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A guide to IT modernization

Modernizing your IT infrastructure requires planning, discipline and the right support.

Every business wants to know what digital transformation technologies like cloud computing, predictive analytics and artificial intelligence (AI) can do for them. Yet many organizations rely on outdated legacy systems that are ill equipped to support these and other emerging technologies. In order to drive future growth, efficiency and innovation, organizations need to take a disciplined strategic approach to modernizing their IT infrastructure.

In this guide, you’ll learn how to identify potential gaps in your current technology stack, how to choose a strategic advisor to guide you through the modernization process and how to implement an efficient and cost-effective solution at scale.

Why modernizing your technology is urgent

The pace of technological change today is nothing short of breathtaking. If your business relies on yesterday’s technology, even if it seems “good enough for now,” you’re setting yourself up for a competitive disadvantage at best and an existential risk at worst. Yet the path forward isn’t always clear without a knowledgeable advisor to guide the way. Here are a few reasons why:

Cost

Cost can be an extremely complex consideration in modernization efforts. Transitioning to cloud computing and replacing capital expenditures on infrastructure with the operating costs of subscription-based cloud services and software as a service (SaaS) may cost more in the short term. Over time, however, it will save money, especially when factoring in the cost of ongoing infrastructure maintenance and operation, and ultimate replacement. In addition, you must consider how much longer you may be relying on legacy on-prem software. Will you need to support it in the short term, or is there a SaaS solution you can use instead? Transitioning to the cloud offers additional cost-saving opportunities, such as leveraging automation to shut down unused services like virtual desktops during off hours.

Scalability

Scaling technology to support your organization’s growth goals can be challenging. In addition to the cost concerns above, you must determine if maintaining infrastructure aligns with your business goals. Should you “lift and shift” your legacy applications onto cloud infrastructure as a service (IaaS) to achieve immediate scalability gains? What are the economics of data center scaling versus cloud scaling given your strategic goals?

Performance

Network performance can have a profound impact on user experience and productivity. Every new technology means additional competition for limited bandwidth, which can quickly result in performance degradation. Generative AI has high bandwidth requirements to accommodate queries and responses to and from the server, which can easily affect services such as voice-over-IP. Understanding your performance needs for future applications is critical in ensuring you continue to deliver high-quality experiences.

Security

Digital security is as much a people issue as a technology one. Are your employees trained to act as a “human firewall,” capable of recognizing and preventing threats? Can your systems provide clear measures of human or technological vulnerability, such as how likely your staff are to click through a phishing attempt? Do you offer self-service tools for routine procedures, such as password resets to reduce fraud? Leveraging old infrastructure may mean you’re using technology that’s no longer supported by the manufacturer and therefore no longer getting security patches. Software and security updates are readily available and easy to push with SaaS/cloud-based infrastructure.

User and customer experience

One of the most important benefits that digital transformation offers is improved user experience, which results in increased productivity and better customer acquisition and retention. The factors above—scalability, performance and security—all affect user experience, as do conveniences such as single sign-on and enhanced functionalities. In addition, automation can reduce repetitive manual tasks that are slow, error-prone and inefficient, not to mention tedious for employees and inconvenient for customers. Modern applications should not only automate these tasks but also leverage AI to automate even more complex processes.

Integration

On-prem point solutions such as databases and spreadsheets can’t easily share data with new SaaS systems, such as the CRMs you may already be acquiring and using. Importing and exporting data across these systems—even using automated scripts—is inefficient and error prone, and the data itself will quickly become outdated. Having a strategy around data integration can promote synergies between your existing applications and ones you may acquire in the future.

AI technology

The introduction of generative AI technologies such as ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot have changed the face of technology overnight. Any legacy solution that doesn’t support these data-intensive capabilities will quickly become a liability. In addition, your infrastructure must have the proper data security and governance that generative AI requires to prevent unauthorized access to sensitive data. This requires extending role-based permissions to generative AI technologies and security vetting any AI-generated code before it goes into production. How will AI fit into your digital transformation strategy?

Recruitment and retention issues

Legacy technologies are costly and difficult to support because the skills necessary to do so are becoming increasingly rare and original manufacturers may no longer provide updates or patches. In addition, using outdated technology can negatively affect your reputation as an employer compared to competitors that are using the latest tech, further hindering your recruitment efforts. Do you have a clear understanding of the ways in which your technology affects your recruitment and retention costs?

