Compuware Issues Generational Call for Strategic Mainframe Stewardship

"Mainframe Excellence 2025" Proposes Long-Term Strategy for System z as Millennials Take Leadership Positions


DETROIT, Oct. 29, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Compuware Corporation (Nasdaq:CPWR) today published a white paper entitled "Mainframe Excellence 2025: A Generational Call for Strategic Platform Stewardship." The white paper proposes a winning long-term strategy for IT organizations that rely on System z, as Millennials increasingly dominate their technical workforces and begin to take C-level positions.

Studies confirm that most companies using mainframes have a long-term strategy for continuing to do so. Often, their most valuable applications reside on the mainframe.  The mainframe application portfolio is thus a singularly important repository of high-value intellectual property.  Millennials, however, tend to have little or no experience with this application portfolio—having focused instead on distributed, web and mobile technologies.

This lack of experience presents several long-term challenges to companies that run their critical systems-of-record on System z.  Facing a much-publicized "mainframe brain drain," these companies must ensure the availability of IT professionals with essential skills as current employees retire.  Just as important, they must rigorously protect and advance the value of this mainframe-resident intellectual property as they continue to leverage the mainframe's unique attributes to meet the demands of a relentlessly developing digital economy.

"There is a tendency for CIOs who haven't grown up with a hands-on appreciation for the mainframe's special role in the enterprise to take an 'I'll-think-about-it-tomorrow' attitude towards System z stewardship," said Chris O'Malley, Compuware's President of Mainframe Operations.  "We believe that the time to start acting on these stewardship issues is now—and that, with the right strategy, next-generation CIOs can leverage their mainframe application portfolios in ways that generate transformative business value and sustainable competitive advantage."

Specific actions suggested in "Mainframe Excellence 2025" include:

  1. Inventorying existing mainframe data, applications, capacity, utilization and management tools. 
     
  2. Building a fact-based skills plan with a realistic timeline.
     
  3. Becoming better informed about current and road-mapped mainframe capabilities.
     
  4. Rightsizing investments in mainframe application stewardship.
     
  5. Instituting a moratorium on short-term cost-cutting with potential long-term consequences.
     
  6. Combatting denial and hype in regard to non-mainframe platform capabilities, costs and risks.

The complete document is available online at http://tinyurl.com/mulafk4.

Compuware Corporation

Compuware empowers the world's largest companies to advance their mainframe intellectual property to meet the demands of the digital economy. Our application development, testing and performance management software set the industry standard by enabling businesses to deliver high-quality applications more quickly, reliably and resource-efficiently. Learn more at www.compuware.com/mainframe.

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