NetApp: Removing redundant applications to realize efficiency in operations and refine decision-making
Bringing intelligence to enterprise architecture
Intelligent data infrastructure company NetApp Inc. wanted to clean up its application landscape and consolidate its data. Therefore, NetApp adopted an SAP LeanIX solution, a leading enterprise architecture management solution that provides a single source of truth and comprehensive visibility into its application portfolio. This enabled the company to identify and reduce redundant as well as overlapping applications, helping decrease costs and improve operational efficiency.
| Industry | Region | Company Size |
| High tech | San Jose, California | 12,000 employees |
application rationalization realized or planned.
applications retired, from more than 750 to fewer than 600.
source of truth for better IT investment decision-making.
Enterprise Architect, NetApp Inc.
Cutting down on applications and combating operational inefficiencies
NetApp Inc. is a data management company offering multiple storage solutions for on-premises, colocation, and cloud customers. With a 30-year legacy, it is a leader in offering first-party cloud-integrated services across three major public clouds, namely Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud Platform. In helping companies harness data in different ways, NetApp has its own data management system integrated as a direct native service by each hyperscaler.
NetApp established its enterprise architecture 12 years ago, maturing over time according to its governance model. The company was using its ERP process to review new software applications. In 2017, it pivoted toward cloud operations and created a startup-like cloud business unit with independent processes and tools. NetApp relaxed its governance rules during the pandemic to adapt to new ways of working and help ensure business continuity, which led to decentralized software purchasing. In parallel, multiple mergers and acquisitions introduced duplicate business processes and redundant software. NetApp’s portfolio consequently doubled from roughly 400 to 800 applications in two years.
The business struggled with operational inefficiencies resulting from static and outdated documentation based on Microsoft PowerPoint, inconsistent data flows across its business functions, and difficulty preparing for audits due to its fragmented data. NetApp recognized that its existing custom-built enterprise architecture tools were insufficient for managing its growing complexity.
Enterprise Architect, NetApp Inc.
Identifying redundant applications and consolidating data
NetApp selected an SAP LeanIX solution to streamline its application portfolio management and meet its operational challenges. The business began with a small proof of concept to demonstrate the solution’s value while adopting an incremental “quick win” implementation approach. Explaining how data-driven insights convinced the company’s leadership to consolidate its application landscape, Praveen Beedanagari, enterprise architect at NetApp, relates, “Numbers did the job.”
The company used application portfolio management functionality in the SAP LeanIX solution to manage its application mapping and rationalization alongside a software management foundation to consolidate its ERP and software-as-a-service data. It conducted business capability mapping, linking its application repositories to both broader and more granular capabilities across its business units to identify redundancies. NetApp also integrated its mergers and acquisitions data before performing a time analysis on the information to determine which applications would be eliminated and when. Finally, it centralized metadata from its disparate governance and compliance systems.
Moving forward, NetApp plans to integrate its software management foundation renewal with SAP LeanIX and expand its use of business transformation in the solution.
Enterprise Architect, NetApp Inc.
Delivering operational efficiency and driving better decision-making
Deploying the SAP LeanIX solution allowed NetApp to rationalize its application portfolio, directly removing or planning to remove almost 150 redundant applications within the year. The company also identified and paused 20 to 30 “zombie” applications without mapped capabilities. This has resulted in cost savings and streamlined operations. NetApp can use SAP LeanIX to enable strategic alignment of its migration plans with its target architecture road map for its cloud transformation. It can count on the solution to track progress and manage roadblocks in migrating its applications.
The company also has been able to improve decision-making. For example, presenting enterprise-wide views of business unit spending to its leadership team allows more-informed comparisons and decisions. Such is the solution’s popularity that those making executive presentations have shifted from using Microsoft PowerPoint to live dashboards in SAP LeanIX. Speaking about the move to dynamic real-time data presentations, Praveen confirms, “We’re not just seen as Microsoft PowerPoint content creators anymore. We can use SAP LeanIX to dig deep, depending on what type of information is needed.”
Adopting SAP LeanIX has contributed to a cultural shift at NetApp, with the solution delivering a single source of truth and fostering collaboration and transparency across various organizational levels.
Enterprise Architect, NetApp Inc.