1. z/Transformation Technology Group Product Migration Considerations and Options for z/VSE Users!
Ken McMahon
z/Transformation Technology Group, LLC

2. Concerned About the Longevity of One of Your z/VSE Vendors?
As the z/VSE Customer Base has Experienced a Slowly Shrinking Base in Recent Years
Some Vendors Have Completely Left the Platform
Some Vendors Have Experienced Significant Financial Challenges Due to a Shrinking Customer Base
Even IBM Has Dropped Support for a Couple Products on the Platform
Some Vendors Have Remained Strong in this Environment

3. Vendors Have Been Making Changes in Order to Survive as Revenue Numbers Decrease
Development of New Products Has Significantly Slowed
Development of New Functionality Has Significantly Slowed
Support for Products in MANY Cases Is Significantly Weaker than in Past Years
Financial Challenges of Some Vendors Has Been Well Publicized in the Press

4. I Know About Support Challenges and Financial Challenges…..BUT….
I Have Been Hearing About Vendor Financial Challenges on this Platform for Years….
I Have Noticed Customer Support Getting Worse and Worst for Years…
Lately, I Have Been Reading About Some Potentially Major Impact of One or Two of OUR Vendors….
BUT……….

5. BUT… You Don’t Understand…
Migrating to Another Vendor Carries Risk
Migrating to Another Vendor Is Very Time Consuming
I Am BURIED with My Current Workload and Have NO TIME to Do a Migration
Migrating to Another Vendor Is NOT Something My Company Wants to Consider
My Company Is Planning to Migrate Off of the Platform Within Five Years (OR Pick a Number of Years) and Don’t Want to Make ANY Changes to the System
Perhaps ALL of the Above is True, BUT…….

6. BUT… What Happens IF…
A Vendor’s Support Approaches “Completely Non-Responsive” Other Than “Delay Tactics”
Customers Get Updates WITHOUT Solutions to Problems for Extended Periods of Time
Customers Requested to Provide More and More “Data”, But NO Solutions are Provided
A Vendor Is on the Brink of Financial Failure and Goes “Belly Up” with NO ADVANCED WARNING!
Frequently, When Companies Close Their Doors, Employees Are Behind on Payroll, BUT Continue Working
Frequently, When Companies Close Their Doors, They Are Forced to Do So with Little to NO Advanced Warning
OH MY!!! Say it ain’t so, Joe! MAYBE, We Should at least CONSIDER Making a Move for SOME of Our z/VSE Products – BUT, HOW….Management……

7. Is Scared to Death of the “C” Word!!!
First of All, Let’s NEVER Use the “C” Word!!!

8. What “C” Word??? In this Case, the “C” Word is “CONVERSION”
Let’s Use the Word “MIGRATION” Instead….
In Nearly All Cases, the Change Is More of a MIGRATION than a CONVERSION
In Nearly All Cases, the FUNCTIONALITY Is Significantly Similar
In Nearly All Cases, the User Experience Is Very Similar

9. Migration Seems to Be Much More Palatable, So…
Migration Still Requires a Detailed Plan…Even If PRICE Is NOT the Primary Reason for the Change
IF You Are Concerned about Vendor Longevity, PRICE Is LESS IMPORTANT
IF You Are Concerned about QUALITY of SUPPORT, PRICE Is LESS IMPORTANT
If You Are Concerned about SECURITY, PRICE Is LESS IMPORTANT
Ah, Yes, But Management Is ALWAYS CONCERNED ABOUT PRICE!!!
Just Because PRICE is LESS Important, Does NOT Mean You Have NO LEVERAGE!

