Tackling tech stack overload: 5 lessons from our expert panel

The talent technology ecosystem seems to be expanding daily, with legacy vendors launching new features and new startups entering the market each week. The result? Talent acquisition tech stacks with dozens — sometimes even hundreds — of tools. While these technologies are intended to make hiring easier, they often do the opposite.

Many companies are now dealing with overlapping functionality, redundant tools, and fragmented data that tells conflicting stories. One dashboard says time-to-hire is 43 days, while another says 48. This tech overload is driving talent leaders to ask: Is our tech stack an asset — or a limitation?

That was the core question behind Findem’s recent webinar, Leveraging Technology for Better Recruiting Outcomes, where we brought together three experts to share their lessons and experiences:

• Marilyn Pearson Hendricks, CEO & Managing Partner, WorkTech Advisory
• Ben Eubanks, Chief Research Officer, Lighthouse Research & Advisory
• Shane Noe, VP of People, ClickUp

Together, they offered real-world case studies, hard-won lessons, and practical advice for consolidating and optimizing talent tech stacks. Here are five of the most valuable takeaways.

1. More tools doesn’t mean better outcomes

It’s tempting to think that more tools means more productivity. And according to Ben, that’s partially true. Research from Lighthouse found that companies using more tools often report getting more done.

But there’s a catch. “The more tools you have, the less clarity you have into what’s actually happening,” Ben said. “All these tools create different islands of data. You end up asking: Which system is telling the truth? Which one is the right one?”

If you’re struggling to answer basic questions like time-to-fill, candidate source effectiveness, or quality of hire, your tech stack may be part of the problem.

2. Stop asking vendors if they integrate — ask how they integrate

Integration is one of the most misunderstood parts of tech stack management. Too often, buyers ask vendors a yes/no question: “Do you integrate with our ATS (or CRM, or HCM)?”

That’s the wrong question, according to Marilyn. “Of course, all of them are going to say yes. But passing a single data field doesn’t mean you have a meaningful integration,” she explained. “We need to go deeper. Ask: How do you integrate? What is your integration strategy?”

If you don’t understand the depth, quality, and flexibility of an integration, you’re likely setting yourself up for data silos and reporting headaches down the line.

3. Put governance in place — and involve IT from the start

Tech stack ownership is messy. Is it HR’s responsibility? IT’s? Procurement’s? According to Marilyn, the answer is: All of the above.

“Tech stacks are a shared asset,” she said. “Governance isn’t about one person owning it. It’s about getting the right stakeholders together — HR, IT, finance, operations — and aligning on how you manage technology as a business asset.”

Ben backed that up with research showing that IT wants to partner with HR. “We surveyed HR and IT leaders, and IT’s message was clear: ‘Put me in, coach.’ They want to help evaluate tools, assess integration depth, and flag risks upfront.”

Shane emphasized that IT’s involvement is especially critical during procurement. “The recruiting ops team might not know that sales already uses a scheduling tool like Calendly,” he said. “IT sees across all departments and can catch redundancies before you spend the money.”

4. When adding a tool, sunset two others

A cluttered tech stack doesn’t just drain your budget — it slows down your processes and confuses your data. To keep technology sprawl in check, Ben shared a smart approach borrowed from NASA: Every time someone requests a new tool, they have to retire one or two others.

“That changed the conversation,” Ben said. “It forces users to ask: Do I really need this tool, or can we get the same functionality somewhere else? It’s a simple rule that promotes rationalization over time.”

5. Beware the “one-size-fits-all” trap — especially with AI

AI tools for talent acquisition are exploding, promising to match candidates to jobs based on skills. But Marilyn cautioned against expecting a single tool to handle every hiring challenge across every role.

“I’m seeing a degree of specialization in the tools that excel at skills matching,” she said. “High-volume hiring is very different from executive hiring. Trying to apply one tool to every type of role is a kamikaze mission.”

Instead, Marilyn recommends being selective and strategic: “Start with your highest-volume roles or the ones that drive competitive advantage, and prioritize your tech investments there.”

It’s not just about tools, it’s about change management

One of the biggest lessons from the panel wasn’t about technology at all — it was about behavior change. Technology only works if your teams use it correctly and consistently.

As Shane put it: “Governance isn’t just a process — it’s behavior change management. You need to build muscle memory across HR, recruiting, and IT, so everyone understands why clean data matters and how each tool fits into the bigger picture.”

Ben agreed, adding that HR professionals need to upskill beyond traditional people management skills. “Learn to tell stories with data, understand system integrations, and ask the right technical questions,” he advised. “The future of HR is as much about data fluency as it is about empathy.”