Software Due Diligence
Why
Applications are a critical link in every organization's service delivery, but the underlying technical quality, maintainability, dependencies, and risks are often insufficiently visible. By increasing insight into these topics, it becomes easier to substantiate strategic decisions, manage suppliers based on quality and output, and establish contractual agreements based on mutual facts. At the same time, the pressure to modernize applications, manage risks, and ensure continuity is increasing.
Without factual information, it is difficult to determine whether an application is future-proof, where technical debt accumulates, what vulnerabilities exist, and how efficiently suppliers and clients can actually operate. The discussion about performance therefore remains subjective, and the assessment of investments or modernization choices becomes uncertain. Furthermore, there is often no comparative data to determine how an application performs compared to market standards or comparable systems.
This can lead to increased costs, longer lead times, and unnecessary risks associated with changes or migrations. Organizations lack sufficient control over their application environment and often lack the information needed to substantiate their decisions. Actual quality measurements and benchmarking are therefore essential for managing risks, improving performance, and making IT services predictable, comparable, and future-proof.
How
SourceMinds uses CAST Highlight and CAST Imaging to objectively and comprehensively visualize application quality and structure.
- CAST Highlight performs rapid, data-driven analyses of codebases and delivers concrete metrics on maintainability, technical debt, security, cloud readiness, and open-source compliance. These measurements provide insight into the quality and risks of applications at both the individual and portfolio levels. Furthermore, CAST Highlight includes integrated benchmarking, providing immediate insight into how an application performs compared to hundreds of similar systems in the market. This makes Highlight particularly suitable for technical due diligence, modernization issues, and refining or objectifying supplier agreements.
- CAST Imaging visualizes applications in detail and shows the architecture, dependencies, data flows, and the impact of changes. This provides insight into bottlenecks, complexity, and modernization opportunities. Imaging helps teams work more efficiently, supports migration and rationalization processes, and reduces the risk of disruptions through early insight into risks. By integrating CAST Imaging throughout the entire development process of new functionality, teams are able to continuously improve, conduct fact-based discussions, and optimally focus on delivering value.
SourceMinds links these insights to strategic and operational issues. The analyses are translated into concrete recommendations for modernization, portfolio management, risk reduction, and improvement of IT services. Furthermore, the results are used to better substantiate and manage contracts, SLAs, and supplier performance, making quality a structural component of governance and management.
Result
With CAST Highlight, CAST Imaging, and the SourceMinds approach, a clear and factual picture of the quality and structure of an application landscape is created. Organizations can therefore make informed decisions about modernization, investments, and sourcing. This leads to, among other things:
- Fewer disruptions due to better insight into risks and dependencies.
- Shorter lead times thanks to clear impact analyses and increased maintainability.
- Better agreements with suppliers thanks to objective quality metrics.
- Stronger contracts and SLAs that align with technical reality.
- Clear roadmaps for modernization, rationalization, and risk management.
- Lower lifecycle costs by reducing technical debt and optimizing maintenance.
This gives organizations control over their application environment and allows them to improve mutual performance based on facts instead of assumptions. CAST forms the foundation; SourceMinds ensures the translation into valuable guidance, choices, and results.
References
Words from our clients: hear what others have to say about our services
Joep mapped out the IT infrastructure for Inovum, benchmarked it against best practices, and provided realistic and achievable recommendations based on this analysis. He carefully considered what would be appropriate in relation to the organization’s size, existing expertise, and legal and regulatory requirements. Joep also assisted us in finding and selecting the right partners to carry out the upgrades and adjustments to our infrastructure.
I have come to know Joep as a highly skilled and pleasant consultant, as well as an extremely kind person. Someone who seamlessly transitions between strategic, tactical, and operational levels, and is not afraid to engage at the latter level. In addition, he possesses an extensive network. All these elements have been of great added value to both Inovum and myself.
I have known Joep for several decades. From personal experience I can say that working with Joep is a pleasure. In addition to being very knowledgeable, it is also fun to work with Joep. You have substantive good conversations in which there is also room to laugh.
Good, straight forward and fun conversations: what more could you want!
