5 Steps to Relieve App Overload and Improve Productivity

Updated November, 2024

Almost every company shares a common problem of using disjointed systems and disparate applications. This is especially true at architecture and engineering firms which rely on a range of software to deliver your services. It can be a considerable struggle to juggle all of the apps and tools, train your team in how to use them effectively, and ensure you are getting value from the cost of software subscriptions.

There are so many software options, and apps for specific tasks, that many firms develop subscription fatigue. Too often firms so many subscriptions that they don't even know what they are paying for. 

This sort of “App Overload" is a challenge facing businesses across the globe, and costing them billions of dollars a year. Investing in technology and new tools is a great way to improve your business efficiency and enable your team to be more effective, but it is important to invest wisely, and have a system that documents what apps you are using, what apps you are paying for, and a process to review these on a regular basis to make sure you are spending you dollars wisely. 

What Is Application Overload and How Does It Happen?

A simple definition of application overload is when a company is using a wide variety of independent business applications to get work done, but these tools don't integrate with each other. The result is a bunch of disparate workplace applications that have a detrimental impact on productivity. You aren't getting the full value from the subscription or making full use of the tool. 

When starting out, most companies tend to solve problems in the quickest and cheapest ways possible. This means that they end up relying on multiple systems, not all of which communicate with each other. While these independent software applications might provide a specific service, or solve pressing needs, connecting these disparate systems isn’t always easy and cheap. Although you are utilizing the tools to provide services today, you are also building up tech debt. Meaning you will incur extra costs in the future when you are ready to update your systems and tools. 

The result: leaders have trouble getting a clear view of their business costs and effectiveness. This creates operational inefficiencies that can be detrimental to the bottom line and impede the company’s ability to reach its full potential.

Understanding the Negative Impact of App Overload

A study conducted by the CITE (Center for Information Technology in Education) shows that a surplus of apps is causing a great deal of confusion in the workplace. Among the 2,000 workers from the US, UK, and Australia surveyed, 69% wasted up to an hour a day navigating between apps. That’s up to 32 days a year of wasted time. Time that could be spent on billable work, creating value for your clients. 

For small businesses with tight margins, as many architecture and engineering firms are, this is a huge hit to profitability. Image getting 32 days of extra work from each of your employees.

The same research—titled From Work Chaos to Zen: How Application Overload Redefines the Digital Workplace—reveals the biggest problem is with communication apps and channels. On average, a single worker juggles four communication apps every day, which is pretty much like holding four conversations at once. Think Slack, Teams, Zoom, Google Meet, SMS, Email, Phone, social media messaging, etc. It’s even worse for 19% of the respondents, who said they use six or more communication apps at one time.

Not only does navigating between apps waste productivity and billable hours, but it also costs companies money to maintain multiple apps. This not only has an impact on time and money lost, but it has a negative psychological impact on your staff. Switching between apps causes disruption. 

The average worker flips between apps as frequently as ten times per hour. Not only does this waste time, but 56% of respondents felt that searching for information stored across different apps was disruptive, while 31% said it caused them to lose their train of thought.

And if you need more reasons to say no to using multiple apps, here they are.

• Combined, they cost more than a single system.

• Artificial intelligence integration is difficult.

• Digital plumbing is expensive and not reliable.

• Multiple vendors are required to debug and solve problems.

• Data isn't synced, meaning double entry, copy and pasting, and potential inaccuracies. 

Honestly, if you really want to do your staff a favor and ease their pain points, look into integrated software that avoids independent siloed applications. No one enjoys trying to juggle everything at once. Look to simplify your tech stack and do annual audits of your software subscriptions to look for apps you can abandon, or new options that can replace multiple older tools. 

Benefits of Integrated Software Solutions

Integrated software that brings multiple tools into one platform, reduces redundancy and increases efficiency. According to a recent study, more than 80% of executives believe that AI leads to a competitive advantage, and 79% believe it will increase their company’s productivity. It does this by reducing your need to open apps and find information because AI or machine learning does it for you. AI can search databases across your network and provide answers without an individual having to open multiple apps or databases. 

Taking this a step further, you should also be looking for single software platforms that can bring multiple tools into one ecosystem so it is easier for your team to engage with the app and find the information that need. For example, software that can manage time tracking, project scheduling, invoicing/billing, and accounting in one place. This will cut down on subscription costs and having one place with integrated project management and financial data that is fully integrated. 

Other benefits of integrated software and a united platform, include:

• 54% time savings

• 52% increased organization

• 51% better communication with colleagues

• 51% increased productivity

• 31% increased feeling of control over their work

When your staff only has to deal with one application, they’ll feel less chaotic and it opens their time so they can get work done. It cuts down on stress and increases job satisfaction and employee effectiveness. 

5 Steps to Relieve App Overload

So, the question is, “how can you get started on implementing one single integrated software?” Here are a handful of steps to get you on the right track. 

