For companies like Acumen.zone, building future-proof tech stacks is essential for our customers to gain a competitive advantage, save costs in the future, and reduce their reliance on large tech teams that constantly rebuild their technology. A future-proof tech stack is flexible, scalable, and continuously integrated with emerging technologies.
Having a future-proof tech stack not only increases performance, reliability, and scalability, but it should also translate into direct cost savings. Often, this is the difference between spending as much, if not more, to maintain your tech as you originally invested versus budgeting to spend 20% of your original investment to keep your tech investment up to date.
Flexibility: Choose Modular Technologies
Using a microservices architecture is one approach that provides flexibility to quickly adapt to changes. Acumen.zone leverages a variety of microservices-based approaches and technologies to build and maintain a future-proofed tech stack. These modular building blocks can be reconfigured and replaced as needed to keep up with trends.
Building on microservices to create frameworks that consist of re-usable components amplifies the strategy as components can be maintained centrally while they may be shared across a diverse range of applications. This increases the ease and affordability of maintaining systems.
Tiering: Separate Layers of Technology
Tiered architecture is a software design pattern that separates the functional process logic, data access, computer data storage, and user interface into independent modules on separate platforms. This architecture is also known as multi-tier architecture or n-tier architecture. The most widespread use of multi-tier architecture is the three-tier architecture, which separates applications into a presentation tier, an application tier, and a data tier. The key benefits of tiered architecture include the ability to upgrade or replace any one of the three tiers independently, encapsulate critical components of the application, and retain them while the whole system keeps evolving
Scalability: Build on Cloud Infrastructure
Cloud computing enables easy scaling of resources based on demand. Acumen.zone utilizes cloud infrastructure such as Microsoft Azure to scale their tech stack and handle increases in traffic. The cloud provides a flexible and cost-efficient way to scale computing power up and down.
Integrating New Technologies: Continuously Improve and Update
The tech landscape is constantly changing, so tech stacks need to be continuously improved by integrating new technologies. Acumen.zone is always testing and implementing new technologies like AI and blockchain to keep their tech stack up to date. Staying on the cutting edge of new technologies helps future-proof tech stacks.
Intelligent Architecture: To Leverage the Investment of Giants
A key component of future-proofing your technology investment can be the architecture of specialized solutions built on the foundations offered by core software providers. Large firms such as Microsoft have enormous research and development budgets that you can benefit from by ensuring that your specialized solution evolves in sync with their roadmap. Why spend your scarce resources to achieve the same thing as someone else who can do it better with bigger budgets? At Acumen.zone, we generally advocate investing in building only in areas that are specific and unique to your business and integrating with the best for the rest.
Key Takeaways
To build a future-proof tech stack, focus on:
Flexibility through microservices This allows for quick adaptation to changes.
Tiering or layers that can be maintained independently
Scalability through cloud computing The cloud provides an easy way to scale resources up and down based on demand.
Continuously integrating new technologies. Testing and implementing new technologies like AI and blockchain helps future-proof the stack.
intelligent architecture to focus and conserve your technology investments in areas where they matter most.
Building a future-proof tech stack is an ongoing process that requires continuous learning and improvement. By leveraging a flexible, scalable infrastructure and staying up-to-date with new technologies, companies can gain a competitive advantage. The future is uncertain, but a future-proof tech stack can help companies navigate change.
Consider also that technology operates in the context of operations that must be future-proofed too.
One of the most relevant articles from the Harvard Business Review about future-proofing technology is “4 Ways Digital Technologies Are Helping Companies Future-Proof Their Operations“. This article discusses how digital technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning analytics, data contextualization, and augmented reality can help organizations future-proof their operations. The article also highlights how these technological advances can break down traditional barriers in essential industries and how they can help organizations reach their sustainability goals.
