"Application rationalization" is a label that applies to a broad range of initiatives designed to address the cost, risk and inflexibility of existing application portfolios. Although many organizations have recognized for years that they need to rationalize their application portfolios, very few success stories exist. Meanwhile, all of the imperatives that initially drove application rationalization initiatives still remain.
Many application rationalization initiatives failed because they set the wrong targets. A common mistake was to set a target for a reduction in the number of applications. As a result, initiatives focused on eliminating small, inexpensive applications while ignoring the core challenge: the large, complex application portfolio.
When IT organizations avoided that trap and sought to address the core challenge, they eventually recognized that application rationalization is only possible as a byproduct of business process standardization and simplification. However, very few business leaders have been willing to take on the disruptive business transformation required to deliver such process standardization and simplification. Without business leadership, the IT organization has been powerless to rationalize the large, complex application portfolio.
Despite the difficulties, the problems remain. In fact, the imperatives for change become stronger over time — but so do the inhibitors. There is no pain-free, "silver bullet" solution to the challenges inherent in large, complex and aging application portfolios. A radical transformation is necessary. The core of this transformation will be a move to bimodal IT.
http://www.gartner.com/document/3311518?ref=feed
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