Keeping track of the latest developments in an ever-changing technological world is challenging. One thing has become increasingly clear — businesses need to standardize their technology stack. It means having a specific set of technologies used across the board to unify processes and simplify operations.

Standardizing your technology stack brings several benefits, including cost savings and increased efficiency. Let’s look at the 13 reasons businesses should standardize their technology stack in 2023.

1. Having A Standardized Technology Stack Is Critical To Growth

It becomes difficult to scale up without an organized system for managing your technology. Imagine being in a situation where you can increase your workforce and your base of operations. However, you experience multiple delays because you cannot create the same platform for the other location.

There are no common apps, software, or hardware used. Your company has been surviving, but there’s no standard to follow. You limit yourselves and must create this organization first, delaying your expansion and a profitable year ahead.

A standardized tech stack will allow you to identify what you need to update or replace. You can do so without disrupting operations or creating unnecessary costs. Imagine having a set platform for cloud solutions or communication apps. You only need to add more or upgrade to the next level of service to accommodate the scaling.

When you haven’t prepared it yet, you’ll spend a lot of time looking for applications and might settle on something beyond your budget. It can even be small inefficiencies, but they add up and make it difficult for you to grow.

It all begins with what you have now. Organize everything you need to keep your business running. Take note of all the applications and platforms to see if it’s possible to scale up with them down the line. When you find they are incapable, you can address them now instead of stopping your momentum in the future. Make sure everything has a paper trail for easier reference.

2. Eliminates Technology Crossover & Redundancy

When different departments are using varying software solutions, it risks redundancy. It usually happens when there’s no set standard and a communication gap between these areas.

Your marketing company may use a different project management tool than your developers. When they need to work together, it creates confusion, and departments begin arguing about which tools to use.

It also creates an environment where people are trying to look for the information they need. However, they have to communicate with the other department. It can also cause delays as there is no standard platform for all the work.

Another scenario is when both departments did not communicate their software needs. This leads the company to pay for two subscriptions of a single service. One account is enough to accommodate all, but there’s no standard, and the company spends more for both to have the same set of tools. It’s redundant and only affects your efficiency. You want to have a standard set of tools for all departments. This reduces the chance of data overlap and unnecessary costs. Not only that, but you’ll also experience a more efficient and productive work environment.

Solve the technology crossover by addressing them now before they become an issue. Talk to all your teams and learn what platforms they use and what can benefit your company. From there, help the other departments transition into a single set of tools to use company-wide. They’ll thank you later when work is easier with the same programs and platforms.

3. Reduces Technology Costs

Standardizing your technology stack can save you money in the long run by avoiding costly customizations. It also keeps you from buying multiple versions of the same software solution for different departments or users.

Instead of dealing with technology issues as they come, you address them as a company-wide application instead. For example, if the company needs a tool, you can ask the heads of each department if they need any specific add-ons or if there’s any software they prefer.

You’ll get input from each part of the organization, narrowing the costs and helping you identify what features you need. You’ll be able to save money by choosing the right software that hits all the boxes and then only paying one cost for everything.

Standardization makes it easy to manage spending because you know what tech solutions your company uses. That goes for every department across your organization at any given time. It will be less stressful to budget everything as a whole instead of smaller individual pieces.

On the other side of this issue, a company with a standardized technology stack may suffer from overspending on one platform. You only get software for one department, but another needs it too. They cannot borrow the other accounts, so you have to pay for another subscription. The costs double instead of only slightly increasing from your initial spending.

With standardization, you know what your company needs and can evaluate when something is no longer necessary. For example, one of your tools gains another feature once unique to another app. The other app becomes redundant, and you can remove it from the company, removing unnecessary spending.

4. Less Staff Training

When you implement a standardized technology stack, every company member accesses the same tools. This goes for software and hardware too. With it, you’ll only need one set of training manuals to teach everyone to use technology adopted by your organization. You’ll save time and money by having a single training session from a central point everyone learns from.

Staff can also help and support each other because they use the same tools. When you need to improve through training, you only need one cost to help your entire organization. You’ll also gain valuable insight as there are likely people in your company with the expertise to use these tools. They’ll also act as help for those onboarding, making transitions easier.

There will also be only one point of reference for any issues with the software. Compare it to a company that uses software that fulfills the same thing. Having two different software means you’ll train each group separately to become experts on their respective tools. Not only that, but it will be difficult for them to collaborate because each tool’s features may be different.

Not to mention there are also compatibility issues. Some tools do not work well with others, leading you to start from scratch to replicate the same results. You can easily avoid this with a technological standard that applies to all. It does not matter if one tool is better than the other. What matters is that everyone understands and uses the same ones.

5. Increases Efficiency & Understanding

With a standardized tech stack, your team can become more efficient because there is only one system for them to learn. This is better than grasping multiple systems that require extra time and energy. It may be a challenge to find ways to make them work together. With everyone in the same direction, it’s easier to support one another and transition to different projects using the same tools.

