2020 Mainframe Modernization and Integration Solutions Survey

Adaptigent’s Annual Mainframe Modernization & Integration Solutions Survey

Methodology

Our online survey was conducted in Q4 of 2019 with responses from 160 mainframe users in 11 different countries. Respondents represent a wide variety of industries, job functions and seniority in both the public and private sectors.

Survey Questions Index

Below is a list of the survey questions. To jump to a particular section in the survey, simply click on the link below the header topic you wish to view.

Migration and Integration Initiatives

Quick link to the section

1. Does your company have applications running on an IBM mainframe?
2. What mainframe integration initiatives are currently underway at your company?
3. What business goals are you trying to accomplish with your mainframe integration initiatives?
4. What mainframe migration initiatives are currently underway at your company?

Mainframe Integration Tools Utilized

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5. What mainframe tools are you currently using to create APIs that support mainframe integration?
6. Do you use an ESB for connecting systems to your mainframe?
7. What ESBs do you use for connecting systems to your mainframe?
8. Do you use any pre-built mainframe connectors provided by your ESB?
9. What Red Hat products do you use?

ESB Satisfaction

Quick link to the section

10. On a scale of 1-5, please rate your overall satisfaction with your ESB’s pre-built mainframe connector.
11. On a scale of 1-5, please rate the extent to which you experience latency or slow response times from your ESB’s mainframe connector.

Modernization Challenges

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12. On a scale of 1-5, please rate your overall satisfaction with your company’s ability to keep up with demands for APIs that support mainframe integration.
13. On a scale of 1-5, please rate the efficiency of your company’s development team in creating APIs that support mainframe integration.
14. On a scale of 1-5, please rate the extent to which each of the following initiatives pose a challenge to your company:
(a) Creating new APIs
(b) Upgrades and modifications to existing integrations
(c) Finding staff that can work with existing applications
(d) Internal attitudes toward mainframe integration

API Drill Down

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15. How many new or updated APIs that support mainframe integration get added to IT’s project list on an annual basis?
16. How many active APIs that support mainframe integration is currently in development?
17. What is the current backlog of APIs that support mainframe integration?
18. How many full-time employees are dedicated to developing APIs that support mainframe integration?
19. On average, how many labor hours does it take your company to develop APIs that support mainframe integration?

Open Banking Familiarity

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20. On a scale of 1-5, please rate how familiar you are with FedNow.
21. On a scale of 1-5, please rate how familiar you are with PSD2.
22. On a scale of 1-5, please rate how important preparation for Open Banking or FedNow is to your company.

Demographics

Quick link to the section

23. What best describes the industry that your company serves?
24. What best describes your job function?
25. What best describes your job level?

Migration and Integration Initiatives

1. Does your company have applications running on an IBM mainframe?

Yes, we currently have applications running on the mainframe. 66.3%
Not currently, but we have had applications running on the mainframe within the last two years. 4.4%
No, we have not had applications running on the mainframe within the last two years. 24.4%
I don’t know. 5.0%

Answered: 160

Percentages of companies running on an IBM mainframe

2. What mainframe integration initiatives are currently underway at your company?

Connecting the mainframe to internal, on-premise systems. 65.0%
Connecting the mainframe to internal, cloud-based systems. 38.8%
Connecting the mainframe to external, on-premise systems. 37.5%
Connecting the mainframe to external, cloud-based systems. 30.0%
No mainframe integration projects are currently underway. 11.3%
I don’t know. 6.3%

 Answered: 80

Mainframe Integration Initiatives

3. What business goals are you trying to accomplish with your mainframe integration initiatives?

I don’t know 6.3%
Other 3.8%
Regulatory compliance 18.8%
Hybrid cloud infrastructure 26.3%
Employee experience and satisfaction 31.3%
Agile / DevOps 48.8%
Customer experience and satisfaction 48.8%
Internal infrastructure and operations 51.3%
Cost reduction 53.8%
Digital modernization and innovation 53.8%

 Answered: 80

Mainframe integration business goals

4. What mainframe migration initiatives are currently underway at your company?

We have no plans to migrate applications off the mainframe. 21.3%
We plan to migrate some applications off the mainframe at some point in the future. 26.3%
We plan to migrate all applications off the mainframe at some point in the future. 10.0%
We are actively migrating some applications off the mainframe. 31.3%
We are actively migrating all applications off the mainframe. 6.3%
We have already migrated all applications off the mainframe. 5.0%

 Answered: 80

Percentage of companies with Mainframe migration initiatives

Mainframe Integration Tools Utilized

5. What mainframe tools are you currently using to create APIs that support mainframe integration?

CICS or IMS gateway tools 40.5%
IBM z/OS Connect 39.2%
In-house manual coding 31.7%
We are not using any integration tools 12.7%
Rocket Software 8.9%
Adaptigent Suite 6.3%
Other 15.2%
I don’t know 12.7%

Answered: 79

Current Mainframe API tools

6. Do you use an ESB for connecting systems to your mainframe?

Yes 26.3%
No 27.5%
I don’t know 46.3%

 Answered: 80

Percentage of companies using ESB for connecting systems to their Mainframe

7. What ESBs do you use for connecting systems to your mainframe?

IBM App Connect 47.6%
Tibco 42.9%
Mulesoft 23.8%
Other 19.1
Red Hat Jboss 4.8%
Red Hat Fuse 4.8%

Answered: 21

 

