Setting Up Your Dream Application Modernization Team

Part of the Modernization Readiness Boot Camp

Ask our experts about starting your software modernization.

These profiles are part of the Modernization Readiness Boot Camp series, and outline the roles you’ll need to fill in order to start a successful application modernization project. Do you have the right people on your team?

Product Owner

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Leadership. A strong product owner can take ownership of the project from top to bottom.
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Knows top-level business processes, but knows who to talk to for more in-depth discussions.
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Can clearly and transparently outline the project requirements, and deliver the business case in a way that stakeholders can understand and buy in.

Where do you find your Product Owner?

A strong project owner is typically someone who comes from in-house. They have to know the business. When you bring someone in from the outside, it will take time to ramp them up. A product owner could also be sniped from a competitor. They can lured to your organization to create new opportunities within that market.

Architect

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Technical side but also understand business.
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Know technology well, breadth of many technologies and capabilities, to help meet the business needs, know what is possible.
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Knows how to define tech specs based on business requirements and can translate business needs into technical deliverables.

Where do you find your Architect?

A good architect can come from technology shops or other companies where they worked with new and modern tech. Or, you can bring in an experienced architect from a trust digital transformation vendor. However, your architect can’t be a guy with experience with old tech; they won’t be able to create modern solutions. If you’re trying to get ahead, you need someone who can stay ahead.

Legacy System Experts

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They know legacy systems better than anyone. And sometimes they’re the only ones at your organization who know your target systems.
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These experts give a deep perspective into what has been previously done and how the systems presently function. Once you know your starting point, then you can forge ahead. Understanding processes means you’ll know what to change, retain, re-design. 

Where do you find legacy system experts?

Transforming old business processes, the technical architecture may be done in such a way that doesn’t make sense to new technical leads. They might make the mistake of trying to scrap the whole thing. Legacy system experts will be able to reuse what’s been done in the past. In-house experts come from years of working within the business, working closely with the systems. Additionally, legacy system expert vendors will bring years of expertise and tools to help analyze legacy system code.

SCRUM Master

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Leadership and organization. They need to be able to lead the team, lead the technologists, lead the contractors, and keep the project moving.
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Facilitating. A SCRUM master makes connections, facilitating conversations between all the different people involved with the projects.
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SCRUM masters are in tune with what the team is doing. They need to ensure efficiency and focus. They need to address any roadblocks or issues immediately as they arise.

Where do you find your SCRUM master?

They’re Agile experts, so you can most likely find them through Agile certification programs. You can also recruit them from other organizations or vendors where they’ve served as project leads.

Technologists

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Current, modern technology expert workers who know multiple technologies.
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They should have a good sense of architecture and be able to see the big picture. 
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Strong technologies have a passion for tech. Since they will do the heavy lifting, they need to understand the requirements and be able to make them a reality.

Where do you find technologists?

Recruit them from college, other development companies, or tech agencies. Consulting firms are a stepping stone, and many technologies want in-house gigs. They gain a lot of valuable experience from consulting firms and will often have experience in a variety of industries.

Contractors

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Great for smaller needs and specific tasks.
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Easy to work with and cost saving.

Where do you find contractors?

Freelance sites like Upwork have made it easier than ever to find contractors to fill out your modernization dream team.

TIP: Remember Stakeholder Management

You’ll need the right combination of leadership to keep the project on the rails. This can be a combo of the Product Owner and SCRUM master working together to handle communications and direction from stakeholders. They’ll need to be adept at directing the flow of information and making adjustments to the project as needed.

Sign-up now to get full access to our Modernization Readiness Boot Camp where you’ll receive new tools, strategies, and insights to help you identify challenges and opportunities for modernization readiness.

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