Mobile capabilities

Mobile devices have become ubiquitous for workers and customers alike, and today’s users expect a fully functional mobile experience from the applications they use daily. Legacy applications rarely have mobile capabilities, and adding them can be costly and complex, while the results will often be underwhelming.

Selecting a provider

Addressing all of these challenges requires a carefully crafted approach that a trusted technology provider can offer. But what should you look for in such a provider? It really comes down to depth of experience and breadth of services.

Industry experience

At its core, technology must serve the business, so your provider must have an extensive knowledge of the industry in which you operate. Take the example of government contracting. There are hundreds of vendors that provide managed technology services for government contractors. But how many of those vendors can actually certify infrastructure on behalf of the Department of Defense? How many of that handful of contractors can also help you with your cost chargeback models to the federal government, so you can be sure of receiving payments on time? Look for this deep level of experience in your industry vertical.

Multiple services

When you work with a full-service consulting organization, you have access not only to extensive technology transformation services but also to professionals across a broad range of offerings, including regulatory compliance, management consulting and advisory, information technology, taxation, digital services and financial consulting. Having this kind of “one-stop shop” can provide service to every aspect of your middle market business—local and global—in a holistic fashion.

The IT modernization process

By taking a comprehensive approach to IT modernization, you can help ensure that your digital transformation journey proceeds at the right pace toward your business goals. Here’s how it works.

Assessment

Assessment

The best infrastructure plans are built not just for today but with the future in mind. This requires a detailed understanding of where your business is now and where it’s going. Start with a comprehensive assessment of your current technology stack and its capabilities before building out your transformation road map. This assessment can identify challenges and available options, which will lead to recommendations on the infrastructure you need to optimize performance, dependability, security and compliance. Components of this assessment include:

  • Application and infrastructure inventory. It’s easy to lose track of your IT estate, especially if you’ve undergone rapid growth or M&A activity. When you lack visibility into your IT inventory, you risk duplicate functionality and security gaps, among other concerns. Creating an inventory can also help your provider leverage its relationships with vendors to get you better purchase, service and licensing pricing. The inventory should also document those responsible for each component, whether that’s software or infrastructure, which can help avoid shadow IT as well as the risk that when an employee leaves, they still have access to a particular asset.
  • Gap analysis and future state. Your IT modernization team should work closely with leadership to articulate the strategic goals of your organization to best understand how to support those goals with technology. This is a critical step that also helps gain executive buy-in by communicating to leaders the value of technology modernization. After all, infrastructure is typically invisible, so it can be easy for leaders to overlook its impact. Part of this conversation should revolve around the visibility and insights into operations and projections that modern IT infrastructure management of large volumes of structured and unstructured data can provide. The combined result of the inventory and future state is a gap analysis that indicates what your organization requires to achieve its transformation goals.
Rationalization

Rationalization

With a gap analysis in hand, the next step is to get the most out of your current technology. This includes reducing overlap among applications with similar capabilities to streamline and standardize processes across your organization. This step also includes an examination of cost and chargeback models to align application costs with the departments using them. Even if some functionality might be duplicated across applications, other available capabilities could go underutilized. Before considering new technology, make sure you’re optimizing current investments with existing functionality.

Technology selection

Technology selection

Inevitably, you’ll likely need to explore purchasing, licensing or subscribing to new technologies. Here, the experience of a trusted advisor who can narrow your options and assist with selection can be invaluable. However, there are a few considerations that are universal, including:

  • Data. Given the centrality of data and the need to integrate disparate datasets to support data-driven decision making, the ability to manage and process large volumes of data should be at the center of your modernization strategy. This means that solutions should be able to share data securely and freely. A modern data lake is a good place to start, as it will provide the foundation for data sharing and management. You should also plan for data ingestion and transformation automation.
  • User experience. Improving customer and employee experience is a primary benefit of digital transformation, so it should be given top consideration in technology selection. Capabilities should include secure remote access, seamless cross-channel experience, easy collaboration tools, mobile applications, modern user interfaces and more.
  • Security. The highest levels of application, network and data security are non-negotiable given today’s growing threat landscape. Look for zero-trust access frameworks, data encryption, single sign-on and other key security measures.
  • Integration. Finally, it’s critical that your systems share data freely and securely. Plan to replace disjointed point solutions with end-to-end enterprise platform solutions such as ERPs that facilitate data sharing and a single source of truth while often being composable so you can add capabilities as you mature.

