NavigatingtheMazeofITSystemModernizationinthePublicSectorAuthor:SamHua,VicePresident,SoftwareEngineering,eSystems

Insightsfrom

2©eSystems2019|PROPRIETARY|

…byharmonizingtheopposingforcesofshrinkingbudgets,regulatory

compliance,businessdemands,ITtalentandlimitationsoflegacy

systemswhileleveragingprinciplesofAgile,DevOpsandmodularity.

TheProblemToday

Today’spublicsectorfacesmanychallengesonthetechnologyfront.ShrinkingbudgetsandlackofITtalent,increasingregulatorycompliance,rapidbusinesschanges,andthelimitationsoflegacysystemsallmakeitprogressivelydifficulttomaintainsustainability.

Shrinking budgetsmake it harder to hire and retain the right technical talent that government ITdepartmentsneed,toadoptnewtechnologies,ortogetneededupgradestoequipmentandsoftware.Regulatory restrictions can complicate progress, since governments must secure citizens’ andprotectedinformation.Thelargenumberoforganizationalandinformationalsilosbetweenagenciesanddivisionsreducesvisibilityanddiscouragessharingandreuse.

Thereisalsotheneedforgovernmenttomodernizelegacysystemstotakefulladvantageofinnovativetechnologies likethe InternetofThingsandmachine learning. InFCWmagazine1,MikeCongerandMichaelPreispointedoutthatwithinthenext10years,thegovernmentcouldsavemorethan$110billionbyeliminatingoperationsandmaintenanceofoutdatedsystems.Thisshiftwouldalsoleadtoamoreefficientgovernmentthatoffersitscitizensbetterservices,makingiteasierforcitizenstoengageandforworkerstogettheirjobsdone.Emergingtechnologiescouldhelpgovernmentsbecomemoreefficient.

3©eSystems2019|PROPRIETARY|

Figure1illustratesthechallengesthatpublicsectorITorganizationsarefacing.Ashrinkingbudgetimpliesthatscarceresourcesmustbeconservedandutilizedeffectively.Doingmorewithlessandgettingitrightthefirsttimeneedstobetherule,nottheexception.Rapidbusinessandregulatorychangesincreasesystembacklogs;coupledwiththelimitationoflegacysystems,thishamperstheabilitytofulfilltheseneedsinatimelyfashion.Thetugofwarbetweentheseopposingforces,ifnotproperlybalanced,willnothaveahappyending.Thekeyistofindasystemsintegratorthathastheexperienceandaccoladestomaketherightdecisions,withthetime-testedsolutionstoproveit.

1. TheRightSolutionArchitecture

With MITA 3.0, CMS is advocating that all new systems should adhere to this architecturalparadigm.Thatsoundsgreatfroma1,000foot-highview.MostpublicITinfrastructuresarenotaclearplayingfieldwherethisshiftcanmagicallyhappenwithasnapofthefingers.Theyusuallyconsist of intertwining tentacles of heterogeneous entrenched technologies and legacyarchitectures that are not easily adaptable to change. This is themanifestation of how stategovernmentshaveoperatedformanydecades-businessneeds,ofteninspiredbypolitics,aretheprimarydriveroftheprocurement,withITtakingmoreofasubservientbackseat.Unfortunately,thisisnolongerasustainablemodel,withshrinkingbudgetsandthedemandforfaster solutionsto servethebusinessfueledbytheexpectationsestablishedbytheageoftheinternet.ITneedstostepuptotakepart inthedecision-makingprocessanddrivethesolutionarchitecture.Thisistheinsurancepolicythatwillguaranteeagainsttherepeatofthe“accidentalarchitecture”ofyesteryear.The lastthingweallwant istorealizethatwestillhavethesamebrittle, inflexible architecture after having spent hundreds of millions of taxpayers’ dollars in“modernizing”thesesystems.

4©eSystems2019|PROPRIETARY|

“Architecture matters!” is a quote by Martin Fowler, the world-renowned author in softwarearchitecture,inhisbookPatternsofEnterpriseApplicationArchitecture2.Getting itrightthefirsttimeshouldbeourmission,notanoption.Solutionarchitecturedrivesthelogicalandphysicaldecompositionofthesystem.Andthereisnoonesizefitsall.Doneright,systemmoduleswillbemoremanageableandlessdependable.Theycould be independently evolved, scaled and reused, as opposed to the rigid, complex largemonolithsofthepast.So,whatistherightarchitecturalparadigmthatsupportsfasttime-to-marketthatcanalsoscaleelasticallytothedemandsofthebusiness?Thekeyisanarchitecturethatpromotesmodularityandboundedcontext,allowingforsmallindependentteamstohavetheownershipandfocustodrive them forward. Coupled with the principles of DevOps, software capabilities can now beenhanced,testedanddeployedindependentlyandquicklytodelivervaluetothebusiness.

Figure2FoundationalPillarsofLarge-ScaleSystems

2. TheRightSDLCMethodology

TheWaterfallprocesswasinventedmanydecadesagoformanaginglargeprojectssuchasbuildingplanes,shipsandbuildings.Theseprojectsareexpensivetochangeoncetheconcreteispouredandthemold is casted,sogetting it right isabsolutely critical. That’sthe reasonwhymajorup-frontanalysisisrequired,andchangesarediscouragedoncetheshiphassailed.Tryingtoapplythesameprocesstosoftwareisaflawedapproach.Softwareisinherentlyflexible.Unlike“hardware”,flexibilityallowschangestobeinjecteduptothetimeofrelease.Yetflexibilityalso increasesthedegreeofuncertaintyandtheabilitytopredicttheeffectivenessofthesechanges.Thisisadouble-edgedswordaccordingtoGaryGruverandTommyMouserintheirbookLeadingtheTransformationbyApplyingAgileandDevOpsPrinciplesatScale3.

