IDC PlanScape: Application Portfolio Modernization and Rationalization

This IDC PlanScape presents a comprehensive capability-driven approach for modernizing and rationalizing the application portfolio. It enables organizations to boost agility, reduce costs, enhance compliance, and innovate faster through a more modern, optimized portfolio of applications aligned to key business capabilities. However, the current context also brings headwinds to this strategic priority. IDC's January 2024 Future Enterprise Resiliency and Spending Survey, Wave 1, reveals that approximately 20% of organizations plan to shift budgets from app modernization to GenAI projects. So making the business case and explaining why application portfolio modernization and rationalization (APMR) are important will be crucial."As the business environment becomes increasingly complex, CIOs must adopt a comprehensive capability approach to operationalize application modernization and rationalization," says Serge Findling, adjunct research advisor with IDC's IT Executive Programs (IEP). "Application rationalization isn't about discarding the past; it's about streamlining the present to build a foundation for a future-proof, efficient application ecosystem."