Integrating legacy systems can be an arduous but necessary task. If you want to use modern, cloud-based platforms, create new user experiences, improve internal processes, and utilize business data, you’ll need to integrate a new solution with your legacy system to make it happen.
The average enterprise uses a starting 1,295 separate cloud-based services. And to be of maximum use, all of these different services should integrate with the legacy system or ERP software.
In this guide, we dive into what a legacy system integration is, including the benefits and challenges. We also provide insight on how to decide between integration and replacement, and if you choose to integrate, the steps to get it done.
What is a legacy system integration?
A legacy system integration is the process of connecting older legacy software and on-site systems with modern cloud-based apps and digital technologies.
The purpose of the integration is to interconnect legacy and modern systems without permanently migrating your data to a new system. This allows you to drive digital innovation without the risks of data migration.
Types of legacy system applications
There are 3 main approaches when it comes to integrating with legacy systems and applications:
1. Service layers
A service layer is added on top of your existing system and it transforms the data from the legacy application before delivering it to the new one. This legacy data integration process works in reverse as well, so that data from the new system is transformed in a way that the existing one will accept. This is one of the most common strategies for integrating with old systems.
2. Data access layers
A data access layer (DAL) is not a new service layer, but rather a new database. You can replicate the data in an old system but give it a new data architecture, so it’s easier to transfer and utilize that data in the modern systems you’re integrating with.
3. APIs
An application program interface (API) is an excellent solution because it allows you to more easily integrate with additional services in the future. APIs make aspects of your legacy system readable and available to new services and they provide a ton of flexibility. If you plan on integrating your legacy system with several different services in the coming years, than building a custom API is most likely your best bet.
Benefits of undertaking legacy system integrations
These are the top reasons why companies integrate new applications and services with their legacy systems:
Operational efficiency
The top reason to integrate with a legacy application is to improve operational efficiency. Without that integration, employees might need to manually transfer data, which not only wastes valuable time but also slows down other business processes and introduces data errors.
Utilize existing data
97% of reports in legacy BI systems get completely forgotten and never used again. When you integrate with existing systems instead of ignore them, you have a chance of utilizing existing reports, intelligence, customer data, and more.
Access to modern functionality
Many companies looking to hook up new services to their legacy system are doing so because they’re interested in the new functionality that the service provides. They might be looking for modern BI dashboards that are easy to share with different departments, improved people management tools, or anything else.
Better user experiences
To create modern user experiences, you often need to connect SaaS applications with your legacy system. For example, a local retailer with hundreds of products might need to integrate their old inventory management system with an ecommerce solution like BigCommerce to take their business online.
Faster to implement new solutions
Integrating your system can allow you to implement new technologies faster than if you were to modernize your entire application. And hopefully, you’ll build an API for your legacy application so that any new solutions can be implemented even faster.
Avoidance of full-blown modernization
When you integrate with your legacy system, you can avoid modernizing the entire system. You can rely on third-party tools for new functionality, better efficiency, and improved user experiences—all without having to rebuild your core business system from scratch.
The challenges of integrating legacy systems
Although there are plenty of benefits to an integration project, there are also plenty of landmines. The following issues could all arise—meaning that rebuilding the system with modern frameworks might be the better option.
Lack of necessary skills
Your internal team might lack the necessary skills to integrate with your legacy system. Or, the time that it would take to do could be higher than modernizing the system and then connecting additional products and services.
Lack of documentation
How long ago was your legacy system developed? Does your team still have access to detailed documentation? Has all knowledge been retained and passed down?
Lacking the necessary documentation could spell disaster for your integration project.
Outdated architecture
While many development teams believe monolithic architectures are always doomed, the reality is that it’s just not that simple. Sometimes monolithic architectures are better than micro-services, because they don’t generate unnecessary complexity.
Your data and system architecture would be considered outdated if it’s challenging for developers to maintain and update, and if it’s resulting in clunky code and time-consuming code reviews.
If this sounds familiar, your outdated architecture will make the integration project even more complicated.
Cybersecurity issues
When connecting too different systems, you introduce vulnerabilities. You might not have the right cybersecurity resources to uncover, test, and prevent any new vulnerabilities being introduced.
Project speed
All of these factors can contribute to a slow project speed. If it’s taking so long to integrate your legacy system, you might find that you’re better off modernizing it.
Integrating legacy systems versus rebuilding legacy systems
Deciding between integrating or rebuilding your legacy system requires some internal investigations into how outdated your existing legacy system is.
Cost of maintenance versus cost of change
How much are you spending to keep your existing system? Banks and insurance companies spend 75% of their budgets maintaining legacy systems. Comparing the cost of rebuilding against the portion of your budget dedicated to maintenance may be all the insight you need. So be sure to ask yourself if it’s worth it to keep paying the costs of legacy system maintenance.
Business roadmap and technology constraints
What are the plans you have for your company in the coming years? To what extent is your existing legacy system blocking those plans? If the extent is small or clearly defined then integration may be the right solution. If not, you might be better off completely modernizing your software to save money and speed up future innovation.
Documentation
How detailed is the documentation of your legacy system? When asked a question by an employee, do you refer them to a manual or a person? Solid documentation is an absolute must! If you don’t have it, then you need it and rebuilding is probably the most secure way of obtaining it.
Cybersecurity
Do you have the resources to uncover, test, and prevent any new vulnerabilities introduced with an integration? If you’re not sure then an ERP legacy system integration may not be the best route, but maybe a CRM legacy application integration is a little less concerning. Be aware of the sensitivity of your data and capabilities of your cybersecurity when deciding between integration and rebuild.
