With 60% of IBM i users citing IBM i skills as a top concern after cybersecurity (77%), finding technological expertise in the IBM i becomes the top reason for CTOs to lose their peace of mind ~ As per 2025 IBM i Marketplace Survey by Fotra.
Surprisingly, there are still 40% of people who believe there is enough talent available or rather have the talent to do the job.
Bad News – The truth is harsh – IBM i talent shortage is for real.
Good News – You still have a bright hope with AS400 consulting services at your disposal.
Thinking of AS400 consulting as yet another cost center? Well, we encourage otherwise.
IBM i/AS400 consulting services is a profit-centric investment – if done at the right time with the right partner.
Thinking, “How?”
Let’s explore that in today’s read!
When is the Right Time to Consider AS400 Consulting?
The last good time to consider an investment toward AS400 consulting services was yesterday. And, the next good time is now.
No, we aren’t saying it for the sake of it.
8/10 of our AS400 customers/prospects say, “We are unsure if we should invest in AS400 consulting services or not!”
Well, the decision is yours.
What we could do is help you make the decision – by showing you the best possible scenarios where AS400 consulting may prove beneficial.
Let’s get going!
When Facing Legacy System Challenges
Again, this isn’t an attempt to question the integrity and robustness of your AS400 systems. Your legacy systems have stood the test of time for a long time.
But this doesn’t fade the truth of time – your business needs have evolved over time, but your IT ecosystem hasn’t!
The challenges of maintaining & upkeeping the legacy systems with the modern-day business needs presents a bigger challenge.
Outdated green screens decline user productivity.
Rising operational & maintenance costs strain your IT budgets.
Limited integration capabilities choke connectivity with modern systems.
Security vulnerabilities & compliance risks make your systems prone to breach.
And, that’s exactly why AS400 consulting services are invaluable.
Handling these legacy system challenges all alone makes you & your team counterproductive and powerless – burning more time & energy on low-value administrative tasks, sidelining strategic & core activities.
With AS400 consulting –
- You have access to top-tier AS400 consultants & experts
- You have expert guidance available to deal with legacy challenges
- You have an extended team to optimize & modernize legacy applications
AS400 consulting services are designed to help you to future proof your IT environment with improved scalability, security & long-term viability.
When Planning for an Upgrade or Migration
Your legacy systems have been the lifeblood of your operations.
What holds you back is an upgrade – Delayed. Deferred. Postponed.
Realize, your AS400 systems haven’t grown obsolete – your business needs have evolved. And, this growing difference between your technology and technological needs causes a deep disconnect.
If you rush into an upgrade without a clear action plan – you’re preparing for chaos.
It’s like an open invitation to –
- Unanticipated system downtime
- Unprecedented compatibility issues
- Unexpected operational & disaster recovery cost burns
And that’s exactly where AS400 consulting services prove instrumental.
A team of capable AS400 consultants help –
- Assess your AS400 environment & jot down a clear roadmap for an upgrade
- Execute the migration to cloud/hybrid environments without low-to-no disruption
- Optimize the new environment for performance, security and compliance protocols
AS400 consultants & experts bring in that confidence to make your technological upgrade a success. They help eliminate guesswork and ensure a strategic transition with no-to-low operational disruption.
CONNECT WITH OUR IBM i EXPERTS!
When Facing Staffing Issues & Observing Skill Gaps
60% of respondents cited IBM i skills gap as a top concern ~ As per 2025 IBM i Marketplace Survey by Fortra
This confirms that IBM i skill shortage and staffing issues is a growing concern among IBM i users, globally.
To keep your IBM i environment up and running, you need a team of AS400 experts and administrators with the right set of skills.
With most of the AS400 talent already retired, and few of them on verge of retirement – it’s difficult to find, hire, and retain skilled IBM i talent in-house.
Lack of expertise may lead to –
- An IBM i environment vulnerable to operational bottlenecks
- IBM i applications prone to security vulnerabilities & risks
- Stalled opportunities for modernization & growth
And, this is where AS400 consulting services pitch in as a strategic advantage.
An extended team of AS400 consultants & experts –
- Fill in critical skill gaps on your technical team without the hassle of hiring, training, and retaining
- Eliminate critical technical bottlenecks and risks of unpredictable system downtime
- Leverage their skills & knowledge to enable automation and modern-day best practices to keep your IBM i environment relevant
A capable team of AS400 consultants ensure that your IBM i ecosystem is responsive and resilient for your changing business needs.
