Applications professionals have never been busier, yet business leaders lament how little they receive in return for their IT investments. Both perceptions have merit, but they only serve to divert attention from the solution. It's time for everyone to reset their priorities based on the new reality: The existing application portfolio consumes so many resources that only a trickle remains for strategic investment. Application assessments help create application transparency about the business value, cost, and health of existing applications, enabling IT leaders and business leaders to shift resources away from tactical modernization activity and toward projects that better support the enterprise's strategic business goals.