Types of ESBs used for connecting systems to the Mainframe

8. Do you use any pre-built mainframe connectors provided by your ESB?

Yes 33.3%
No 28.6%
I don’t know 38.1%

Answered: 21

 

Percentage using pre-built mainframe connectors provided by their ESB

9. What Red Hat products do you use?

3Scale 2.7%
Cloud Suite 8.0%
Fuse 9.3%
OpenShift 14.7%
OpenStack 18.7%
Jboss 29.3%
Other 40.0%

Answered: 75

 

Red Hat products used with Mainframe

ESB Satisfaction

10. On a scale of 1-5, please rate your overall satisfaction with your ESB’s pre-built mainframe connector.

(1) Extremely Dissatisfied (2) (3) Neutral (4) (5) Extremely Satisfied Weighted Average
0.0% 0.0% 57.1% 42.9% 0.0% 3.4

Answered: 7

ESB pre-built mainframe connector satisfaction rating

11. On a scale of 1-5, please rate the extent to which you experience latency or slow response times from your ESB’s mainframe connector.

(1) No Latency   (2) (3) Some Latency (4) (5) High Degree of Latency    Weighted Average
           0.0% 57.1% 42.9% 0.0% 0.0% 2.4

Answered: 7

ESB mainframe connector latency experience

Modernization Challenges

12. On a scale of 1-5, please rate your overall satisfaction with your company’s ability to keep up with demands for APIs that support mainframe integration.

(1) Extremely Dissatisfied (2) (3) Neutral (4) (5) Extremely Satisfied Weighted Average
4.6% 13.6% 40.9% 30.3% 10.6% 3.3

Answered: 66

Company satisfaction with mainframe API integration demands

13. On a scale of 1-5, please rate the efficiency of your company’s development team in creating APIs that support mainframe integration.

(1) Extremely Inefficient (2) (3) Neutral (4) (5) Extremely Efficient Weighted Average
4.6% 10.6% 39.4% 33.3% 12.1% 3.4

Answered: 66

Efficiency with company's development team in creating mainframe APIs that fully support integration

14. On a scale of 1-5, please rate the extent to which each of the following initiatives pose a challenge to your company’s mainframe integration efforts.

(1) Not At All (2) (3) Somewhat (4) (5) Very Weighted Average
Creating new APIs 11.1% 15.9% 42.9% 23.8% 6.4% 3.0
Upgrades and modifications to existing integrations 4.9% 21.3% 42.6% 21.3% 9.8% 3.1
Finding staff that can work with existing applications 4.8% 14.3% 36.5% 25.4% 19.1% 3.4
Internal attitudes toward mainframe integration 8.1% 9.7% 43.6% 22.6% 16.1% 3.3

Answered: 64

 

Challenging initiatives with company mainframe integrations

API Drill Down

15. How many new or updated APIs that support mainframe integration are added to IT’s project list on an annual basis?

1-25 42.5%
26-50 10.0%
51-100 17.5%
101-250 5.0%
>250 10.0%
None 15.0%

Answered: 42

 

16. How many active APIs that support mainframe integration are currently in development?

1-25 40.5%
26-50 16.7%
51-100 4.8%
101-250 4.8%
>250 11.9%
None 21.4%

Answered: 42

 

17. What is the current backlog of APIs that support mainframe integration?

1-25 37.8%
26-50 13.5%
51-100 8.1%
101-250 8.1%
>250 5.4%
None 27.0%

Answered: 37

18. How many full-time employees are dedicated to developing APIs that support mainframe integration?

1-10 50.0%
11-50 25.0%
51-100 4.2%
101-250 0%
>250 6.3%
None 14.6%

Answered: 48

19. On average, how many labor-hours does it take your company to develop APIs that support mainframe integration?

1-20 25.0%
21-40 28.1%
40-60 25.0%
>60 21.9%

Answered: 32

Open Banking Familiarity

20. On a scale of 1-5, please rate how familiar you are with FedNow.

(1) Not at all          (2) (3) Somewhat (4) (5) Very Weighted Average
        87.1%         4.3% 7.1% 1.4% 0.0%             1.2

Answered: 70

21. On a scale of 1-5, please rate how familiar you are with PSD2.

(1) Not at all         (2) (3) Somewhat (4) (5) Very Weighted Average
        77.1%        8.6% 10.0% 2.9% 1.4% 1.4

Answered: 70

22. On a scale of 1-5, please rate how important preparation for Open Banking or FedNow is to your company.

(1) Not at all (2) (3) Somewhat (4) (5) Critical Weighted Average
        65.2% 15.2% 12.1% 6.1% 1.5% 1.6

Answered: 66

Survey Demographics

23. What best describes the industry that your company serves?

Other (please specify) 12.4%
Banking 17.1%
Financial Services 16.2%
Education 11.4%
Public Sector 10.5%
Insurance – Health 7.6%
Manufacturing 5.7%
Computer Software 4.8%
Financial Technology 3.8%
Insurance – Property & Casualty 3.8%
Telecommunications 2.9%
Retail 2.9%
Logistics & Distribution 1.0%

Answered: 105

24. What best describes your job function?

IT 42.4%
Application Development 27.3%
Systems Engineer 13.1%
Product Management 5.1%
Programmer 5.1%
Sales 3.0%
Digital Strategy 1.0%
Other (please specify) 3.0%

Answered: 99

 

25. What best describes your job level?

Entry Level 0.0%
Intermediate 36.4%
Middle management 34.3%
Senior Management 25.3%
Executive/C-Level 4.0%

Answered: 99

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