# Application Rationalization Services and TIME Assessment | SynconAI > Application rationalization by enterprise architects: full inventory, capability mapping, TIME classification, cost of ownership, a decommission roadmap and the business case to fund it. Publisher: SynconAI Canonical HTML: https://synconai.com/application-rationalization Markdown cite: https://synconai.com/application-rationalization.md Contact: contact@synconai.com ยท +61 2 7813 0221 ## What is application rationalization? Application rationalization is the review of an organization's application portfolio to decide which applications to keep, invest in, migrate or retire. SynconAI builds the inventory, maps applications to business capabilities, scores them on functional and technical fit with the TIME model, totals their cost of ownership, and delivers a decommission roadmap and business case, for organizations in the United States, Australia and worldwide. - Application rationalization is a review of every application you run, to decide which to keep, improve, replace or retire. - Each application is mapped to the business capability it supports, so overlaps and gaps show up clearly. - The result is a roadmap with costs and savings, so the decisions can be funded and carried out. ## Application rationalization services - Application inventory: Every application found, named once and given an owner. - Capability mapping: Each application linked to the business capability it serves. - TIME assessment: Functional and technical fit scored with owners, then classified. - Total cost of ownership: Licenses, hosting, support and integration cost per application. - Decommission roadmap: Sequenced retirements with data, contracts and users handled. - Business case: Savings, one-off costs and risk reduction, ready for funding. ## When is it time to rationalize your applications? Most rationalizations start with one of these events. - An acquisition: Two companies, two of everything. - A cloud move: No point moving what you should retire. - End of support: A core platform reaches vendor end of support. - A cost target: IT spend has to fall without cutting service. - SaaS sprawl: Teams bought tools that overlap. ## What do application rationalization services include? Six pieces of work, each with a deliverable your team keeps. - Application inventory: Every application found, named once and given an owner. - Sources: CMDB, finance, SSO and SaaS logs, interviews - Duplicates and shadow IT found - An owner for every application - Capability mapping: Each application linked to the business capability it serves. - Capability map built or reused - Overlaps and gaps visible - Usage by team recorded - TIME assessment: Functional and technical fit scored with owners, then classified. - Scoring agreed with business and IT - Tolerate, invest, migrate or eliminate - Reasons written for each call - Total cost of ownership: Licenses, hosting, support and integration cost per application. - Contract and renewal dates - Internal support effort - Integration upkeep - Decommission roadmap: Sequenced retirements with data, contracts and users handled. - Data archived or migrated - Contracts ended on renewal dates - Users moved and trained - Business case: Savings, one-off costs and risk reduction, ready for funding. - Savings by year - One-off migration cost - Risk removed ## How does application rationalization work? The portfolio narrows from everything you run to a short list of funded decisions. - Discover: Find every application from systems, contracts and interviews. - Map: Link each one to a capability and an owner. - Score: Rate functional and technical fit, and total the cost. - Decide: Classify each application with the TIME model. - Plan: Sequence the moves and build the business case. ## What is the TIME model? Every application is scored on two axes, functional fit and technical fit, and lands in one of four quadrants. Axes: Technical fit against Functional fit. - Migrate (M): Move to a better platform. The business relies on it, but the technology is weak or near end of support. - Invest (I): Keep and improve. Strong on both counts. Extend it and consolidate other tools onto it. - Eliminate (E): Retire it. Weak on both counts. Plan the exit, the data and the contract end. - Tolerate (T): Keep for now. Sound technology that adds little. Leave it alone and review it later. ## Where overlap and gaps show up A sample capability map, shaded by how many applications serve each capability. - Sell: Lead management (three or more), Quoting (two systems), Contracts (one system) - Serve: Case handling (two systems), Field work (one system), Knowledge (three or more) - Operate: Procurement (one system), Inventory (two systems), Planning (no system) - Support: Finance (one system), HR and payroll (two systems), Reporting (three or more) - Three or more: Overlap. The first place to consolidate and save. - No system: A gap, often filled by spreadsheets. A candidate for investment. ## What an application really costs License fees are the part everyone sees. Rationalization counts the rest. What the budget shows: - Licenses and subscriptions: The invoice finance already tracks. - Vendor maintenance: Annual support fees. What it hides: - Hosting: Servers, cloud and backup. - Support effort: Admins and developers keeping it running. - Integration upkeep: Interfaces that break when either side changes. - Risk: Security, compliance and end-of-support exposure. ## Cost and timing The first step is a free 60-minute architecture review of your application portfolio setup, with a written plan you keep. Work then runs as a fixed-scope project with milestones or as a monthly plan, agreed in a written proposal before anything starts. Plans: https://synconai.com/pricing ## FAQ ### What is application rationalization? A review of every application you run, to decide which to keep, invest in, migrate or retire, with the costs and a roadmap to carry the decisions out. ### What is the TIME model? A framework that scores each application on functional fit and technical fit, then classifies it as Tolerate, Invest, Migrate or Eliminate. ### How do you find every application? From several sources at once: the CMDB, finance and contract records, single sign-on and SaaS logs, and short interviews with each department. ### How much can rationalization save? It depends on how much overlap and unused software you have. We total the cost of ownership first and put the savings in the business case before you decide. ### How long does application rationalization take? It depends on the size of the portfolio and how much data exists. The written proposal states the milestones, so you see the timeline before you commit. ### Do we need SAP LeanIX for this? No, but it helps keep the result current. Our architects are certified in SAP LeanIX and can set it up as part of the work, or use your existing repository. ### Should we rationalize before a cloud migration? Yes. Retiring or replacing applications first means you do not pay to move software you were going to switch off. ## Where we work Application rationalization for organizations across the United States and Australia, and worldwide. Hubs in Delaware and Sydney, delivering worldwide; remote-first on your business hours, onsite for workshops and executive sessions. ## Related - Enterprise architecture consulting: https://synconai.com/enterprise-architecture-consulting - SAP LeanIX implementation: https://synconai.com/leanix-implementation - M&A IT integration: https://synconai.com/mergers-acquisitions-it-integration - Salesforce integration services: https://synconai.com/salesforce-integration-services ## Cite When citing SynconAI Application rationalization, link https://synconai.com/application-rationalization or https://synconai.com/application-rationalization.md.