Step 1: Document and Analyze All of Your Different Apps

While it’s tempting to see each individual app as a problem-solver, when looking at the bigger picture, it could be causing problems. First make a list of every piece of software your team uses at the firm. Once this list is developed, you need to analyze all of your apps, what they do, and how important they are for your business. Look for overlaps, where multiple apps provide the same features. Get rid of anything that doesn’t improve how you work. 

Step 2: Perform a Cost-Benefit Analysis of Unified Systems

Next, perform a cost-benefit analysis. Make a spreadsheet where you can note down for every app how much you are paying each month or year. Don’t worry about the full cost, just the monthly software cost. Then, compare that total cost with the cost of a unified system if one exists. Can you replace 3 apps with one integrated platform? Would that save money? Would that improve efficiency? Would it save time?

You should also keep in mind that a unified system may come out at a higher cost. However, that cost comes with increased productivity, fewer disruptions, and more money saved. And by dealing with just one vendor, you will have easier customer support, plus you will gain access to all of your data more easily, which will give you a real-time picture of your business.

Step 3: Check to see if it is Cloud-Based and Mobile

The world today is cloud-based and mobile. If you are looking for a unified system, make sure it at least has a mobile app and works in the cloud. You and your team should be able to access your tools anywhere in the world - whether you are in the office, at a job site, or working remotely, you should have easy access to the software you need to be productive, and the data you need to make decisions. 

Step 4: Determine What Features You Need Now and in the Future

Do not make decisions based only on what you need today. If your business is growing, you don’t want to have to change your application after five years. So, make sure that you look into the future and choose a system that can work for where you want to be as well. Your software stack needs to be able to evolve and grow as your business scales. Make strategic decisions when you are small and nimble to set yourself up for long-term success. This may mean investing in a more robust (and pricy) system today, knowing that it will serve your firm as it grows. There is a huge cost of changing systems at a later date, and transferring your data between platforms. Invest in tools that will serve you for years. 

Step 5: Embrace Change

Lastly, we all know that change is difficult. However, it is necessary to survive and plays an active role in your success. Don’t be afraid to embrace change. It can help your firm be more productive and competitive in the marketplace. It is good practice to have a small committee that is tasked with tracking developments in software and technology, review new tools and apps, and analyze what may be helpful for the business. Constantly look for ways to improve your operations, streamline your apps, and give your team the best tools to deliver high quality services for your clients. 

How Does BQE CORE Relieve App Overload?

BQE CORE brings every part of your business into one system. It also is cloud based and has a mobile app giving you access from anywhere. The idea is to negate the need to switch between systems by providing everything under one roof, including:

• Time and expense

• Project management

• Billing

• Accounts Receivable

• Accounts Payable

• Integrations (like Zapier, Quickbooks, and more)

• Scheduling and workflow

• Business Intelligence

• HR management

• CRM

• Payroll (coming soon)

How exactly does BQE CORE help your business run more efficiently and avoid app overload? There are three areas, in particular, where CORE shines.

Real-time Visibility

When software systems are not integrated, you have multiple overlapping databases and cannot easily get a view of business performance. Reports showing performance across different departments are crucial to giving an integrated view of a company’s operations.

Most companies simply give up on acquiring this information on a regular basis because of the amount of time it takes to source, extract, and analyze this data. For those that can acquire this information, countless hours are wasted trying to tie unrelated, error-prone, and out-of-date information together. Consequently, businesses end up making critical decisions slowly based on inaccurate information, or they make hasty and risky decisions off of gut instinct.

BQE CORE offers real-time visibility on every aspect of your business. You can see your full financial health on one screen, review billing, check time and expenses, and more. We can handle even your most complex requirements and give you visibility. With all of your firm's financial and project data in one place, it removes the need for manual updates, copy and pasting things from apps to spreadsheets, and ensures your data is up to date and accurate. It can replace the vast majority of spreadsheets you are manually updating to get business insights into your firm. 

Fewer Non-Value-Added Activities

If your employees are bogged down navigating inefficient and disjointed processes, or jumping back and forth between apps to get the information the need, it increases errors and takes time away from their more important core duties. Such labor-intensive and manual tasks steal away time that could be otherwise spent on billable work or helping the company grow and innovate.

BQE CORE uses machine learning and simplified and automated processes to reduce manual tasks. In this way, you can gain access to the data, processes, and reports that you need as quickly and easily as possible. And if you replace multiple apps with BQE CORE it will reduce your subscriptions, minimize the learning curve of adopting multiple programs, and give your team an all-in-one system to manage your projects and finances. 

Decreased Integration Complexity and Cost

With so many disparate applications, IT wastes an enormous amount of time and money on integrating, maintaining, upgrading, and acquiring new versions of these applications. Once new versions are purchased, more integration and maintenance needs to be performed for all the different versions of software to work together. Consequently, valuable IT time that could be used to make the business more productive is wasted, while maintenance costs skyrocket.

BQE CORE is a single, unified system, which means you don’t have to worry about updating multiple platforms. You also don’t have to worry about multiple siloed systems that restrict management. Instead, you gain access to one interface and touchpoint, which decreases your potential for data integrity issues and debugging.