The Desperate Project Manager’s Kit (DPMK)
I was reading Jurgen's blog about scrum projects and again saw these issues:
1) Not following a business-driven approach to goals and priorities
2) Not delivering real value early and often
In aXes/RAMP application modernization projects I refer to these two items as BV (Business Value).
I think there is evidence that many IBM i software developers nowadays just don’t get what BV is about - or they don’t care – or they have forgotten. They just don’t recognize BV as being the most important thing in IT - especially in application modernization projects.
Modernization project managers must be getting made pretty desperate about this issue.
I decided to try and help by making a DPMK (Desperate Project Manager's Kit).
The DPMK has 3 key components:
A Stapler |
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Some Post-It Notes |
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The Project Team Foreheads |
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The DPMK usage guidelines are very simple …..
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Top Ten Reasons Application Modernization Projects Fail
Guest Blogger: Paul Conte, President PCES, is a leading Application Development Strategist.
Are we done yet? With “modernizing” our applications, that is?
It seems so long ago that someone came up with the clever concept of application “modernization” as a response to how outdated AS/400 applications looked by comparison with graphical Windows applications.
But now, even after years of screen-scraping, “refacing” and crash courses in Java, there still exists an unfathomable mountain of monolithic RPG applications that – dolled up or not – simply don’t serve modern business needs.
Why have so many attempts at “modernization” failed to deliver? Herewith are my own “top ten” reasons, listed somewhat in the order I’ve seen them occur in many IBM i organizations:
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Six Steps for Successful Application Modernization
Guest Blogger: Mike Otey, Senior Technical Editor for System iNEWS magazine
The IBM i is a highly successfully and ultra-reliable computing platform that’s in use in all kinds of businesses world-wide from order-entry, human resources, and education through inventory and distribution systems. I’ve worked with the IBM i system since the days it was originally called the System/38. Over time the IBM i’s secure, robust and high performance architecture has proven to be an excellent platform for enterprise level applications. However, the vast majority of today’s IBM i applications are green screen applications that are not readily accepted in this age of graphical applications.
Users and management expect today’s applications to be graphical. You can’t expect a green screen application to gain acceptance in the enterprise today – no matter how practical and useful it is. Today management won’t buy an application that’s not graphical and users will balk at using one. That said, many IBM organizations still have a number of 5250 green screen applications. These applications fulfill vital business functions and most are highly customized to meet the needs of the business. They may be run in a graphical application like the IBM i Access 5250 emulator or even the older RUMBA 5250 emulator, but that doesn’t make them graphical. Most IBM i based business are looking for ways to move these 5250 based applications to a more modern graphical interface.
If you’re familiar with my work with the System iNetwork you’ll know that I specialize in IBM i and Windows integration. I did my share of straight-up RPG programming. I programmed on the platform for more than a decade and I certainly know the ins and outs of the platform. My work led me into the areas of integrating the AS/400, now the IBM i, with Windows systems in variety of different ways.
I find it surprising that , even today, most businesses using the IBM i don’t realize or take advantage of the powerful integration features that the IBM i has.
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How to Justify Application Modernization to your CFO – Episode 2
In our last episode, our hero (you, of course) was preparing to make an ROI-powered business case for Application Modernization to your CFO. We covered your current resources, your goals, and steps 1-4 in the process.
This episode unveils Step 5 – Conducting a Project Scope.
A Project Scope may also be called a Project Study or a Requirements Analysis. The name is not of importance; the Input, Activities and Output are. So let’s go through each of those in some detail.
Input to a Project Scope
Before starting on a Project Scope, we need some basic ingredients:
- A sensible modernization initiative with promising ROI potential
- Significant interest from the business
- At least a small mandate from the executive level
If you haven’t yet achieved these necessary inputs, I encourage you to review steps 1-4.
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How to Justify Legacy Application Modernization to your CFO
There is so much talk about legacy application modernization that you could be forgiven for thinking that every old 5250 app has already been dragged into the 21st century. But you and I know that’s not true. In fact, a typical reader of this blog will be running at least one of their core business applications in so-called legacy mode. So what is standing in the way of progress – apathy, fear, cost?
My experience from working as an advisor to many IBM shops (AS/400, iSeries, IBM i) has taught me that the major impediment to starting an application modernization project is cost or, more specifically, how to justify the total investment required and thereby secure the funding. This post is part of a series where I will share the tips and techniques that have been used successfully to present an application modernization project for budget approval. As with many things in life, it is often the way that you present and position something that makes all the difference on how it is perceived and received by others. Continue reading about Justifying Application Modernization >>