Good, straightforward and enjoyable conversations: what more could you want!
Having worked with Joep on various cycles I can highly appreciate and recommend his way of working:
- Down to earth, with the customers objectives in mind.
- Transparent to parties involved and with knowledgeable input to the discussions.
- Quality over speed, but don’t waste unnecessary time.
I have recently been working with Joep as part of a SAP Managed Cloud Provider selection process he was leading for a major global company. Joep is a very professional and deep experienced sourcing advisor with clear focus on customer satisfaction. Still he is fair and understands the requirements and drivers of the provider parties. As such he finds the right balance to achieve best results for the customer. His open and friendly character helps to moderate the selection process in an enjoyable and pragmatic way. I can recommend Joep to any customer that needs support to identify the right sourcing & cloud strategy. Personally, I hope that our paths cross again at other clients.
I highly recommend working with Joep. I know him as a trusted professional with deep knowledge of the IT industry. We worked together when Joep supported Fujitsu in benchmarking our services and advised them on optimizing them. I also learned that Joep is an excellent contract manager, service delivery manager, and sourcing director. Regardless of his role, he always maintains integrity in all his relationships.
I have worked with Joep in multiple opportunities. Joep is very passionate in sourcing/souring advisory, Joep always shows that he is knowledgeable on the different IT sourcing topics. He is very hands-on in solving potential issues but at the same time keeps the strategic goal in mind. Joep is easy to work with has a large network of people in the business, is flexible and above all transparent. It is a pleasure to work with Joep in customer engagements.
Joep is a trusted and valued member of our team. His industry knowledge, commercial experience, and his network of relationships are differentiators that, coupled with Joep’s demonstrable desire to achieve the best outcome for us makes our partnership rewarding and long-lasting.
Really enjoyed working with Joep on multiple engagements. Always very knowledgeable, responsive and pramatic. Looking forward to the next one !
I have worked with Joep in various ways over the past years. Joep has helped with RFP processes but has also been an interim Customer Service Manager on my team twice. The knowledge and expertise that Joe has developed over the years has been very useful. In his own way, he knows how to get employees and customers on board in a politically sensitive way. In addition, he has also been able to optimize Fujitsu's processes with his critical eye.
Joep helped us with the selection of a migration partner for the SAP S/4HANA migration. With a refreshing approach, Joep quickly drafted a requirement document for an information round. Thanks to Joep's extensive network, we were able to quickly sit down with six potential implementation partners for dialogue sessions.
Due to Joep's extremely flexible attitude, we were able to quickly adjust our plan to changing circumstances. In addition to the information sessions, Joep also helped us a lot with the contracts. During the implementation, Joep and his partners will continue to support us in monitoring progress and quality.
With his experience and knowledge of the IT market, Joep added a lot of value and our team was able to complete the selection process in a short period of time. Throughout the process, Joep clearly demonstrated that he does more than what was agreed upon. From the beginning to the end, he was involved and very driven. He is only satisfied when the customer is satisfied!
Joep is an effective connector who pragmatically implements optimization processes within organizations. He efficiently navigates and quickly provides direction with concrete action plans. Joep effortlessly creates connections between organizations by identifying their strengths and seeking combinations that lead to improved outcomes for all parties involved. With solid knowledge and an extensive network of experts, he ensures these professionals are readily available to accelerate progress. Joep also excels in the implementation phase, where he takes the lead and delivers tangible results.
I had the pleasure of working with Joep during a strategically important RFP process in the health insurance sector.
What really stood out was Joep’s commitment to a dialogue-driven approach. Rather than focusing solely on documents and deliverables, he actively encouraged structured dialogue sessions. That made all the difference — especially in a context where the client wasn’t just looking for a supplier, but for a true strategic partner.
Joep created space to explore not only the content of the proposal, but also the collaborative dynamics and the cultural fit — which are often the real differentiators in long-term engagements.
Beyond that, Joep brought clarity and momentum throughout the process. He ensured alignment between stakeholders, kept the structure tight, and safeguarded progress without losing flexibility.
A strategic procurement professional with both rigour and empathy — and a strong sense for the bigger picture.
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