0

I'm working at an organization that is almost entirely a "buy" versus a "build" shop. They prefer to implement off-the-shelf applications than build them from scratch, and have nothing in the way of lifecycle management tools. As a result, things get implemented and never updated, then one day the pain of using outdated applications gets too much (e.g. the vendor sends a notice that the 15-year-old platform will no longer be supported) and they panic trying to find a new solution.

I've been searching for some sort of tooling to help this situation. At the outset, it seemed sensible to search for "Application Lifecycle Management Tools", but that turned up a list of tools focused on development and getting a product out the door in revisions. I tried a bunch of other terms (Configuration Management, Portfolio Management, etc.) and came up with nothing.

How do your organizations manage the lifecycles of implemented software? Do you manage requirements for the implementation projects? Do you use the tools to manage upgrades? How about patches and version updates? When do you know its time to go to a new application to serve the same business need?

Improve this question
  • I'm not clear why this was marked "off-topic". My questions are specifically focused on processes, not tools. One question asks "do you use tools," though I honestly expect answers to be "no". Can someone elaborate to help me make my question more clear? – J.D. Ray Aug 16 '19 at 16:37
1

]project-open[ is an open-source project management / portfolio management tool, that has a large feature list out of the box, so it's pretty much "buy". Some organizations used it for ALM, as it also contains a ticket tracker and a configuration database etc. Configuration is not easy, though. Disclosure: I'm part of the ]po[ team.

Improve this answer

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.