“Old doesn’t mean obsolete”: Witold Leder on the future of legacy software and MD Consulting
As digital transformation accelerates, businesses increasingly rely on IT systems to support their daily operations. As a result, ensuring that existing software can keep pace with evolving business needs and technological demands has become a growing challenge. This is especially true for organisations that depend on specialised applications developed, maintained, and refined over decades.
By joining Spyrosoft Group in 2026, MD Consulting has combined more than 30 years of experience in software development and legacy system modernisation with the broader technological capabilities of an international IT group.
We spoke with Witold Leder, Managing Director of MD Consulting and CEO of Spyrosoft Solutions, about the future of legacy applications, the growing role of artificial intelligence in software modernisation, and the opportunities emerging from this partnership.
MD Consulting became part of Spyrosoft Group in 2026. What makes this an important step for both companies?
I believe the greatest value of this partnership lies in bringing together complementary strengths and expertise.
MD Consulting has been active in the German IT market since 1991, building long-standing customer relationships and developing deep expertise in business-critical applications, particularly those based on OpenText Gupta technologies. Over the years, we have gained extensive experience in maintaining, developing and modernising legacy systems that remain essential to our customers’ operations.
Spyrosoft brings an international perspective, a broad range of engineering capabilities and extensive experience with modern technologies across different industries.
For our customers, this combination creates new opportunities. They can continue working with the specialists who understand their systems and business needs, while gaining access to a wider range of technological expertise when it comes to extending, integrating or modernising their existing software.
Our goal is not to change what has made MD Consulting successful, but to build on these strong foundations. By combining our established expertise with Spyrosoft’s capabilities and leveraging the latest AI technologies, we can unlock new opportunities for our customers to evolve their systems, drive innovation, and prepare for future challenges.
What makes MD Consulting different from other software development companies?
One of its biggest strengths is the ability to work with technologies that many software providers no longer specialise in.
Take Gupta Team Developer as an example. It has been used for decades to build reliable business applications, and many organisations still depend on these systems for their daily operations. MD Consulting understands these environments extremely well. The company has experience in software development, licensing, maintenance, migration and technical support. This expertise also extends to solutions based on Gupta SQLBase and reporting tools such as Gupta Report Builder.
It’s a relatively specialised market, but the applications involved often support essential business processes. Having access to experienced engineers who understand both the technology and the business logic behind it can make a substantial difference.
Many organisations still use applications developed years ago. Does that mean their technology is outdated?
Not necessarily. We should distinguish between software that is old and software that no longer meets business requirements.
An application developed 20 years ago might still perform its core functions extremely well. In many cases, it contains business knowledge that has been accumulated and refined over a long period. Replacing such a system without understanding its complexity can introduce unnecessary risks.
The real challenge begins when the application becomes difficult to maintain, experienced developers are no longer available, or the technology struggles to integrate with modern infrastructure. That’s why I believe the conversation should start with a business question rather than a technical one: what does the organisation need from this system over the next five or ten years?
Sometimes the right decision is to modernise the existing application. In other cases, migration to a different technology will offer greater long-term value.
How can companies modernise legacy applications without disrupting their operations?
There isn’t a universal approach. Every organisation has a different technological environment, different priorities and a different tolerance for risk.
At MD Consulting, the starting point is understanding the existing application and the business processes it supports. For some customers, updating a Gupta Team Developer application to a newer version is sufficient. Others need to improve performance, introduce new functionality or connect their software to external services through APIs.
In more complex situations, modernisation of Gupta Team Developer applications may involve moving to a different technology stack. Whatever the chosen approach, business continuity remains essential. Companies cannot simply stop their operations while their software is being transformed.
A successful modernisation project should protect existing functionality while creating opportunities for future development.
Artificial intelligence is transforming software development. Can AI also help modernise legacy systems?
Absolutely, and I think this is one of the most interesting applications of AI in enterprise software engineering.
Traditional migration projects can be extremely demanding. Engineers need to understand large amounts of existing code, identify dependencies and reconstruct business logic that might not be fully documented. AI can help accelerate this process. At MD Consulting, we are developing this capability through AI-assisted migration of Gupta Team Developer applications. The approach combines automated code analysis, structured documentation, AI-supported code generation and verification against the original application.
However, I would emphasise that AI does not remove the need for experienced engineers. Human expertise remains essential for understanding business requirements, making architectural decisions and validating the results.
The real opportunity is to combine AI’s efficiency with specialised knowledge of legacy systems. That can make modernisation more predictable and help organisations move forward with greater confidence.
Does this mean that Gupta applications will eventually be replaced by technologies such as Java or .NET?
For some organisations, yes. But I don’t think replacing Gupta should automatically be the objective. The decision depends on what the business needs.
