Case study

    Modernizing a U.S. platform that serves 300M citizens

    A GovTech platform that started operating decades ago now serves over 300 million citizens through government agencies across the country. Built before the cloud era, its architecture is carrying far more than it was designed for. We are rebuilding it for modern infrastructure and the security standards public-sector buyers expect, while the organizations that rely on it keep working.

    Service

    Data and AI Digital Transformation Microsoft

    Industry

    Government Public Sector

    The software layer behind everyday government services

    State & local governments rely on mission-critical software most citizens rarely notice. It powers essential services like permitting, licensing, inspections, and the other machinery that decides whether a restaurant opens or a house gets built. When these systems are slow or unreliable, citizens feel the consequences of waiting on permits, and government employees feel frustrated for not being able to address their concerns.

    The global GovTech market serving state & local governments is growing from $10.8 billion in 2026 to $12.9 billion by 2029. Tight budgets and chronic staffing gaps are pushing agencies toward SaaS applications and away from custom legacy systems that are expensive to maintain. For software providers serving this market, this demand is an opportunity and a trap.

    The shift favors platforms that can scale securely on modern infrastructure, and it exposes the limits of those that can’t. Our client, one of the leaders in this market, needed to modernize their platform that government agencies depend on to provide services to their constituents. 

    When a platform outgrows the assumptions it was built on

    Legacy platforms face this same problem: new business requirements pile up faster than old architecture can absorb them. Design decisions that made sense years ago turn into technical debt and eventually into business risk. The result? A system whose shape reflects its history instead of its current demands.

    Our client’s platform was initially designed as an on-premises solution and evolved into a SaaS product used at scale. Each new version was built on top of the original architecture. Environments drifted apart over the years, and earlier design decisions prevented the kind of portability that modern cloud infrastructure supports.

    At the same time, public-sector buyers are increasingly asking vendors for federal and state security certifications (e.g. FedRAMP and GovRAMP). Many legacy platforms were not designed to meet compliance requirements, and for vendors competing for the next tier of government contracts, certification now decides who gets shortlisted at all.

    Making migration the easy part

    Brick icon 2
    Standardized environments are what make migration predictable, so we established a consistent operating foundation before modernizing any applications. By standardizing the way environments are managed and secured upfront, we reduced risk and created a safer path for transformation.
    App icon 2
    That foundation required clearly defining how each component could interact across the environment. As a result, every deployment follows a common architecture on Azure, with centralized governance and controls, and dedicated security boundaries for workloads that require isolation.
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    Developers now deploy changes through a governed, automated process that embeds compliance and security requirements directly into delivery workflows. We designed the system to enforce its own standards, so auditors can see the controls working and public-sector buyers get the assurance they need before a procurement decision.
    Model icon 2
    The new platform foundation now runs alongside the existing one, and the project has entered the incremental migration phase. We are moving legacy services one by one where there is clear value in doing so. The target state doesn't require every service to move, so we made hybrid architecture part of the design. The new and legacy platforms are built to run together, and which services eventually move is a business decision rather than a technical requirement.
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    We are executing the program through an integrated team spanning Europe, Latin America, and the United States, with multiple workstreams advancing in parallel. Each team is responsible for a distinct domain of the platform. By combining our AI-first approach approach expert review at every stage, we are covering ground that would otherwise have taken years.

    A platform that can scale in today’s environment

    Modernizing a mission-critical platform while it remains operational left no room for a system that goes down, even for a moment. Throughout the program, the platform has continued to serve the agencies and citizens who rely on it every day.

    The results are already visible in how the platform runs day to day. Releases that once required extensive coordination and specialized oversight now move through a self-service, automated deployment process. At the same time, platform capacity scales dynamically in response to demand, improving performance during peak usage while reducing operational costs.

    We are now merging separate environments into one common setup that's easier to manage and behaves the same way everywhere. We are also building security and compliance into the design, opening the door to contracts the legacy platform couldn't reach. At the same time, dozens of legacy applications now have a clearly defined, low-risk migration path to modern infrastructure.

    The client’s team can now build on a platform that keeps pace with their needs, clears compliance, and competes on the time-to-value that wins government deals.

    300M

    citizens relying on a platform that keeps running through modernization

    50+

    legacy apps with a clear, low-risk path to containerization 

    10+

    custom environments consolidated into a repeatable and maintainable pattern 

    The order of operations matters more than the destination

     

    This program was built on a simple but critical principle: reducing complexity and variation is what makes large-scale transformation safe and sustainable. For a platform that supports the daily operations of agencies across the country, sequencing matters. Establishing consistency first creates the foundation for AI-first modernization, security, and innovation to succeed without disruption.

    If your current architecture is slowing innovation or limiting access to new markets due to security and compliance requirements, we can show you what a phased AI-Driven Legacy Modernization journey could look like for your platform.

     

    Microsoft contributed funding to this modernization through its End Customer Investment Funds (ECIF) program.

    → Reach out to learn more about available funding

     

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