Tech Bloat

I’m old enough to remember an age where getting work completed using a computer was mildly straight forward. Sure there was a lot of additional functionality that people would specialize in, but for the vast majority, you wrote a paper in Microsoft Word. You built presentations in Microsoft Powerpoint and spreadsheets in Microsoft Excel. Yes, there is a lot to consider in highlighting that we all basically just used Microsoft for years, but that’s not what this is about. The point is that for many years there, it was customary to turn to Microsoft for business productivity. Like pre-1956 Route 66, for better or worse, your avenue was obvious. There was no worry that your company wasn’t as efficient as another, or that someone knew something you didn’t, there was one path (for the most part) and everyone was using it.

I like the analogy I used there, because when the Interstate Highway System was built, your manner of travel evolved. More routes, more choices, and opportunity for shortcuts. It’s an imperfect analogy though, as the explosion of options and routes available, from a business productivity stand point, eclipse any amount of roads we could have built. We have thousands of apps that all do similar things, the differences come down to slight changes in specialization and messaging. People’s preferences are playing a much larger role in the tools we adopt then they ever have in the past, and the approaches we take to running a business, or doing our job, have followed suit. Now that AI has been introduced, the ability to personalize processes, automate tasks to mirror the way we work, and answer the questions that keep us up at night, seems close at hand, but is it?

AI exposes the possibilities of the future to the masses, but it isn’t able to solve the complexity and personalization business owners and their staff are seeking. We are so aware of what exists and what will exist, that it makes it difficult to feel like we are making appropriate choices now. It’s not, necessarily, analysis paralysis (being overwhelmed by options) as it is worry that aligning with something incorrect now, will cause additional hurdles when the real value of AI is finally implemented. I have talked to many business owners who aren’t looking to be told that the way they are operating is “correct,” but just want reassurance that it’s not a hinderance. Everyone is imagining a competitor who has some secret route or optimization that is putting them well ahead and it’s causing many to drag their feet.

There is no secret route, there are optimizations that can be made, but reliance on the current state of AI is folly. We’ve all felt a slight annoyance as we re-entered information, had to summarize an email exchange in an ancillary platform, or updated a status for the thousandth time. It’s in these areas that AI looks compelling, as these small hassles build up, but navigating through the litany of platforms and tools your company uses is difficult. This brings us back to the title, this is the consequence of tech bloat. Tech bloat is the accumulation of unused or inefficiently use tools we’ve adopted. Understanding your companies tech bloat, realigning it, and removing platforms that have overlap or no value, is the key to unlocking the new potential routes AI affords.