5©eSystems2019|PROPRIETARY|

Figure3KeyDataonPublicSectorITChallenges

So,inordertoembracethesesoftwarecharacteristicsandusethemtoouradvantage,weneedto employ a SDLCmethodology that favors the unique flexibility of software while ensuringpredictable outcomes. We are not talking about implementing Agile by the book. This is acommonmistakewehaveseeninthisindustry.AccordingtotheStateofScrumreportfor2017-20184,publishedbytheScrumAlliance,78%ofprojectsuseacombinationofScrumandotherhybridapproaches. Only16%ofprojectsusepureScrum. Customersaskfor“agile”buttheyactuallymean“disciplinedagile”,whichisabalancedapproachbetweenpureagileandwaterfallfromareleaseplanningperspective,whileheavilyleveragingDevOpsprinciplestoachieveagility,predictabilityandstability. Whilefrequentstable releasesaredesirable, customersalsoneedcomprehensivedocumentationalongtheSDLCprocesses,notsimplybecauseit isrequiredbyCMS,buttoensuretheavailabilityofaccuratesystemknowledgeoveratransientworkforce.

6©eSystems2019|PROPRIETARY|

3. TheRightSIExperience

Modernizingenterpriseapplicationsishard.Whatistherightapproachandstrategy?37%ofScrumprojectsfailedin2018accordingtotheScrumAllianceSoSreport.Isit“rip-and-replace”,or is it “strangle”, an approach described by Martin Fowler2. “Rip & replace” can be verydisruptiveandisnotoftenrecommended.The“strangler”pattern,amorefavorableapproach,involves wrapping legacy systems behind proxies while new functionalities are introducedusing new technologies incrementally. Over time, legacy functionalities are replaced or“strangled”untiltheyexistnomore.Thechoiceofapproachmayappeartrivialatahighlevel,butthedevilisalwaysinthedetails,andlackofaccuratedocumentationandresourceswiththeproperdomainknowledgewillimpairtheeffort.This entire journey is like running amarathon. It requires the right experience, the rightdisciplineandpersistencefromaseasonedSystemsIntegratorthathasnavigatedacrossthesearchitectural,processanddeliverywaterssuccessfullybefore.AfamousentrepreneurfromSiliconValleyoncesaid:“Havingtherightvisionistheeasypart.Turningthatvisionintoaviableproductorsolutionisajourneythatrequiresmakingthousandsofrightdecisions”.

Figure4ChallengesMetwiththeRightSystemsIntegrator

7©eSystems2019|PROPRIETARY|

TakeChargeofYourITSystemsModernizationwitheSystemsAlongwithstateagencies,allbusinessesacross industriesareseekingtobemoreagileandproductivewhengeneratingtheirsoftwareplans.Toachievethesegoals,organizationsneedtohaveabusinesspartnerwiththeflexibilitytocustomizeaplanthatusesahybridofthebestmethodologiesavailable,inproportionsthataresuitedtothatparticularorganization.Thiswillhelpanorganization to succeedbyhaving theability toquicklyadjust to changingmarket,business,andregulationconditions.

AbouteSystems

Founded in1999,eSystems’experience lies inhelpingPublicSectorandprivateorganizationsbetter serve their stakeholders — members, citizens, providers, & employers — throughdeveloping business and technology solutions that are scalable and robust. eSystems isheadquarteredinPrinceton,NJ,withofficesinseveralU.S.states.eSystemsisatechnologyandpeople-centricprofessionalservicesfirmwithexperienceinsystemsintegration,ITsolutions,andapplicationsupportservices.Wespecialize inproviding configurableandsustainablesolutionsforthrivingorganizationsworldwide.Ouremployees,customers,andpartnersarethepillarsofoursuccess.

email:marketing@esystems-inc.comTolearnmore,visitwww.esystems-inc.comor

8©eSystems2019|PROPRIETARY|

References

1. FCWMagazine,October2,2017:“MakingSenseoftheITModernizationChallenge”:MikeConger&MichaelPreis

2. PatternsofEnterpriseApplicationArchitecture,Fowler,Martin.Fowler:PatternEnterpriseApplicationArch(Addison-WesleySignatureSeries(Fowler)).PearsonEducation.KindleEdition.Copyright©2003byPearsonEducation,Inc.

3. LeadingtheTransformationbyApplyingAgileandDevOpsPrinciplesatScale,ITRevolution.KindleEdition.Copyright©2015GaryGruverandTommyMouserISBN978-1-942788-02-7Allrightsreserved.ITRevolutionPortland,OR.info@itrevolution.net

4. “StateofScrum2017–2018,ScalingandAgileTransformation”,ScrumAlliance®

5. “5ChallengestoITModernization”:DLT,Veritas:www.govloop.com,April25,2018

6. “StateofScrum2017–2018,ScalingandAgileTransformation”,ScrumAlliance®

7. “TheStateofApplicationDevelopment2018”:Outsystems

8. “EnterpriseResourcePlanningBenchmarkSurvey”:Future-ProofWorkforceManagementinthePublicSector.TheAberdeenGroup,April2014.