Combined, these criteria point to the need for migration away from on-premises systems to cloud infrastructure and modern, cloud-native and/or SaaS software solutions. The public cloud can provide the scale and flexibility necessary for growth and innovation, as well as the data storage and compute power for advanced technologies such as generative AI.

Implementation

Implementation

While the cloud may be the ultimate destination, there are myriad paths forward depending on your organization’s timeframe and requirements. An experienced provider can implement strategies to mitigate the risks of cloud migration—data loss, disruption, unexpected cost and complexity—with proven processes and controls. A cloud migration strategy may begin with lifting-and-shifting legacy systems onto cloud infrastructure (IaaS) to facilitate modernization and data sharing.

The right cloud infrastructure can also connect with on-premises systems for a hybrid approach that could be transitional or permanent. To extract the full value of the cloud—scalability, flexibility, security, integration and access to advanced AI and data analytics—you should plan on transitioning to cloud-native, SaaS solutions. These will overcome most, if not all, of the limitations you’re experiencing with your legacy, on-prem software.

Successful cloud migration also involves cost optimization, which is significantly different in a cloud environment than in an on-premises data center. The right technology provider can get the most out of the usage-based costing of cloud platforms, leverage the infrastructure to fully understand application utilization and negotiate software licensing fees.

Data security is also a completely different animal in the cloud, which includes transient environments such as containers and serverless services. Your technology provider can guide you through the novel security measures that the cloud necessitates. Finally, you should consider how your modern IT estate can help you achieve your environmental, social and governance goals.

Service delivery models

Finding the optimal mix of in-house and outsourced IT services

When it comes to IT modernization, you need to focus on improving the reliability of IT services, enhancing business processes, meeting compliance requirements and managing technology costs. An optimal balance of in-house and outsourced IT resources can enable your organization to scale up or down and fill gaps as needed without the burden of hiring, training and maintaining internal staff to deliver and manage evolving IT infrastructure services.

Moving forward, it will be helpful to determine which IT resources you can outsource and which should remain in-house. The right provider can offer you a breadth of IT services at a predictable monthly fee, enabling you to focus on your core business. One approach to right sizing your outsourcing is to start small, perhaps by leveraging staff augmentation. This can familiarize your staff with the process of managing and working with a third party. From there, you can work with your provider to find the right engagement level, all the way up to a fully managed infrastructure approach.

Change management

Change management

The last component of your IT modernization journey is one that is too often overlooked: change management. Technology is an integral part of your employees’ work experience. It’s reasonable to expect, then, that technology modernization could disrupt the workplace without careful planning. Your provider can develop an adoption strategy that outlines the benefits of the changes so they can be readily embraced by your stakeholders.

Assessment

The best infrastructure plans are built not just for today but with the future in mind. This requires a detailed understanding of where your business is now and where it’s going. Start with a comprehensive assessment of your current technology stack and its capabilities before building out your transformation road map. This assessment can identify challenges and available options, which will lead to recommendations on the infrastructure you need to optimize performance, dependability, security and compliance. Components of this assessment include:

  • Application and infrastructure inventory. It’s easy to lose track of your IT estate, especially if you’ve undergone rapid growth or M&A activity. When you lack visibility into your IT inventory, you risk duplicate functionality and security gaps, among other concerns. Creating an inventory can also help your provider leverage its relationships with vendors to get you better purchase, service and licensing pricing. The inventory should also document those responsible for each component, whether that’s software or infrastructure, which can help avoid shadow IT as well as the risk that when an employee leaves, they still have access to a particular asset.
  • Gap analysis and future state. Your IT modernization team should work closely with leadership to articulate the strategic goals of your organization to best understand how to support those goals with technology. This is a critical step that also helps gain executive buy-in by communicating to leaders the value of technology modernization. After all, infrastructure is typically invisible, so it can be easy for leaders to overlook its impact. Part of this conversation should revolve around the visibility and insights into operations and projections that modern IT infrastructure management of large volumes of structured and unstructured data can provide. The combined result of the inventory and future state is a gap analysis that indicates what your organization requires to achieve its transformation goals.

Rationalization

With a gap analysis in hand, the next step is to get the most out of your current technology. This includes reducing overlap among applications with similar capabilities to streamline and standardize processes across your organization. This step also includes an examination of cost and chargeback models to align application costs with the departments using them. Even if some functionality might be duplicated across applications, other available capabilities could go underutilized. Before considering new technology, make sure you’re optimizing current investments with existing functionality.

