Bizzo Meet & Mx: Don’t limit Legacy Migration to technology

Migrating legacy technology is a major challenge for many companies. How do you deal with business-critical software that has become so outdated that small changes could potentially pose a great risk? The challenge lies not only in the technology but also in the way your company is organised. This is an important conclusion from the third edition of the Bizzo Meet & Mx, which was all about Legacy Migration.

On Thursday 14 April, the third edition of the Bizzo Meet & Mx took place at the headquarters of Mendix in Rotterdam. The afternoon was kicked off by Marc Gelissen, Pater Familias at Bizzomate, who welcomed everyone. Using the PACE layer model of Gartner Marc outlined the framework for the rest of the afternoon. In that model software systems of companies are divided into three layers. The first layer consists of the systems of record, which contain business-critical applications such as invoicing, CRM or transport planning. The systems of differentiation form the second layer. These contain company-specific applications, specifically for the markets, services and products with which a company is involved. The third layer, systems of innovation, consists of applications with which companies can introduce new initiatives and business models. This does not only concern an organisation’s systems, but also change management and the ability to implement changes within the organisation.

Breaking through dominant logic
This subject is the expertise of the first speaker Menno Lanting, who also writes on the subject of digital transformation. Using a number of examples, he takes the audience through the challenges that organisations face with their digital transformation. This transformation is on the agenda of every large company, but for 70 percent of the companies that made this an objective, it cost more than it delivered. 

The biggest opportunities lie with companies that are able to apply proven technology to underexposed and unsolved problems. To get there, they need to ask themselves what is at the heart of what they do best, and be able to break through the dominant logic. Dominant logic consists of patterns and ways of working within companies and industries that everyone takes for granted. Because this logic is always very strong, innovation is often held back not only by faltering, outdated technology, but also by the people and culture of an organisation.

Digitize or disappear
After a short break it was time for the second session which looked more at the technology. In his presentation, Koert Hagoort, vice president of R&D at Mendix, outlined the vision of Mendix on legacy migration. Digitize or disappear is a real risk for many companies. With low-code, the software from the systems of record can be migrated quickly to a modern, safe and up-to-date environment without organisations having to reinvent the wheel. This gives them breathing space to take a step forward immediately afterwards in the systems of differentiation and even the systems of innovation. 

Mendix expects that the development of completely new apps will disappear. Instead, applications will be divided up into separate elements, each with its own function. As soon as functionality needs to be changed or added, only one of those applications needs to be updated, without putting the other systems at risk. Koert ended his presentation by telling the audience that low-code is an excellent way to migrate legacy apps, but that it is still necessary to look critically at the organisation. Low-code allows you to build applications very quickly, but if you do it without a plan, structure and assurance, you’re just creating a new problem.

Involve all stakeholders
At the end of the day, there was an interview between Marc Gelissen and Linda Ramaekers, process manager at MediReva. MediReva is a supplier of medical aids and care materials. Over the years, the organisation has built more and more new functionalities on their ERP system to meet the organisation’s growth and changing legislation. However, this meant that the consequences of minor adjustments were no longer overseen. In order to disconnect the care process from the ERP, and from the systems of record, they partnered up with Bizzomate. Bizzomate developed a new low-code application around the ERP, called MoZaïeK. Linda tells how this application changed the way of working within MediReva. MoZaïeK streamlines the care processes at MediReva and also forms the basis for the MediRevanet, the system with which professionals in the hospitals work. The existing ERP system will remain in use for the logistic processes. 

To make this a success, it was important that the belief in the project was strong within the MediReva. Cooperation within the organisation was therefore a crucial component. This was true for both the colleagues and the cooperation with Bizzomate. The flexibility of MoZaïeK, created by disconnecting the healthcare application from the ERP system, is proven by the easy integration with the systems of OneMed, with which MediReva recently started a cooperation. To conclude, Linda emphasises how important it is to involve all stakeholders in such a process, because you don’t get there with just the migration of the software. You require the support of the entire organisation.

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