Why This Matters Now
Forget lift-and-shift. That was 2019's answer. AI transpilers and agentic operations platforms changed the cost curve, and changed it fast.
- AI-driven code conversion – COBOL-to-Java and RPG-to-API tools can turn multi-year modernization projects into multi-month migrations.
- Agentic operations platforms are becoming more common, with models such as DXC's OASIS combining human teams with AI for mission-critical environments.
- Cloud providers continue offering stronger incentives to encourage businesses to move workloads away from aging data centers.
- “Clean core” ERP is becoming the new baseline, as organizations increasingly avoid rebuilding the same systems twice.
Why So Many Enterprises Hire Outside Teams
Here's the uncomfortable part. Mainframe-literate engineers are retiring faster than companies can replace them. The people who actually wrote the original COBOL? Mostly gone, or close to it.
- Specialized skills can be expensive to maintain on payroll year-round, and finding qualified talent quickly can be difficult.
- An experienced outside team may have already executed the same modernization playbook many times, while internal staff may have limited exposure to similar projects.
- Internal IT teams can continue running day-to-day operations while an external team handles the transition.
- Fixed-scope contracts can help limit project risk, while permanent hires remain an ongoing expense after the project ends.
Companies Worth Knowing
DXC Technology
Scale is the word here. Over 86,000 application specialists worldwide, around 65,000 workloads moved every single year — numbers most rivals can't touch. The recent playbook spans mainframe-to-cloud migration, a "Modernization Factory" delivery model, and OASIS, the newly launched approach to agentic operations. KION Group used DXC to leave its traditional data center behind for Microsoft Azure, chasing speed it couldn't get otherwise. United Airlines went a different route — infrastructure modernization paired with crew and passenger apps, same partnership, different problem.
- Industries: aerospace, energy, insurance, travel, public sector
- Partners: AWS, Microsoft, Google Cloud, Dynatrace
Endava
Payments and financial engineering built this company's reputation, long before retail and healthcare clients showed up. Delivery hubs in Romania and Moldova pair nearshore pricing with genuinely senior architects — not junior teams running on a script. The modernization approach here favors breaking monoliths apart into cloud-native pieces rather than ripping out a mainframe wholesale. Banks tend to like that. Less risk, fewer sleepless nights for the people signing off on it.
- Industries: payments, banking, insurance, mobility
- Services: cloud-native re-architecture, API platforms, DevOps
Globant
Started in Buenos Aires, now listed on the NYSE, built around something it calls "Studios" — dedicated teams organized by domain instead of by client. AI, gaming, cloud, whatever the project actually needs. Disney and Electronic Arts have both used Globant for digital product work, and the company's low-code roots still show up in how quickly its teams can spin up a modernization proof-of-concept. AI-assisted development isn't a slogan here. It runs through the actual delivery process.
- Industries: media, entertainment, retail, gaming
- Services: AI-augmented engineering, cloud migration
Thoughtworks
This one's older than most names on this list, and it shows. The firm helped popularize agile development and continuous delivery back when those were radical ideas, not industry defaults. Its public "Technology Radar" still gets read by architects deciding which frameworks deserve their bets. Engagements lean architecture-heavy — microservices decomposition, platform engineering, the kind of work built for clients who want to actually own their system afterward, not just receive a handoff and a goodbye email.
- Industries: financial services, retail, telecom
- Services: microservices architecture, platform engineering
Ciklum
Nearshore teams across Ukraine, Poland, and Central Europe, headquarters now sitting in London. Manufacturing and consumer goods clients come here for dedicated teams that scale up and down without the overhead of a full outsourcing contract — no army of account managers, no bloated middle layer. The pitch is flexibility, plain and simple. Teams embed directly into a client's own delivery process instead of operating as some separate, distant vendor.
- Industries: consumer goods, manufacturing, fintech
- Services: dedicated teams, legacy system integration
Quick Overview
| Company | HQ / Region | Known For |
|---|---|---|
| DXC Technology | USA, global | Mainframe & legacy migration at scale |
| Endava | London / Romania | Cloud-native engineering, payments & finance |
| Globant | Buenos Aires / USA | AI-driven "Studios," entertainment & retail |
| Thoughtworks | Chicago / UK | Agile roots, microservices architecture |
| Ciklum | Kyiv / London | Nearshore teams, flexible scaling |
How to Pick the Right Partner
A logo on a pitch deck proves nothing. Dig deeper before signing anything.
- Has this company actually worked with your technology stack? COBOL mainframe work and a complex Java monolith are very different challenges.
- Ask for reference clients in your own industry, not just a generic portfolio or highlight reel.
- Fixed-scope or time-and-materials? Understand which pricing model you are agreeing to before signing the contract.
- Where is the engineering team actually located, and which time zones do they work in?
Final Thoughts
None of these five wins every situation. A bank untangling forty-year-old COBOL needs different muscle than a retailer rebuilding a product catalog. Match the actual track record — not the marketing deck — to the stack sitting in front of you right now. Sounds obvious. Gets skipped constantly anyway.
FAQ
Is modernization the same as cloud migration?
Not quite. Migration moves an app. Modernization rebuilds how it actually works.
How long does a typical project take?
A few months for small systems. Multiple years once a mainframe estate is involved.
Do smaller companies need this too?
Yes, just expect a smaller team and a tighter scope than an enterprise deal.
What's the biggest mistake companies make here?
Treating it like a one-off project instead of an ongoing discipline.
