This FastTrack Tool is a simpler, less rigorous approach to completing the program. Nonetheless, FastTrack addresses the fundamental elements of the program and is expected to support your efforts to improve the IT function. FastTrack is intended for organizations who have reasonable, simple and straightforward IT environments. Because it is simpler, FastTrack is an accelerated program, designed to be completed in a short period of time.

The important aspect of portfolio management for Applications Maintenance is determining the relative health of an application. Over time, the cost of supporting, maintaining, and extending an application can begin to exceed the cost and effort of replacing it. Know what applications reside in your Application Portfolio and their relative health before evaluating the merits of maintenance and change requests.

Info-Tech Tip: Scale the Applications Inventory documentation effort to the size of the enterprise in order to keep it manageable. Smaller shops with few applications may not require the same depth of detail as larger enterprises, nor need to update their inventory records as frequently.

Info-Tech Tip: Base all decisions on whether or not to retire an application on sound business principles, including ability to support business process and cost to own. The decision to maintain, toss, or acquire an application should always be a bottom-line decision.

Not every change request can be approved, as there will always be circumstances that could help or hinder IT’s ability to prioritize them. Budget, staff availability, business requirements, and other factors must be taken into account when assessing inbound requests. This step is intended to assist IT in prioritizing change requests according to predefined criteria.

Info-Tech Tip: Regardless of company size, all enterprises should classify and prioritize change requests. While smaller companies may not elect to investigate the business requirements of each change request, organizations with moderate to high-complexity application environments should use all four of the tools in this step.

Finally, all Requests for Change must gain final approval from a governing body prior to requests becoming actual tasks for IT to perform. This is crucial for ensuring sign-off on all requests, as well as for communicating the status of requests to the users who initiated them.

Info-Tech Tip: Only larger companies will have a CAB already in place. While a CAB is ideal, smaller companies will understandably not have the need for a formal body reigning over all application maintenance requests. At the very least, these smaller companies should use the "Schedule of Approved Changes" to track and monitor the status of approved requests.

The important aspect of portfolio management for Applications Maintenance is determining the relative health of an application. Over time, the cost of supporting, maintaining, and extending an application can begin to exceed the cost and effort of replacing it. Know what applications reside in your Application Portfolio and their relative health before evaluating the merits of maintenance and change requests.

Info-Tech Tip: Scale the Applications Inventory documentation effort to the size of the enterprise in order to keep it manageable. Smaller shops with few applications may not require the same depth of detail as larger enterprises, nor need to update their inventory records as frequently.

Info-Tech Tip: Base all decisions on whether or not to retire an application on sound business principles, including ability to support business process and cost to own. The decision to maintain, toss, or acquire an application should always be a bottom-line decision.

Not every change request can be approved, as there will always be circumstances that could help or hinder IT’s ability to prioritize them. Budget, staff availability, business requirements, and other factors must be taken into account when assessing inbound requests. This step is intended to assist IT in prioritizing change requests according to predefined criteria.

Info-Tech Tip: Regardless of company size, all enterprises should classify and prioritize change requests. While smaller companies may not elect to investigate the business requirements of each change request, organizations with moderate to high-complexity application environments should use all four of the tools in this step.

Finally, all Requests for Change must gain final approval from a governing body prior to requests becoming actual tasks for IT to perform. This is crucial for ensuring sign-off on all requests, as well as for communicating the status of requests to the users who initiated them.

Info-Tech Tip: Only larger companies will have a CAB already in place. While a CAB is ideal, smaller companies will understandably not have the need for a formal body reigning over all application maintenance requests. At the very least, these smaller companies should use the "Schedule of Approved Changes" to track and monitor the status of approved requests.