Every CIO has either inherited or created a Frankenstack—a patchwork of software assembled over time and held together by custom integrations, workarounds, and the know-how of a handful of individuals. Managing these systems drains both time and money. Complexity has silently emerged as IT’s greatest productivity barrier, restricting growth, exhausting teams, and weakening the institutional knowledge that keeps up the organizational resilience.
Chief Information Officer at Freshworks
The data paints a stark picture. A recent research report the Global Cost of Complexity by Freshworks reveals that duplicate and poorly integrated tools consume a sizable share of IT budgets, while employees lose almost an entire workday each week simply navigating fragmented processes. Gartner’s 2025 CIO Report echoes this reality: 59% of applications suffer from technical or business-fit challenges, and 62% of strategy leaders say their legacy operating models can’t support future business needs.
Organizations are being compelled to update operating models, modernize applications, and move from cost control to measurable business value—making simplification a strategic necessity. Beyond technology, CIOs must take a holistic approach by streamlining structures, upskilling talent, improving processes, and eliminating tool complexity. The starting point is a structured method that transforms a tangled Frankenstack into a seamless operational flow.
Three moves CIOs can make to restore flow:
1. Simplify the stack, strengthen the core
Assess each tool for usage, integration effort, and real business value, and eliminate systems that drain budgets and energy without delivering ROI. While consolidation carries risk, inaction is far riskier. Success comes from prioritizing efficiency, automation, and adaptability. Beyond tools, CIOs must also address organizational structures and processes that sustain complexity—simplification means removing structural barriers, not just reducing software.
2. Treat AI as a teammate, not a fix
Many organizations falter by rushing to deploy AI for quick efficiency gains while neglecting capability-building. Modern tools should enhance human skills, not replace learning. New technologies should be piloted in small, well-supported use cases before scaling. Skipping proper training delivers short-term gains but limits long-term expertise. According to the World Economic Forum, 77% of employers focused on upskilling and reskilling their employees in response to AI disruption, teams that treat AI as a learning partner—alongside streamlined processes—achieve both efficiency and sustained growth.
3. Turn simplicity into a performance metric
Simplification is not just an IT tactic but a core business principle. By identifying and eliminating redundant processes, handoffs, and delays—and measuring the results, organizations can boost performance. ALDI, the global grocery retail success is built on streamlined operations, a limited product range of around 1,700 items (compared to 30,000 in traditional supermarkets), and the removal of unnecessary steps, shows how simplicity drives agility, morale, and customer value.
The same approach applies to IT and CX: when leaders reward simplification over added complexity, cultures shift from accumulation to accelerated capability.
The People Cost Behind IT Complexity The human impact of complexity is deeply concerning. Nearly 60% of employees say they may leave their jobs within a year, often driven by frustration with repetitive work and unclear accountability. When engineers or project managers with critical institutional knowledge leave, the loss takes years to rebuild—making it more than a financial issue; it’s a fundamental risk. That’s why CIOs must look beyond tool consolidation to simplify structures, clarify ownership, and prioritize upskilling.
True simplification isn’t about cutting costs, but empowering people to perform at their best. As the Frankenstack era fades, CIOs who pair simplification with capability-building will create faster, more engaged, and more innovative organizations—delivering greater impact with less friction.
Authored by Ashwin Ballal is the Chief Information Officer at Freshworks