A standardized tech stack will also help understanding grow between each department. Collaboration is much better when everyone can understand the things they’re using. Everyone will be on board when one references something they did for the project.

It also makes transitions, transfers, and new hires easier. Imagine having everyone able to answer questions and teach people who are still trying to get the hang of operations. It’s a much
better scenario than waiting for a few experts who are the only ones equipped for the job. Minimizing the amount of technology used also lessens the burden on your staff, especially those who need to work on several things.

As a result, you’ll get a less complex system, simplifying operations in each department. You streamline everything and have everyone working together within one system. This goes the same for hardware, software, policies, and equipment. It will take some time to apply, but the increase you get will affect you for far longer than it takes to set things up.

6. Easier Software Management

A standardized tech stack gives you complete control over aspects of your software management process. Without it, you’ll worry about software compatibility issues with different systems. Not only that, but the same software may even have different versions, which affects the overall workflow. Suddenly, one software has a feature that the others don’t, requiring you to adjust to unnecessary costs.

With a standard, you don’t have to worry about these things. Everything works seamlessly with a unified technology stack in place. Using it will improve your software in many ways:

Have a single software used for specific tasks in the workplace. You’ll have one for documentation, projects, time management, work, and more. In some cases, one software can handle multiple functions: like Keap, a client retention management software that also includes powerful sales and marketing automation solutions.

Have a set policy that updates all software use at regular intervals. It ensures everyone is on the same page and one gets left behind on software changes.

The ability to get multiple licenses at a lower cost with bundling instead of buying software one by one. The more you’ll buy, the higher your bargaining power with a vendor.

It’s easy to budget software needs and check if some departments are lacking specific software.

Onboarding new staff members is also faster because you already know the technology they’ll use. It’s also easier to train them in something that’s your company’s expertise.

7. Requires Less Technical Support On Disperse Systems

You eliminate potential issues by having one unified system rather than disparate systems. Most problems stem from incompatibilities between platforms or issues due to version differentiations. With a single tech stack, you reduce the need for technical support in these areas. It allows you to prepare everything, improving the chances of everything working together.

The uniformity works by decreasing the need for people and guidelines to follow. Everything works as it should for your company.

For example, when your support team uses a single tool, they can easily access it to find solutions. A simple search using the same platform will reveal to them guidelines on how to handle tickets. You give them direction and support without unnecessarily overstretching your resources. They won’t have to grasp at straws when a challenging issue arises because they’ll have a standard.

Over time, your team will learn shortcuts that will make things more efficient with how they handle work. They may have already encountered the issue before or can smoothly navigate the tools to find a solution.

Of course, there will be some situations where it will still be challenging, even if they have standards. It exists to help minimize these scenarios to ensure that your company is operating at its best.

8. Consistent Reporting & Data Analysis

Having a unified platform makes it easy to report and analyze because you can easily compare them across the board. Not only that, but a standard creates a baseline that provides more accuracy toward the results. You’ll know when a marketing strategy isn’t performing as expected or notice if there’s a new trend developing in a specific niche.

All of this operates in a centralized database that you can access, and will contain information from all your departments. You’ll know what to improve, eliminate, change, or add. The best part about accurate data is that it gives you a clearer picture. Many studies prove that data analysis can lead to better business decisions.

As such, all your decisions will be based on statistical facts rather than a gut feeling or second-guess. You don’t have to try and go into your company blind, hoping that the following application you create works. You’ll see if your actions impact the results because you have information gathered to back you up.

Without a standardized tech stack, things will end up as a mess. Even if you have similar categories to measure, it will be hard to determine the best solution because of inaccuracies. There is no baseline, meaning higher performance in one department may not reflect the entire picture. It’s performing better because you see data skewed, favoring one software over the other.

9. Promotes Information Sharing

With all team members working on the same platform, it is easier and faster to share. You’ll be able to do it efficiently. In any sharing scenario, it’s easier for someone to open up and give their ideas when they know that all the others understand them completely. It leaves no room for doubt, and people can also use the ideas shared to add their own, improving upon them.

A standard technology stack also reduces the need for manual processes. There’s less time spent figuring out if other people are using the same software. In the worst-case scenario, you could share solutions to help the team, only to realize that they can’t because they’re using a different set of tools.

With less time spent trying to fiddle and figure things out, staff can dedicate more time to the work. They’ll know what to avoid, including the pitfalls, because other people have shared information about what went wrong with them. They’ll work faster because they see how others do it using the same platform, applying it themselves. The team can also transition faster and support each other when needed, with minimal distractions.

A single platform is also a lot more secure. There is a higher risk of managing information between different platforms. It might lead to sudden corruption, or one of the other platforms may be more vulnerable.

10. Minimizes Downtime

Everyone is ready to start the day. They boot up their systems only to realize that many don’t have the latest update available. They spend half the day updating their programs, and the company cannot proceed with any project while waiting.