They allow you to focus on innovation and growth, instead of burning your time & energy on staffing concerns.
When Planning for Process & Cost Optimization
There would merely be an AS400 CTO who would doubt the efficiency and robustness of AS400 systems, right?
Hands down, AS400 systems are built to last.
But you can’t blame the systems for man-made errors and redundancies, can you?
10/10 of our AS400 customers/prospects vouch for the competitive processes they have built around AS400. But, at the same time they have a thing or two to say about how their workflows are declining and operational costs are shooting through the roof.
Thinking, “What causes this contradiction?”
The silent killer is user productivity.
It’s declining every passing day, owing to –
- Redundancy & lack of automation in the AS400 workflows
- Extensive manual intervention that AS400 workflows demands
- Growing irrelevance between AS400 applications & business demands
Now, that’s where AS400 consulting services play a pivotal role.
A dedicated team of AS400 consultants helps you
- Streamline operations by eliminating redundancies & automating the mundane processes
- Optimize your AS400 environment for performance by revamping resource utilization
- Save cost by replacing/restructuring high operational expenditure resources
Working with an AS400 consultancy, you gain access to a seasoned team of AS400 experts who help you retain your AS400 investments while maximizing the ROI.
Next, let’s take a look at the top AS400 consulting services you can avail.
What are Different IBM i/AS400 Consulting Services?
AS400 consulting services is a broad term portfolio.
You can opt for AS400 consulting in any nature depending on your unique business needs.
Let’s understand this at a deeper level.
AS400 Application Development Consulting
Building or improvising AS400 applications calls for a deepened expertise.
A lack of apt expertise during application development or enhancements leads to –
- Prolonged development cycles
- Substandard coding practices
- Compatibility concerns
AS400 application development consulting services are designed to foster application development initiatives.
A dedicated team of AS400 consultants/experts function as an extension of your in-house technical team to shape your developments goals into reality.
The team of AS400 consultants ensures –
- Your business goals are in alignment with the application development
- Standard coding practices are followed to avoid performance issues
- Newly developed applications integrate with the existing systems
With an investment toward AS400 consulting services, you get to experience accelerated application development with minimized room for errors.
AS400 System Modernization Consulting Services
57% respondents said they are prioritizing IBM i modernization ~ As per 2025 IBM i Marketplace Survey by Fortra.
This statistic clearly outlines the need for IBM i application modernization.
IBM i applications that haven’t got an upgrade for a long time and lacks relevance with the modern-day computing needs restrict agility, obstruct innovation, and incur hefty maintenance costs.
AS400 system modernization consulting services are designed to help you transform your legacy AS400 ecosystem with no-to-low operational disruption.
A team of capable AS400 consultants guides you to translate –
- 5250 green screen consoles into intuitive web/mobile interfaces
- Legacy RPG code base into modern RPG code for better system integration
- Limited reporting capabilities into robust & dynamic data reporting capabilities
AS400 consulting allows a way of life to your legacy AS400 systems with strategic AS400 application modernization – making you ready for the future.
AS400 Integration Consulting Services
Integrating legacy applications with modern-day cloud solutions is a challenge!
It involves building integrations, using APIs and whatnot! – One wrong step and your mission-critical business data will be at stake.
Thus, AS400 integration consulting services.
These services are designed keeping in mind the complexities involved in the process of AS400 integration. The goal is to help execute smooth integrations without leaving room for weak links or data theft possibilities.
Here’s what AS400 integration consultants do for you –
- They help integrate AS400 applications with cloud/hybrid environments
- They help connect AS400 applications to enterprise-grade third-party applications
- They help create a cohesive IT ecosystem that functions with both legacy & modern-day technologies
A strategic approach to AS400 integration enables your AS400 ecosystem to communicate effortlessly with modern-day cloud-solutions & third-party applications – that too with no-to-low operational disruptions.
AS400 Cloud Migration Consulting Services
Moving your AS400 applications to the cloud environment, completely or partially, is a progressive step.
Cloud migration offers you the leverage of improved processing capabilities, enhanced resource scalability, and increased cost-saving opportunities – when done right.
AS400 cloud migration consulting services are designed to help you trasition your AS400 workloads from on-premises server to cloud environment with minimal operational disruption.
