3 The business case
This chapter covers
- Identifying the need for architecture modernization
- Justifying the business value of architecture modernization
- Connecting architecture modernization to business growth strategies
- Structuring compelling modernization proposals
Architecture modernization involves significant investment in systems and operating models. It’s vital to have a solid understanding of the business outcomes you hope to achieve to get buy-in, stay on the right track, and maximize return on investment. Short-term sacrifices will likely need to be made in pursuit of longer-term advantages. For these reasons, modernization leaders need to be able to expertly justify and communicate their ideas to all types of stakeholders.
Identifying the optimal level of modernization and avoiding wasting time and money on things that don’t move the business forward requires a view of the business and product strategy across multiple time horizons. A key part of that is recognizing the growth strategy and how each product in the product portfolio contributes to it. Then, it’s possible to identify which areas of the architecture will benefit the most from modernization. You’ll need to answer questions like Which new capabilities need to be developed? Which existing parts of the system will require the most development? What is the current level of technical debt in each area of the system, and how does that constrain current and future business goals? Which systems can be deprecated?