Technology fragmentation means smaller, simpler systems

In the past, IT shops standardized their technologies, often around the vendor deemed the industry leader. In the 1960s and 1970s, that leader was IBM. They offered products for all of your computing needs, from computers to terminals to printers and even punch cards.

In the 1980s and 1990s, it was Microsoft. They offered products for all of your computing needs, from operating systems to compilers to office suites to user management. (Microsoft offered little in hardware, but then hardware was considered a commodity and available from multiple sources.)

Today, things are not so simple. No one vendor that provides products and services for "all of your computing needs". The major vendors are Microsoft, Apple, Amazon.com, Google, and a few others.

Microsoft has a line of offerings, but it is weak in the mobile area. Sales of Microsoft tablets, Microsoft phones, and Windows Mobile are anemic. Anyone who wants to offer services in the mobile market must deal with either Apple or Google (and preferably both, as neither has a clear lead).

Apple has a line of offerings, but is weak in the enterprise area. They offer tools for development of apps to run on their devices but little support for server-side development. Anyone who wants to offer services that use server-side applications must look to Microsoft or Google.

Amazon.com offers cloud services and consumer devices (the Kindle) but is weak on development tools and transaction databases. Google offers cloud services and consumer devices as well, but lacks the enterprise-level administration tools.

Complicating matters is the plethora of open-source tools, many of which are not tied to a specific vendor. The Apache web server, the Perl and Python languages, several NoSQL databases, and development tools are available but not with the blessings (and support) from vendors.

Development teams must now cope with the following:

Browsers: Internet Explorer, Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and possibly Opera
Desktop operating systems: Windows (versions 7, 8, and 10), MacOS X, Linux (Ubuntu, SuSE, and Red Hat)
Platforms: desktop, tablet, phone
Mobile operating systems: iOS, Android, and possibly Blackberry and Windows
Database technologies: SQL and NoSQL
HTTP servers: Apache, NGINX, and IIS
Programming languages: C#, Java, Swift, Python, Ruby, and maybe C++ or C
Cloud platforms: Amazon.com AWS, Microsoft Azure, Google cloud
Cloud paradigms: public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid

I find this an impressive list. You may have some factors of your own to add. (Then the list is even more impressive.)

This fragmentation of technology affects your business. I can think of several areas of concern.

The technology for your systems You have to decide which technologies to use. I suppose you could pick all of them, using one set of technology for one project and another set of technology for another project. That may be useful in the very short term, but may lead to an inconsistent product line. For example, one product may run on Android phones and tablets (only), and another may run on Apple phones and tablets (only).

Talent for that technology Staffing teams is an on-going effort. If your project uses HTML 5, CSS, JavaScript, and Python with a NoSQL database, you will need developers with that set of skills. But developers don't know everything (even though some may claim that they do) and you may find few with that exact set of technology. Are you willing to hire someone without on of your desired skills and let that person learn them?

Mergers and acquisitions Combining systems may be tricky. If you acquire a small firm that uses native Android apps and a C#/.NET server-side system, how do you consolidate that system into your HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Python shop? Or do you maintain two systems with distinct technologies? (Refer to "inconsistent offerings", above.)

There are no simple answers to these questions. Some shops will standardize on a set of technologies, combining offerings from multiple vendors. Some will standardize on a vendor, with the hope of a future industry leader that sets the standard for the market. Many will probably have heated arguments about their selections, and some individuals may leave, staying more loyal to the technology than the employer.

My advice is to keep informed, set standards when necessary, and keep systems small and simple. Position your technology to shift with changes in the industry. (For example, native apps on Apple devices will shift from Objective-C to Swift.) If your systems are large and complicated, redesign them to be smaller and simpler.

Build and maintain systems with the idea that they will change.

They probably will. Sooner than you think.