Nine in ten IT professionals say that software consolidation is a priority in their organization, yet half feel overwhelmed by the thought of trying to tame their technology sprawl due to challenges from employees, disconnected data and systems, and the costs of completing the task. This from a new Quickbase survey of more than 1,000 IT professionals in the U.S. and United Kingdom asking about plans for technology consolidation and the state of “technology sprawl” - disconnected systems, data and point solutions – in their organizations.
“For a long time, organizations would solve one problem at a time with a point solution, without thinking about how that one tool could connect with other teams or projects,” says Ed Jennings, CEO, Quickbase. “Today, that approach is at the heart of technology and app sprawl, full of software, systems, and teams that can’t connect data and collaborate, reducing productivity. It’s time to break this habit and embrace a work management platform like Quickbase that connects apps, processes, and workflows to serve the whole business. This platform approach cuts the costs and challenges of a disconnected IT ecosystem, improving the ROI on your tech investment, connecting teams and data, and reducing the management burden on IT.”
Key Takeaways:
- Fifty-eight percent of respondents agreed that technology sprawl is a challenge, and 80% admit they are frustrated trying to manage software applications in that sprawl. IT pros surveyed also identified human and IT challenges as negative consequences of consolidation, led by objections and frustrations from employees in losing access to tools and learning new systems (37%) and loss of data (36%).
- Looking closer at that frustration, the survey revealed that IT pros are losing time managing and maintaining software applications - 68% said they spend 11 hours or more of their week doing this –as well as money due to balancing known and unknown costs of planning for future upgrades and maintenance (62% cite this challenge) and direct or indirect costs of implementing new software or apps (48%), not to mention customization or integration costs (50%).
- Over the next year, 56% of respondents expect to spend more time and resources on IT consolidation, and 73% of those surveyed predict their organization will continue to grow their software investments and add new technologies. All that sprawl and planned spending has put the consolidation bullseye on IT professionals, with 87% saying pressure to consolidate is mounting from both the C-suite and their own IT departments.
- Manufacturing industry professionals that participated in the survey cited the increased reliance on technology and frustration of managing apps. Specifically,
- 56% of manufacturers have increased their amount of software apps over the past 2 years.
- 43% expect their organization to invest in new software solutions over the next 12 months.
- Yet 38% spend between 11-20 hours per week managing and maintaining software applications and 22% spend 21-40 hours per week managing and maintaining software applications.
- 9 in 10 feel pressure to consolidate software with 87% reporting consolidation is a priority in their manufacturing organization.
