5 common signs you think you need new tech, but you don’t

“Everything is so slow and messy. I’ve seen this new piece of tech that’ll sort the problem.” Sound familiar?

If your firm isn’t running as smoothly as you’d like, a shiny new system might feel like a magic fix. Here’s the truth: Tech doesn’t fix broken processes; it just spreads the chaos faster.

If your workflows are clunky, people’s roles are unclear and the team aren’t sure who does what, new software won’t solve it. You will burn more time and more money.

A real-world example: 11 systems, £100kpa. Yup, still broken!

Melo worked with a firm using 11 different systems to deliver financial advice, costing them over £100,000 a year. This caused a world of problems:

• Staff rekeying the same data into multiple systems.
• Too many “manual workarounds.
• Costly errors were common.
• Everyone was frustrated.

Melo’s diagnoses?

1. No one owned the process.
2. Training had been overlooked.
3. There was no joined-up thinking.

Conclusion: The fix wasn’t new software but structure, clarity, and leadership.

Before you spend, stop and ask yourself, “what’s really broken?”

If your car’s engine light comes on, removing the bulb doesn’t fix the engine. Same with your business. The problems you see are often symptoms, not causes. Before you buy new tools, ask:

• Do we have the right people?
• Do we have the right process?
• Do they know what to do, and why?

5 common signs you think you need new tech, but you don’t

Are your problems really software ones? No, they are strategy, people and process problems wearing a tech costume.

1. “People aren’t using the system properly”

That’s not a tech issue – it’s a training and accountability gap. Most firms underinvest in training, especially when it comes to new technology. To get good adoption, your team need good quality training. One two-hour webinar isn’t going to cut it. Without good quality training, even the best software becomes just another step in a broken process.

2. “We’re not getting the insights we need”

It’s easy to blame the system. But most of the time, it’s not the tech, it’s what’s going into it. Data quality is everything! No matter how good the software is, the old phrase, “rubbish in, rubbish out”, still holds true.

Another common issue is setup. Melo commonly see firms who haven’t configured their reporting to reflect the questions they actually want answered. You can’t expect clear insights if you haven’t told the system what to measure or how to present it.

Finally, there’s interpretation. If the data being entered into the software is good and the system reporting is good, but no one on the team knows how to read it or turn it into action. That’s an understanding problem.

3. “It’s too clunky and slow”

Disjointed processes, duplicate steps, and lack of standardisation create friction. The answer is smarter design, not shiny new systems. If you are using stone age tech, it could be time for an upgrade but do yourself a favour – map out and simplify your processes first. Only then can you pick a system that will give you what you need.

4. “Things keep falling through the cracks”

This isn’t a software issue – it’s a communication issue. Is your team talking to each other? Are updates shared across departments? Are responsibilities and roles clear? Tech supports alignment. It doesn’t replace good processes and human conversation.

5. “No one knows how everything fits together”

You’ve most likely got yourself a strategy gap. If your team doesn’t understand why they’re doing what they’re doing, and how it fits into the overall business – no tech can fix that.

We find this in firms regularly. The leadership know where they’re going, but they’ve forgotten to tell everyone else. Your team need to know how their little cog fits into the bigger financial planning machine.

Think of tech is an accelerator – not the engine

Technology can help you move faster, but if your processes are flawed or your team isn’t aligned, all it does is speed up the chaos.

If you want tech to truly add value, you need to:

• Align your people
• Fix your processes
• Train your team
• Make sure they know where they fit

Then you can bring in tech to scale what already works.

What we’re saying is, don’t throw tech at problems. Get clear on what’s really broken, fix it, and then plug in the right tech.

Not sure what the problem is?

Before you invest in more tech, let’s make sure your foundations are solid. We’ll help you spot the bottlenecks, streamline your processes, and build a business that’s scalable.

Drop us an email at hello@melo.co.uk or call us on 0113 4656 111.