If an existing application remains reliable and meets current requirements, continuing to develop and maintain it may be the most sensible solution. On the other hand, organisations that want to introduce web-based interfaces, cloud services or more flexible integration architectures may benefit from moving towards Java or C#.
This is where MD Consulting’s experience in custom software development becomes particularly valuable. We can look at the entire software lifecycle, from assessing the existing application to designing and implementing its future architecture. The important thing is to avoid making technology decisions in isolation. Modernisation should deliver measurable value, not simply introduce a newer programming language.
MD Consulting also offers technical training. Why is knowledge transfer so important?
Technology is only one part of the equation. People are equally important.
One of the challenges businesses face with legacy software is the gradual loss of specialist knowledge. An application may be perfectly functional, but maintaining it becomes difficult when the engineers who originally developed it retire or move on.
Training helps organisations address that risk. MD Consulting has extensive experience providing Gupta Team Developer seminars, as well as training in Oracle, PostgreSQL, Microsoft SQL Server and other development technologies. These programmes are particularly valuable because they connect technical knowledge with practical project experience. For customers, investing in their teams means becoming more independent, improving software quality and preparing for future technological changes.
I believe knowledge transfer should be a natural part of a long-term technology partnership.
What new opportunities does belonging to Spyrosoft Group create for MD Consulting customers?
The most important change is the range of expertise we can bring to a project.
MD Consulting has strong capabilities in specialised enterprise applications, while Spyrosoft Group works across a much broader technology landscape. This includes modern Java and .NET development, cloud solutions, embedded software, user experience design and HMI development.
For a customer, this means that a project does not have to end with maintaining or upgrading an existing application. We can also explore how to introduce new digital services, modernise the user interface, integrate additional platforms or develop completely new software components.
At the same time, customers continue to benefit from MD Consulting’s established relationships, technical knowledge and understanding of the German market. I see this as an evolution of the company’s offering, rather than a departure from its original specialisation.
What do you see as the biggest opportunity for MD Consulting in the coming years?
I think there is a growing need for partners who understand both established technologies and modern software engineering.
Many organisations have substantial investments in existing applications. They want to protect those investments, but they also recognise that their systems must evolve. MD Consulting is particularly well positioned to help them navigate that challenge. Our opportunity is to continue supporting existing customers, strengthen our expertise in Gupta technologies and expand our ability to deliver modernisation projects with the support of the wider Spyrosoft Group.
AI will certainly play an increasingly important role, especially in understanding and transforming complex applications. But I don’t believe technology alone will determine success.
Ultimately, customers are looking for reliability, specialist knowledge and a partner who understands their business.
That’s what I want MD Consulting to continue delivering: the confidence to modernise without losing what already works.
If you’re interested in reading more about MD Consulting’s experience, particularly about how the German company supported organisations with business-critical applications, software modernisation, technical consulting and development services, click here: MD Consulting case studies.
MD Consulting became part of Spyrosoft Group in 2026, combining more than 30 years of experience in specialised enterprise software with the engineering capabilities of an international technology group. The company continues to serve its established customers while gaining access to broader expertise in modern software development, cloud technologies and AI-assisted modernisation.
Together, MD Consulting and Spyrosoft support organisations throughout the software lifecycle, from maintaining business-critical legacy applications to modernising existing systems and developing new solutions. Their combined expertise covers OpenText Gupta technologies, Java and .NET development, cloud integration, AI-assisted migration and custom software engineering. This allows businesses to modernise their systems while preserving valuable functionality and business knowledge.
Businesses can reduce disruption by assessing their existing applications, identifying critical dependencies and choosing a modernisation strategy that reflects their operational needs. Depending on the system, this may involve incremental upgrades, new integrations or migration to a modern platform. Preserving business logic and verifying functionality throughout the process are essential to maintaining business continuity.
Yes. AI-assisted legacy software migration can accelerate code analysis, dependency identification, documentation and code generation. For example, MD Consulting is developing an AI-supported approach to migrating Gupta Team Developer applications that combines automation with engineering expertise. Experienced developers remain responsible for architectural decisions, understanding business requirements and verifying the migrated application.
Not always. Gupta Team Developer applications can remain valuable when they reliably support business operations. Organisations may choose to maintain, upgrade or extend these systems rather than replace them. However, migration to technologies such as Java or C# may be beneficial when businesses need web-based interfaces, cloud integration or greater architectural flexibility.
MD Consulting specialises in developing, maintaining and modernising business-critical applications built with OpenText Gupta technologies. Its expertise covers Gupta Team Developer, Gupta SQLBase and Gupta Report Builder, including software development, licensing, technical support, upgrades and migration. The company also provides technical training to help organisations maintain specialist knowledge within their teams.
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