With capable AS400 consultants by your side, you can –
- Effortlessly shift your AS400 workloads to the cloud
- Be rest assured of data integrity & security throughout the process
- Rightsize the new cloud environment for performance & resource planning
A strategic AS400 to cloud migration under the guidance of capable AS400 consultants guarantees operational agility, resource extensibility, and cost savings in the long term.
AS400 Process Automation Consulting Services
31% of IBM i users prioritize IT and business automation ~ As per 2025 IBM i Marketplace Survey by Fortra.
Hands down, automation could do wonders to your AS400 environment.
It would reduce the manual intervention & burden on manual labor.
It would add up to the overall workflow efficiency & accuracy.
It would save time and material cost – caused by errors.
AS400 process automation consulting services are designed to help you attain this feat.
Thinking, “What changes with AS400 process automation?”
A team of expert AS400 consultants helps you –
- Automate mundane tasks like data entry, reporting & system health monitoring
- Integrate automation tools with AS400 applications for faster turnaround times
- Free up resources to focus on core value-based tasks & strategic initiatives
AS400 consulting services empower you to focus on core business objectives while a team of capable consultants does the due diligence.
They help you attain operational efficiency, and faster turnaround times for processes that would take ages, otherwise.
AS400 System Administration Consulting Services
System administration is crucial to attain high availability and uptime for your AS400 applications.
49% of IBM i users prioritize high availability and disaster recovery ~ As per 2025 IBM i Marketplace Survey by Fortra.
To be precise, system administration doesn’t come easy – watch the performance of the applications, monitor system health, keep an eye on the security & compliance aspects; it’s a lot to do, isn’t it?
And, that’s what AS400 system administration consulting services were desiged for.
An extended team of AS400 consultants takes care of all the due diligence while you and your team focus on growth and innovation.
Thinking, “What all I get with AS400 consulting services?”
A team of capable AS400 consultants that focuses on –
- Optimizing your AS400 environment for performance & availability
- Managing system upgrades & patch fixes for security & compliance needs
- Monitoring your AS400 environment proactively to reduce system downtime
With a capable AS400 consultancy in place, you don’t have to worry about disaster recovery and business continuity planning – they take care of it, proactively.
Looking for a reliable AS400 consulting services provider to help you attain operational efficiency and fill the skill gap on your technical team?
Look no further than Integrative Systems!
Integrative Systems – AS400 Consultancy of Your Choice
We, at Integrative Systems, bring in about two decades of experience helping IBM i users across industries build, upgrade, and maintain AS400 applications according to their unique business needs.
Our goal is to help our customers succeed first.
Today, amidst the evolving technological landscape, we help our customers retain their IBM i investments and future-proof their IBM i applications to stay technologically relevant today, and tomorrow.
Think we are the AS400 consulting services provider you’ve been looking for?
Drop us a line at [email protected] and our team of AS400 experts shall reach out to you in two business days.
Frequently Asked Questions about AS400 Consulting Services
1. What are IBM i/AS400 Consulting Services?
Ans- IBM i/AS400 consulting services are designed to help businesses relying on IBM i with all-around technological, talent, and transformational needs. These services include extended support for application development, upgrades, maintenance, cloud migration, integration, and modernization.
2. How do AS400 Consulting Services Benefit Businesses?
Ans- These services are focused on helping businesses stay competitive with their technology and retain their existing AS400 investments. AS400 consultants help businesses retain their investments by optimizing AS400 applications for performance and security, ensuring high availability. They also help modernize legacy AS400 applications to increase their resilience towards modern technologies.
3. How do AS400 Consultants Assess Business Needs?
Ans- AS400 consultants are seasoned professionals with proven expertise in the AS400 space. They prioritize finding the technological gaps between business needs and existing technology. They assess the infrastructure, workflows, and security protocols, and based on their findings, they suggest improvements.
4. How to Choose the Right AS400 Consulting Company?
Ans- To choose the best AS400 consulting services provider, you must vet them thoroughly. To begin with, you can check their years of experience and expertise in the said domain. Navigate through their services profile to understand the depth of offerings. Check existing client testimonials and confirm if there are any mutual references. Lastly, compare their post-delivery support clauses, SLAs, and pricing structure.
5. How much do AS400 Consulting Services Cost?
Ans- The cost of engagement depends on a variety of factors. The factors include – type of engagement, duration, complexity of the project, and scope of work. Certain intricate factors affect the final pricing of the project. At Integrative Systems, we are focused on helping our customers first. And, to make that happen, we believe in competitive and flexible pricing structures without any hidden exit clauses.