With a standardized tech stack, all system and software updates happen on schedule. It also happens to everyone, and no one gets left behind. Because of this, there will be fewer issues of downtime due to problems with updates or outages.

Another issue that can cause downtime is compatibility issues. Everything seems to be working well so far, only for the team to discover that several applications cannot read or open the file. They have to spend time remaking the entire thing, troubleshooting, or even downloading software that does not work. All of these could’ve been avoided with standardization.

Downtime is a serious threat and one that many companies dread happening. A delay in one area can cascade into problems for the entire company. It can cause delays which affect productivity and profitability. Time is money, and a standardized tech stack will help you save both. The only challenging part is the start, as you transition everything and make the policies to keep things running smoothly.

In cases where downtime is unavoidable in a standardized environment, you can evaluate what went wrong. From there, you can apply whatever necessary solution the company comes up with to ensure that it doesn’t happen again.

11. Improved Customer Service

A uniform platform streamlines operations across all departments, meaning people respond faster. Your customer service team will stay on top of inquiries and can access data that your platform tracks. When the company doesn’t have these standards, they will spend time communicating with other platforms and teams. The information should be easy to access. Recent trends show us that customer service helps improve brand trust and loyalty.

Put yourself in the shoes of the customer. Without standardization, you’ll likely get calls or support chats that take too long. You already spend minutes in line and get service that will take a few hours to complete. There will also be cases where you’ll get transferred to another service, and the call drops because of compatibility issues. It is frustrating and will only sour your impression of the company you’re contacting.

A standardized tech stack addresses the concerns, improving your business in customer service. Customers always receive the best possible experience, no matter who they’re talking to in your organization. It’s vital for your customer service team to always remain on the same page. They can do that if they’re running with the same guidelines, software, and hardware.

12. Less Time Managing Vendors

Third-party vendors are essential to most businesses. You have to rely on them because they provide the resources, expertise, and skills your company may lack. There are also times when you have to work using their services and products, all while saving you money. The issue isn’t with the vendors themselves, but what happens when you’re managing multiple of them at once?

Having an unorganized tech stack will cause headaches and also lead you to compromise on subpar tech. You’re trying to keep everyone appeased, but it’s hard to keep a record of everything because they’re on separate platforms. It’s better to have a standard and set that standard with the vendor you’re doing business with. Once they cannot comply with that standard, you’ll narrow your options and find someone better to do it.

In another scenario, standardization allows you to have a single provider that handles all of these vendors. You’ll only have one point of contact, and the provider handles everything else as it’s what they do best. You save time and money, not needing to spend resources unnecessarily. There will be no more contract negotiations and vendor disputes. You’ve directed everything into a single entity to manage.

13. Increased Profitability

A unified platform bridges all your business operations to stay interoperable. You reduce costs while maximizing productivity, translating to increased profitability over time.

You want a standardized tech stack because it helps you free up resources. You’ll be able to automate some tasks and reduce the time needed to fulfill others. You have more people to use up for other things, and it’s also easier to scale up operations. The time you save means more time is available for work.

You’ll also have a happier workforce, and good morale is a strong driver for performance. You can give people more time to rest and take a break. Standardization also gives them an idea that you’re looking into improving their experience as employees.

If there’s any argument that stands above the rest, it’s this one. Businesses are always looking to improve their bottom line. Profit is correlated to success, and the extra money you get opens more opportunities for your business to grow. People have made significant sacrifices to ensure profitability. Standardization is only a bit of a setback to set up in comparison.

Putting It All Together

Standardizing your technology stack may seem intimidating, but its benefits are undeniable. You get greater efficiency in reporting, analysis, and customer service. There is better information sharing with teams, and you’ll ultimately get better profitability. With so many benefits it provides, businesses should make this transition sooner than later!

You don’t have to start unless you want to fulfill a deadline. Standardization can begin small. Begin evaluating what your company uses and what it needs to help with operations. Talk to management teams and department heads to see things from the perspective of your workforce. You can begin drafting software, checking the budget concerning it, and implementing guidelines.

You can do it one at a time. Change your client relationship management (CRM) platform first, then apply a good project management tool. Give your team time to adjust to each one. Over time, they’ll be more receptive to changes because they experience the benefits themselves.

Not only will it help save time and money, but it also ensures you remain competitive. The digital landscape is ever-changing, and standardization helps you focus on the future.

Transitioning to a new technology stack can be daunting.

But it doesn’t have to be! The Automation Agency has the experience and expertise to help you through every step of the process – from planning to execution. We’ll make sure your new technology stack is tailored to your specific needs and that the transition is as smooth and seamless as possible.

Let us take care of everything for you so you can focus on what you do best – running your business. With our help, you’ll be up and running on your new technology stack in no time!

Contact us today for a free consultation: [email protected]