Raghu Radhakrishnan, MD & CEO, TmaxSoft Technologies, 0
What do these examples have in common? First they all represent innovative solutions that were not possible 15 years ago. Secondly they enable extra ordinary agility. This is not a coincidence. As we approach another new decade in the 21st century, agility and innovation are more important than ever. But how can an enterprise deliver them? This article explores an an¬swer to that question.
Innovation is More than Customer Facing
When most of us think of innovative technology, we focus on the ‘bells and whistles’ of IT the aspects touched, seen and consumed by users and customers. We point to Uber, Tinder, Amazon, and Facebook as among the greatest innovations of the digital age. Although this opinion is understandable, it is not exactly accurate. These apps did not just appear, fully formed and ready to use. They need innovative core systems and backend infrastructure to operate. Essentially,rideshare requests based on geolocation, swipe left and right, one click order, and connect with friends would not exist.
The other problem with thinking that innovation is only in the hands of a device holder is that it ignores innovative technology that has much greater long term impacts. The Amazon Google Netflix and Tata examples demonstrate that innovation is happening everywhere. Amazon’s continuous delivery Google’s rapid component release used by Google and the automated & accelerated infrastructure, testing and provisioning of Netflix & Tata are also innovations. These innovations enable tech and industry giants to deliver engaging apps digital transformation, new revenue generation and extreme competitive advantage.
IT Agility is Needed for Business Agility & Innovation
Business agility is what enables all of the world’s most successful companies to thrive in an age when digital and disruption are the order of the day. Customer & user preferences expectations and satisfaction are the product of an agile business, that can change on a dime
or deliver performance and results almost as soon as they are required.
In most enterprises business agility and innovation go hand in hand. In some cases they drive each other innovation offers agility and agility inspires innovation. A user survey tells an enterprise that they would like the option to communicate with customer service via video chat rather than a bot, so the enterprise integrates video chat into the next iteration of its website. Or an app that makes it possible to apply for a mortgage in less than 15 minutes frees up the time of those who used to process the applications manually to consider changing their business model to also offer insurance or auto loans.
A key component of successful innovation and business agility is another kind of agility IT agility. Uber, Tinder, Facebook, Amazon, Google, Netflix and Tata all rely on a modern, agile IT infrastructure. At one time open systems were hailed as a solution for IT agility, and this still holds true in some cases. How ever, exploiting the latest technology such as AI and machine learning robotic process automation IoT, and big data to deliver innovation and agility without affecting performance requires a migration to the cloud.
Rehosting in the Cloud Delivers a Modern, Agile Infrastructure for Innovation
The businesses that have disrupted their markets in the last decade or so have had the benefits of starting with scratch and creating an IT infra-structure that is based in the cloud. However, the companies that want to innovate and have been around longer are dealing with IT infrastructures that are a combination of mainframes relational databases, transaction monitors and J2EE Application Servers. These enterprises do not have the luxury of building from scratch in the cloud because years of transaction processing, decades old data, and customer records might be lost along with the software that enables enterprises to exploit them.
The good news is that there is a viable, quick, and cost effective way to acquire the IT agility needed to run a modern business without starting over in the cloud or ripping out and replacing systems. It is possible, with legacy system’s hosting, to move critical applications and data to the cloud. The result is a fast, flexible foundation for quickly responding to market change and future innovation requirements with no proprietary lock-in.
Mission critical and core applications are migrated off the legacy systems to the cloud without changes to business logic or user interface, and with no negative impact on the enterprise, such as downtime. Enterprises can take advantage of modern technology, such as reusable components, microservices, and containers so they are ready for whatever the future holds. It delivers the agile IT backbone needed for business agility and innovation without having to start over.
In most enterprises business agility and innovation go hand in hand. In some cases they drive each other innovation offers agility and agility inspires innovation. A user survey tells an enterprise that they would like the option to communicate with customer service via video chat rather than a bot, so the enterprise integrates video chat into the next iteration of its website. Or an app that makes it possible to apply for a mortgage in less than 15 minutes frees up the time of those who used to process the applications manually to consider changing their business model to also offer insurance or auto loans.
A Key Component Of Successful Innovation and Business Agility Is Another Kind Of Agility IT Agility
A key component of successful innovation and business agility is another kind of agility IT agility. Uber, Tinder, Facebook, Amazon, Google, Netflix and Tata all rely on a modern, agile IT infrastructure. At one time open systems were hailed as a solution for IT agility, and this still holds true in some cases. How ever, exploiting the latest technology such as AI and machine learning robotic process automation IoT, and big data to deliver innovation and agility without affecting performance requires a migration to the cloud.
Rehosting in the Cloud Delivers a Modern, Agile Infrastructure for Innovation
The businesses that have disrupted their markets in the last decade or so have had the benefits of starting with scratch and creating an IT infra-structure that is based in the cloud. However, the companies that want to innovate and have been around longer are dealing with IT infrastructures that are a combination of mainframes relational databases, transaction monitors and J2EE Application Servers. These enterprises do not have the luxury of building from scratch in the cloud because years of transaction processing, decades old data, and customer records might be lost along with the software that enables enterprises to exploit them.
The good news is that there is a viable, quick, and cost effective way to acquire the IT agility needed to run a modern business without starting over in the cloud or ripping out and replacing systems. It is possible, with legacy system’s hosting, to move critical applications and data to the cloud. The result is a fast, flexible foundation for quickly responding to market change and future innovation requirements with no proprietary lock-in.
Mission critical and core applications are migrated off the legacy systems to the cloud without changes to business logic or user interface, and with no negative impact on the enterprise, such as downtime. Enterprises can take advantage of modern technology, such as reusable components, microservices, and containers so they are ready for whatever the future holds. It delivers the agile IT backbone needed for business agility and innovation without having to start over.