The decision between Integration or modernization (and then integration) can have major impacts on your budget and business risk mitigation. Make sure you take the decision process seriously and thoroughly vet your options.
5 steps for integrating legacy systems
Here’s the steps on how to integrate legacy systems:
1. Clarify the purpose and requirements of the integration
Clarity of objectives is paramount to the success of most endeavors, and is especially true with integrating legacy systems. This makes the first step of integration the discussion and documentation of what you want to accomplish.
Some things to consider in those discussions include:
Does the integration need to transfer data in two ways?
What database calls are the most essential?
How does the data need to be transformed?
It is also imperative to include representatives from all the teams who interact with the system in the discussions. This will ensure you gain the full scope of objectives and requirements for the legacy integration.
Lastly, be sure to gain internal agreement before moving forward.
2. Assess the legacy system’s capabilities for integration
The next step in the integration process is to examine your legacy system. You’ll want to perform a thorough review of its data architecture, code, and UX.
The objective of this review is to determine what’s possible. Once you know the possibilities of your existing legacy system you can accurately compare what you’ve got to what you’ve decided you need.
From this evaluation you might estimate that you can build a custom API in under a month. You might also discover that the integration would be such a challenge that you have to modernize the system before you integrate it with the new services your company wants to implement.
Either way, a thorough assessment will provide you the necessary insight to make the best decisions for your business. And, don’t forget to utilize lessons learned from legacy system examples to help in your assessment process.
3. Research potential resources and solutions providers
Before diving into the integration (or modernization) take a moment to do some research and find out if any of the heavy lifting has already been done for you. For example, Shopify’s API and SDK could make it easier for you to bring a retail business into the ecommerce world.
Or, you might find that an integration platform-as-a-service (IPaaS) will be more cost-effective than custom integrations with several different SaaS services.
“What’s needed is an enterprise integration strategy. Importantly, it has to be agile, flexible, and cost efficient. The CIOs that we’re meeting are starting to recognize the need for an integration platform-as-a-service to bring all of these services together to work as a coordinated whole. An IPaaS ensures that you can integrate new SaaS services with the business while avoiding the point-to-point integration nightmare that so often slows the journey to cloud.” – Ben Scowen, Business Lead, Capgemini
When doing your research on resources and solution providers be sure to consider your internal resources and expertise. This will allow you to weigh the pros and cons of potential solutions against your own strengths and weaknesses.
4. Choose the type of integration and make it happen
Now it’s time to make your decision. You know what you need, what you got, and what is available. With this information you can make an informed choice of the type of integration work that needs to be done—be it building a custom API, connecting a custom API with an IPaaS, building a data access layer, or some combination.
At this stage of the integration process make sure you assign a product manager if you haven’t already. Successful integrations involve many moving parts working in sync. Not having a dedicated project manager could result in all your preparation being for not when it comes to the actual integration.
Also, make sure everything is well documented.
5. Test the integration and plan for long-term maintenance
The final step is to launch the integration and test it. This includes:
functional testing - does the integration work as intended?
performance testing - can the integration handle the anticipated workload?
penetration testing - are you protected from exploitations and vulnerabilities?
vulnerability scanning - are you aware of the weak points in your systems security?
Make sure you strategize how you will test for quality and security going forward. And don’t forget to document everything.
Also remember that technology will continue to change and adapt. So make sure continued long-term maintenance is planned for. A good strategy for this is to update your roadmap with your plans for additional updates or integrations.
Legacy system integration example: US Ski and Snowboard team
The US Ski and Snowboard team was experiencing many challenges due to their legacy system, which was challenging to integrate with. They wanted to create a better user experience for young athletes and their families when applying to participate in over 500 ski clubs across the country. The US Ski and Snowboard team also struggled to manage data of their existing Olympic and club athletes. They were also unable to launch an ecommerce store because of the integration challenges.
We built a custom API for their legacy system, and integrated it with a newly built user interface for applications and ecommerce store. This resolved integration issues immediately, while also paving the way for easier integrations in the future.
Frequently asked questions about legacy system integrations
When is it better to rebuild versus integrate a legacy system?
Determining whether to rebuild or integrate a legacy system requires the evaluation of the current system, the goals of the business, the quality of the documentation, and the strength of your cybersecurity.
High maintenance costs can eat through your budget. Significant technology constraints can block the ability to meet business goals. Poor documentation places the dependence of the legacy system in the hands of those who maintain it and creates a significant business continuity risk. In these instances, a rebuild is probably the way to go.
What are examples of legacy systems?
Legacy systems fall into six categories: end of life; outdated architecture; lack of internal system knowledge; lack of internal system skills; scalability; and challenging to update and innovate.
End of life examples include the operating system Microsoft 7 and the programming language Haskell.
The best example of outdated architecture is the entire mortgage industry (whose legacy systems were built in the 70’s and 80’s).
Scalability and challenges to update and innovate are both seen in Blackberry’s legacy system—through the confinement of text messages to Blackberry devices, the delay of launching an app store, and their over-focus on enterprise and business use cases.
What types of legacy systems need to be integrated?
Legacy business operation and management systems that need to be integrated include mainframe systems, custom databases, ERP systems, custom-built apps, billing systems, obsolete communication systems, inventory management systems, HCM (or HR) systems, and old POS systems.
Additional legacy systems that need integration or replacement include document management systems, old CMS systems, outdated compliance and regulatory systems, old reporting and analytics systems, security systems, customer support systems, and disaster recovery systems.
Work with experts in software modernization and integration
When integrating or modernizing your legacy system, you need to work with a fully managed team that puts product strategy first.
