applications to bring your organization “into the modern world.” However, this approach is very daunting, and it’s risky. A rip and replace project can ruin a company, not to mention a career. Consider the implications of a typical application modernization scenario:

• Large investments
• Employee training
• Business disruption
• Chaos

Consider an Application Modernization Project Strategy

To the credit of most CTOs, they think about alternatives to this total disruption. Their key question is, “Is there another way to solve our specific problem in a less risky, more manageable way, where we have more control?”

Control is essential when thinking about modernizing business applications. When an organization takes the Big Bang approach, they lose control of those applications—and the risk of failure is high. Figures vary but it’s something like a double-digit percentage of certainty that you will never get your project finished with a good return on investment.

At Progress® BravePoint™, we take a phased, project-based approach. We collaborate with you to answer the secondary question as well: “Can I implement a needed functionality and manage my resources and investments the way I manage my application?”

Tackling a Modernization Project with Progress BravePoint

The BravePoint team will partner with you to focus on your business needs and address them piece by piece. Our goal is to stand up a modernized component side by side with your legacy app without disruption to your business, and this is what we have done in countless implementations. Day one, your new component and your legacy app can hit the same database without interfering with normal business operations.

With the BravePoint approach to application modernization:

• You can reuse business logic
• You use the right technology for the right job
• You get quicker ROI
• You spend time incrementally

How BravePoint Reduces the Risk of Application Modernization Projects

Prior to development, we are going to build a high-definition simulation of your new application to secure user buy-in before we write a single line of code. Anyone involved in the app, from a customer-facing user to the VP of Marketing to anyone in between is going to bless your color scheme, UI, UX and workflow. When your project is underway, everything will be approved and you’ll always know exactly what the deliverable is going to look like.

Across the entire project, you’ll identify what pieces of your application need to be upgraded, accessed or interfaced or what functionality needs to be modernized—at your pace, not ours. But no matter how you decide to go forward, we are never going to leave you. We provide knowledge transfer, training and support. Our approach is flexible according to your specific needs and requirements. Our collaborative process:

• Identifies problems
• Identifies risks
• Provides specific solutions
• Carries lessons learned to future iterations and projects

Contact Us Now

So, what is the most compelling way you can improve your business in eight to 10 weeks? Contact Progress BravePoint today and let’s get started.