Technology selection

Inevitably, you’ll likely need to explore purchasing, licensing or subscribing to new technologies. Here, the experience of a trusted advisor who can narrow your options and assist with selection can be invaluable. However, there are a few considerations that are universal, including:

  • Data. Given the centrality of data and the need to integrate disparate datasets to support data-driven decision making, the ability to manage and process large volumes of data should be at the center of your modernization strategy. This means that solutions should be able to share data securely and freely. A modern data lake is a good place to start, as it will provide the foundation for data sharing and management. You should also plan for data ingestion and transformation automation.
  • User experience. Improving customer and employee experience is a primary benefit of digital transformation, so it should be given top consideration in technology selection. Capabilities should include secure remote access, seamless cross-channel experience, easy collaboration tools, mobile applications, modern user interfaces and more.
  • Security. The highest levels of application, network and data security are non-negotiable given today’s growing threat landscape. Look for zero-trust access frameworks, data encryption, single sign-on and other key security measures.
  • Integration. Finally, it’s critical that your systems share data freely and securely. Plan to replace disjointed point solutions with end-to-end enterprise platform solutions such as ERPs that facilitate data sharing and a single source of truth while often being composable so you can add capabilities as you mature.

Combined, these criteria point to the need for migration away from on-premises systems to cloud infrastructure and modern, cloud-native and/or SaaS software solutions. The public cloud can provide the scale and flexibility necessary for growth and innovation, as well as the data storage and compute power for advanced technologies such as generative AI.

Implementation

While the cloud may be the ultimate destination, there are myriad paths forward depending on your organization’s timeframe and requirements. An experienced provider can implement strategies to mitigate the risks of cloud migration—data loss, disruption, unexpected cost and complexity—with proven processes and controls. A cloud migration strategy may begin with lifting-and-shifting legacy systems onto cloud infrastructure (IaaS) to facilitate modernization and data sharing.

The right cloud infrastructure can also connect with on-premises systems for a hybrid approach that could be transitional or permanent. To extract the full value of the cloud—scalability, flexibility, security, integration and access to advanced AI and data analytics—you should plan on transitioning to cloud-native, SaaS solutions. These will overcome most, if not all, of the limitations you’re experiencing with your legacy, on-prem software.

Successful cloud migration also involves cost optimization, which is significantly different in a cloud environment than in an on-premises data center. The right technology provider can get the most out of the usage-based costing of cloud platforms, leverage the infrastructure to fully understand application utilization and negotiate software licensing fees.

Data security is also a completely different animal in the cloud, which includes transient environments such as containers and serverless services. Your technology provider can guide you through the novel security measures that the cloud necessitates. Finally, you should consider how your modern IT estate can help you achieve your environmental, social and governance goals.

Finding the optimal mix of in-house and outsourced IT services

When it comes to IT modernization, you need to focus on improving the reliability of IT services, enhancing business processes, meeting compliance requirements and managing technology costs. An optimal balance of in-house and outsourced IT resources can enable your organization to scale up or down and fill gaps as needed without the burden of hiring, training and maintaining internal staff to deliver and manage evolving IT infrastructure services.

Moving forward, it will be helpful to determine which IT resources you can outsource and which should remain in-house. The right provider can offer you a breadth of IT services at a predictable monthly fee, enabling you to focus on your core business. One approach to right sizing your outsourcing is to start small, perhaps by leveraging staff augmentation. This can familiarize your staff with the process of managing and working with a third party. From there, you can work with your provider to find the right engagement level, all the way up to a fully managed infrastructure approach.

Change management

The last component of your IT modernization journey is one that is too often overlooked: change management. Technology is an integral part of your employees’ work experience. It’s reasonable to expect, then, that technology modernization could disrupt the workplace without careful planning. Your provider can develop an adoption strategy that outlines the benefits of the changes so they can be readily embraced by your stakeholders.

Ensuring digital transformation benefits the business

Modernizing your IT infrastructure is crucial for thriving in the digital age. By embracing cloud computing, predictive analytics and AI technologies, your organization can unlock new opportunities for growth, efficiency and innovation. However, this transformation comes with its own set of challenges, such as outdated legacy systems, talent gaps and lack of governance. Working with a trusted provider like RSM can provide the experience and support you need to successfully modernize your infrastructure and achieve peak performance, dependability, security and compliance.

Is your organization due for an IT modernization?

Schedule an IT assessment now to start mapping your journey forward.

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