Migrating and Modernizing to Grow Your Business

Key Takeaways

1. Definitions:

   • Migration (lift and shift) - Rehosting your environment with minimal changes.
   • Modernization - Going beyond just the runtime and considering aspects like automation, observability, and managed services.

2. Benefits of Modernization:

   • Cost savings
   • Increased business agility and faster time-to-market
   • Improved operational resilience and staff productivity

3. Typical Customer Journey:

   • Historically, customers have preferred to start with migration and then move to modernization.
   • This was due to lack of skills, too many choices, and the desire to build expertise.

4. Changing the Customer Journey:

   • To move directly to modernization, focus on the following:
     1. Building the right culture (top-down direction and innovation mindset)
     2. Investing in people and processes (training, evangelists, and change management)
     3. Leveraging technology (not just the runtime, but also automation, observability, and managed services)

5. Fullsteam's Approach:

   • Fullsteam, a multi-vertical software company, has acquired over 80 businesses and serves 60,000 customers.
   • Fullsteam aligns business and technology goals, and plots its business units on a four-box matrix to identify modernization opportunities.
   • Fullsteam is working with AWS to transform its business units from the bottom-left to the top-right corner of the technology four-box matrix.

6. AWS Modernization Pathways:

   • Move to cloud-native
   • Move to containers
   • Adopt managed databases
   • Move to open-source
   • Implement modern analytics
   • Adopt modern DevOps practices

7. Generative AI and Platform Engineering:

   • Generative AI, such as Amazon Q, can be a catalyst for improving platform engineering capabilities.
   • Use cases include chatbots for knowledge sharing, automated platform artifact generation, and developer assistance (code creation, testing, and maintenance).
   • Technology is the enabler for fostering a culture of innovation and assisting people and processes.

Call to Action

1. Think Big and Think Big on Behalf of Your Customers:

   • Take a long-term view (3-5 years) and consider the art of the possible.

2. Bias for Action:

   • Engage with your AWS account manager and explore programs like the Migration and Modernization Acceleration Program.

3. Learn and Be Curious, Dive Deep:

   • Take advantage of re:Invent to learn, network, and connect with other customers facing similar challenges.

Remember, the key to success is aligning business and technology goals, building the right culture and capabilities, and leveraging the power of technology, including generative AI, to drive your migration and modernization journey.