Upmarket private bank C Hoare is implementing change
management applications to allow it to continue running on legacy
platforms, rather than migrating the data to a single
system.
"Migrating all our systems to a single technology platform is not a
viable proposition, both in terms of the costs and the technical
feasibility," said the bank's deputy head of IT, Lawrie
Houghton.
Using the Changeman DS and Teamtrack applications from Serena
Software, C Hoare will be able to continue using applications that
operate in both Windows 2000 and Unix environments.
The Teamtrack software is web-based application, which means it is
comparatively simple to update and requires no intervention on the
bank's desktop PCs.
UKfinancial services companies often have platforms that are at
least 20 years old and, in some cases, they were implemented by
employees who left the organisation many years ago. The legacy
systems have been adapted to accommodate new processes and the
documentation is not well maintained.
"The reality of the situation is that banks often do not have the
people who understand those applications," said Ian Forsythe, UK
manager at Serena Software.
Serena Software has also implemented its change management
applications for other major banks, such as Spanish giant Banco
Santander, which is acquiring Abbey, and UBS.