10. Who Should Develop the Plan???
Develop an “In-House” Plan on Your Own
Utilize an Experienced Partner to Help You Develop the Plan
z/Transformation Technology Group Can Help If Needed

11. Phases in the Plan
The First Phase in the Development of a Plan Is to Develop a “Before”, “During” and “After” Picture
Elements Include
Costs
Support
Impact of An Outage
Risks Associated During/With Each Stage
The Most Critical Part of This Phase Is the Development of the Actual Migration Plan
The Second Phase is the Business Analysis of Each Phase/Decision Making Process
The Third Phase is the Implementation of the Plan

12. Developing the Three “Pictures” -- Current
The Current or “Before” Phase
Costs
Actual Product Costs Are the EASY Part of this Phase
BUT, What Are the Potential Costs IF Something “Bad” Happens?
Support
How Is Current Support Affecting Your Business?
Has There Been Cases of Proposed Product Enhancements that Have Been Delayed/Turned Down?
Impact of An Outage
IF When and Outage/Systems Impact Occurs Caused by the Product, What Is the Cost?
If the Outage/Systems Impact Goes on For a Prolonged Period, What Is the Impact?
What Are the Risks Associated with a Product/Company Simply Going Away
What Happens IF the Vendor Goes Away Unexpectedly, What is the Impact on Your Daily Operations?
Is the Application CRITICAL to Your Companies Day-to-Day Operations?

13. Developing the Three “Pictures” -- Migration
The Migration or “During” Phase
Costs
How Much Are the Products Going to Cost?
Will You Need to Pay for BOTH Sets of Licenses?
Impact of the Migration
How Complex is the Migration?
How Many Projected Total Hours (Your Staff, the Migration Partner Staff)
Does Your System Have the Capacity to Run in Parallel OR Is There Another Option?
What Are the Risks Associated with the Migration
What is the Likelihood of Success within the Timeframe?
What is the Impact of the Migration Takes Longer than Expected?

14. Developing the Three “Pictures” – New Environment
The New Environment or “After” Phase
Costs
How Much Are the Products Going to Cost?
Support
How Will Projected Support (Based on Independent Vendor Information) Affect Your Business?
Is There New Functionality that Will Benefit the Organization
Impact of An Outage
Do customer Experiences Indicate More or Less Outages
Apply this Information to the Impacts Generated in the Current Phase
What Is the Impact of Mitigating the Risk of a Product or Vendor Leaving the Platforrm?
What is Stability and Peace of Mind Worth?

15. Business Analysis/Decision Making Phase in the Plan
Once the Data Is Generated for the Three Phases of the Plan, The Analysis Can Begin
How Likely Is It that a Product or Vendor Will No Longer Be Viable on the Platform?
Does the Risk of Staying with a Product or a Vendor Overshadow the Risk of Making a change?
Do the Costs of the Actual Migration Override the Risks of Staying with the Current Vendor?
What Are the Actual Costs in Terms of Resources and Finances Associated with a Migration?

16. The Implementation Phase in the Plan
Assuming the Plan Has Been Well-Developed, the ONLY Phase Remaining is the Implementation of the Plan
This is the Phase that Is Potentially the Most Costly!
This is the Phase Where Failures Can Occur
Before Embarking on the Implementation of the Migration, Get All “Ducks in a Row”
Make Sure License Agreements Allow for the Implementation Phase
Ensure that Your Staff is Available as Necessary
Ensure that the Migration Partner Staff is Available and Ready During YOUR Timeframe
Make Sure that ALL PARTIES Have Signed off on the Implementation Plan
Once All of the Above is Set, the Implementation of the Migration Plan is Ready to Go!

17. Plans are GREAT, BUT…. WE SIMPLY DON’T HAVE THE RESOURCES!!!
In Many Cases, z/Transformation Technology Group Can Provide the Resources Bundled with the Software
Management Will NEVER Allow Us to Migrate, We Are Moving off of the Mainframe….SOOOOON!
Depending Where You Are in the Migration Process, the Migration Could be YEARS Away!
By Evaluating the Impact on Your Company IF Support for the Product Goes Away or Virtually Goes Away Can…
Provide Management with a True Financial Picture Associated with NOT Migrating!

18. Well, We Have A Vendor or Two We Would Like to Drop, What are Our Options?
If You Identify a Product or Vendor, We Can Provide You with One or More Alternatives

19. Thank You for Attending!!!
Enjoy Columbus, OH and
The Ohio State University
GO BUCKS!!!