Declutter your Tech Stack for Greater Efficiencies

Spring is long gone, but you never got around to refreshing your technology stack or cleaning out the extra bulk from your IT closet. Now that summer is here, it's the perfect time to challenge your IT teams to identify all the outdated, underutilized, and downright ugly tech that is stunting your growth and silently draining your bank account. 

Licensing, storage, and maintenance costs are not cheap – but you continue to pay to avoid addressing the problem – shoving the nagging to-do list into the dark. But that out-of-sight, out-of-mind ideology will come back to haunt you. It always does. All those expensive extras are still connected to your network but remain unseen, unmonitored, and unpatched – opening the door for threat actors to sneak into your systems and explore, undetected, for as long as you suffer from decision paralysis.

Streamline your IT

What software is still sitting around from the former CISO's pet project? What apps are no longer relevant to your business processes? How many laptops are stacked on a shelf waiting to be decommissioned – or worse, do you know how many former employees still have your laptops are are still able to access your network?

Executive leaders must make hard business decisions about what technology to eliminate and what to add. Tech leaders must look beyond the promised value of certain features to make sure the disruption caused by implementation, continuous management, and training employees on the new tool is worth the effort. Most point solution tools are rarely integrated fully into your tech stack and remain on the periphery - adding to your risk.

Mature, integrated, technology strategies are built with long-term business goals in mind. Don't be distracted by every tech tool squirrel that promises high-impact changes - because they may not be the right fit for your business model, and you may not be able to realize their value.

The more tech tools that clutter the work landscape, the more disengaged your employees will be. Harvard Business Review published a study that American workers toggle between too many applications a day, wasting five working weeks a year just looking for the right data and tools they need to complete a job. 

Your tech closet clutter is wasting your valuable resources.

Risk Brainstorming

What is the worst that could happen when you disconnect a tool deemed unnecessary? 

Maybe you could stage an outage and learn what your employees actually depend on to get work done, and what workarounds are available. At the very least, this disaster risk training exercise could open your eyes to what your employees see as critical assets, access, and applications - and add those lessons learned to your business continuity plan.

The truth is that siloed applications and data lead to lost time and increased employee frustration - which adds to your risk. 

Risk brainstorming is a great way to find those disruptive blind spots that cause friction in your organization. Once you have a better understanding of your risk, it is easier to align tech decisions with leadership goals. 

A risk brainstorming session to generate ideas works at every level of the business – from employees to the Board–and can take many forms. Here are some ideas to start your risk discussion:

• Identify all assets – digital and physical – and rank them by priority
• Create a connectivity matrix – what systems are codependent on others, what lurks on the periphery, and identify the risk of cutting connections
• Create a SWOT matrix – Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats

The idea is to start the discussion and discover excess bulk that is not compatible with your existing systems and processes. Then you have the opportunity to make decisions to simplify your tech stack and reduce your risk. 

Invest in Simplicity

Netflix may have popularized the KonMari Method of decluttering living spaces – but Marie Kondo's tidying principles are applicable to your tech 'closet' too. Her first rule is to "Commit yourself to tidying up." This means "setting the intention to seriously tidy up and resolving to put in the time and effort required." While we may think we need each and every app and tool to maximize profits, the truth is that fragmented technology is depressing your growth and leading to frustration.

With the right Solutions Provider to help support your inventory and consolidation exercises, you can declutter your tech stack and streamline your IT to maximize operational efficiencies. The advantages of consolidation are many – less risk, fewer costs, more impactful tools, more satisfied end users, future-focused growth, and simplified maintenance. 

Early, planned disruption enables clarity and alignment between invested partners. Avoid the chaos of clutter and act decisively to simplify your tech responsibilities and improve your security posture. A consolidated tech stack is more resilient against cyberattacks, economic uncertainty, and resource leakage. 

TBC as your Realignment Partner

TBC, an IT Solutions Provider with over 26 years of experience as a managed services provider, is ready to be your realignment partner. As TBC's client, you will have access to multi-disciplinary IT experts who can provide a depth of knowledge and IT experience so your organization can thrive and reduce risk in today's economy.

Our certified architects and engineers and 24/7/365 SOC want to give you the attention you deserve, the security you want, and the comprehensive IT management you need to meet customer demands and investor expectations. TBC is the IT leader you can trust to consolidate and manage your tech stack.