IT Support Services for Legacy Systems - A lasting legacy, for now anyway
Making the Most of Legacy Systems Through IT Support Services
Increase your current IT Support Services portfolio to include multi-vendor, multi-technology services delivered through highly trained support professionals
Faced with economic uncertainty, many businesses are choosing to prolong the life of their IT infrastructure
rather than implement expensive new systems. Simon Vail looks at the opportunities for the channel
The widening credit crunch and fear of recession have led to a drop in confidence among IT buyers. New projects are being delayed or sliced into smaller pieces that are easier to pass through the purchasing and financial departments. Rather than invest in new kit, companies have begun to make the most of what they already have.
The vast majority of companies have a patchwork of technology that has been purchased and installed over the course of years, and as the belts get tightened, those in the channel that can service legacy systems and integrate them with emerging technologies are in a good position.
“Despite the advent of newer Web 2.0 technologies and platforms, the stark truth is that the majority of global organisations still run their IT infrastructures on systems that have been installed, in some cases, for many decades,” says David Stephenson, director of UK sales at software provider Micro Focus.
“Today’s economic climate is forcing all departments to tighten their belts when it comes to spending, meaning an IT overhaul or implementation of an entire new infrastructure is highly unlikely,” he adds.
Stephenson maintains that the cost of overhauling systems that have been in place for several years is expensive and risky.
“The implementation of major new systems always involves disruption to the business and this is not the time for major companies to be distracted by these types of problems,” he says. Paul Phillips, channel sales director at network vendor Extreme Networks, says customers are prolonging the life of their networks, rather than renewing them, as they would have done in the past.
“The trend I see is that customers will not upgrade unless they are adding another application to the network, like video or VoIP. Not many customers that I see want their networks to run faster,” he says.
