The Double-Edged Sword of Technology Sprawl: Understanding its Impact on Cybersecurity and Costs for Small to Mid-Sized Businesses
Technology is the backbone of any successful business. From file storage solutions to customer relationship management (CRM) software, technology plays a vital role in the day-to-day operations of small to mid-sized businesses (SMBs). However, with the adoption of multiple technologies comes the phenomenon known as 'Technology Sprawl.' While these tools can streamline operations, they can also complicate the landscape, leading to potential security risks and cost inflations. This post aims to explore the impact of technology sprawl on both the cybersecurity and cost of SMBs and hopefully will help improve your due diligence process when it comes to adding new technologies or tools to your technology stack.
What is Technology Sprawl?
At its core, technology sprawl refers to the uncontrolled expansion of various technologies—be it software, hardware, or cloud services—within an organization. Unlike carefully planned IT architecture, sprawl often occurs in a haphazard fashion. For instance, different departments might purchase their own solutions to meet immediate needs, without considering (or even being aware of) the broader IT strategy. This lack of coordinated planning can lead to duplications, inefficiencies, and a tangled web of systems that do not necessarily communicate well with each other. Ultimately, technology sprawl creates challenges in oversight, administration, and management, often leaving the door open to elevated risks and inflated costs.
Impact on Cybersecurity
Multiple Entry Points for Attackers
Every application, solution, or device introduced into your network is like adding another door to your house. The more doors you have, the more difficult it is to ensure they're all locked and secure. When you're dealing with a sprawl of technologies, you're also dealing with numerous potential entry points for cybercriminals. This makes it increasingly difficult to secure your digital environment, especially if these various technologies are not well-integrated to offer a unified security posture.
Difficulty in Patch Management
Patch management is complex enough when dealing with a limited set of software and hardware. Throw technology sprawl into the mix, and you have a recipe for chaos. Each technology solution will have its own update cycle, vulnerability patches, and end-of-life issues. Ensuring that everything stays updated becomes a logistical nightmare, increasing the likelihood of overlooking a critical update, thereby leaving the system exposed to security risks.
Vendor Risks
Different vendors have varying levels of commitment and capability when it comes to cybersecurity. Adopting multiple technologies from multiple vendors means you need to understand and trust the security protocols of each. This entails additional time spent on vendor assessment, additional due diligence steps, and ongoing evaluation of the vendor’s approach and maintenance of cybersecurity.
Impact on Costs
Hidden Costs
While most organizations consider the initial investment when purchasing a new technology, they often overlook the hidden, ongoing costs. These can include annual or monthly licensing fees, the cost of additional hardware to support the software, and even human resource costs for the personnel required to manage these technologies, not to mention training both existing employees and new hires on how to properly use these new tools. As the technology stack grows due to sprawl, these hidden costs can accumulate significantly.
Resource Drain
Managing a broad array of disparate systems isn't just challenging; it's also time-consuming. This means your staff could spend most of their time putting out fires related to these technologies rather than focusing on strategic initiatives that could help grow the business. As a result, this resource drain could affect both the productivity and profitability of your organization.
Inefficient Use of Tools
With technology sprawl, it's not uncommon to find multiple tools in an organization that have overlapping features (Microsoft Teams and Zoom, for example). The cost of redundant capabilities across various tools can add up quickly. Often, businesses continue to pay for these functionalities in multiple tools without even realizing that they could streamline their operations and reduce costs by consolidating.
Strategies for Mitigation
Technology Assessments: Regularly audit your technology stack to identify redundancies and ensure each tool serves a unique purpose.
Unified Management: Consider using integrated solutions that can manage multiple aspects of the business, thereby reducing the number of tools needed.
Vendor Assessment: Before adopting any new technology, assess the vendor's security protocols and compliance with industry standards.
Change Management Controls: Assign someone to oversee technology changes and ensure that any changes go through a formalized approval process to ensure each change aligns with existing business objectives.
Conclusion
Technology sprawl is an inevitable challenge that SMBs face as they grow and evolve. While new technologies can drive efficiencies, they can also bring about complexities that affect both cybersecurity and cost. By taking a proactive approach to manage your technology stack, you can mitigate these risks and align your technology investments more closely with your business goals.
So next time you're tempted to add another tool to your tech stack, consider the broader implications. Balancing the benefits and drawbacks of each new addition will help you make smarter, more secure, and cost-effective technology decisions.
Technology assessments, unified technology management, vendor assessments, and change management controls are all services we at EON offer, and we’d be happy to continue the conversation around their importance to your organization. For more information on how to better secure your business's network and effectively manage your technologies, feel free to reach out to us.