Your tech strategy is your business strategy: an e-com leader's guide
If e-commerce technology is not managed properly, the life of a digital leader is hard.
The typical e-commerce executive juggles 15+ tech systems. The bigger the company, the larger the tech stack usually is.
If e-commerce technology is not managed properly, the life of a digital leader is hard:
Repeatedly delaying launches because systems aren't ready;
Hearing "that's not possible with our current system" from developers repeatedly;
Excessive resources spent maintaining tech rather than building features for customers;
Fear of peak season because systems might not handle the volume;
Rising tech bills with no corresponding business growth;
No single view of customer behavior across sales channels;
High cart abandonment without a clear understanding of why;
Struggling to explain technology investments to non-technical stakeholders.
The list could go on and on…
If you’ve experienced anything from above, this article is for you.
The solution starts with understanding the fundamental architecture that should be driving your technology decisions.
What is a technology stack in e-commerce?
A technology stack is:
Not just a collection of software. It's a strategically aligned technology (and data) infrastructure that powers your business operations and customer experience.
Every e-commerce company has a technology stack. Your website, payment and shipping integrations, or a newsletter platform are just some of the systems in your technology stack. But they are all part of it.
When a customer clicks "buy now," dozens of systems spring into action. When it works, it's invisible.
When it fails, you're losing money by the minute.
The most important takeaway is that no matter how compelling your products or innovative your marketing, a digital commerce business can only grow as fast as its technology allows.
Why?
Because each new market, channel, or product adds complexity your systems must handle. Without deliberate architecture, temporary fixes become permanent and reactive additions create a fragile ecosystem, which blocks digital growth. For example, you simply cannot launch that new market on time because your tech stack won’t support proper localization or sync the data.
So, your technology isn't just supporting your business—it's either enabling or constraining your potential.
To be a successful driver, your technology stack must reflect your business stage, complexity, and growth ambitions.
→ Companies with deliberate, well-architected tech stacks can scale seamlessly.
→ Companies that don’t have a technology strategy struggle, because their infrastructure limits them.
The 3 types of software in your company
Most digital leaders we meet have a gut feeling their tech could work better but struggle to see the full picture. It's like trying to solve a puzzle without knowing what it should look like in the end. Here's how to make sense of it all…
There are 3 types of systems in your technology stack:
Technology systems: directly involved in the core shopping flow. Example: Shopify.
Data systems: business intelligence, extracting data from all tech systems. Example: Power BI.
Tools: no direct customer impact but supports operations. Example: Gmail.
Start making sense of your e-com tech stack
Your technology stack can be divided into layers. Each layer is a collection of tech systems that support a specific aspect of a customer journey.
⚠️ This framework is crucial for every e-commerce leader to understand.
A. Marketing layer - tools to attract and retain customers
B. Sales channels - where and how you sell products
C. Commerce layer - core systems managing products, orders, content
D. Service layer - systems for customer support and satisfaction
E. Integrations layer - connects different systems through APIs/gateways
F. Operations layer - backend systems running daily business operations
As some companies tend to acquire more than 100 systems throughout growth, keeping everything in structure is crucial.
Take a moment to think about the tech stack of your company: could you map them into these layers?
Why organizing your tech stack into layers is important
The technology stack is an inherently complex architecture, which only gets more complex as the company grows.
Organizing it into a mental model helps you make sense of it, identify gaps or redundancies, and plan strategic improvements. It ensures each piece of software has a clear purpose and relationship to other systems, making it easier to evaluate new tools, manage integration points, and align technology decisions with business goals.
When a technology stack fails to fulfill its ambition
All the problems mentioned in the intro of this article are just symptoms of poorly made technology decisions.
Here are the most common pitfalls digital leaders make, creating many more issues down the road.
01 The Complexity Trap
Failing to map business complexity before selecting technology.
As a result:
No clarity on exact business needs & tech requirements.
Implementing enterprise-grade systems for relatively simple operations.
Technology that becomes a costly liability.
02 The Buy vs. Build Mistake
Building custom solutions too early.
As a result:
Underestimated the long-term maintenance costs and development resources.
Not adopting existing software solutions that might meet your needs much cheaper.
Mediocre in-house development solutions’ quality and efficiency.
03 The Integration Gap
Not considering how technology pieces will work together.
As a result:
Data silos and no unified view of customer and operations.
Operational inefficiencies and process breaks.
No central source of truth for data.
Strategic ownership of technology matters
In the digital age, technology decision-making needs to move from the basement to the boardroom.
Here's why:
When software fails, money stops coming in
Technical flexibility makes or breaks your commercial ambitions
A world-class customer experience depends on integrated systems
Opening new markets or channels is only possible when technology enables it
Principles for technology decision-making
Technology decisions are fundamentally business decisions. They should align with your commercial objectives, factor in your team's capabilities, and consider your company's stage of growth.
What works for a €2M business rarely suits a €20M operation, and what's appropriate for €20M may become a bottleneck at €100M.
Therefore, there’s no easy and quick answer to what tech stack should you company use.
A wrong answer may cost you millions.
Check out this webinar to learn more ↴
That being said, the following foundational principles should always be followed:
Simplify First
Reduce business complexity before adding technology
Streamline business processes before automation
Focus on core capabilities and maturity of your team
Buy Before Build
Start with delivering value with proven solutions
Extend existing systems when possible
Build custom only for strategic advantage
Think Integration
Ensure systems can be integrated and orchestrated
Ensure a single source of truth for your data
Plan for future scalability with evolution not revolution
What to do next: your action plan
If technology is limiting your e-commerce growth, here are four next steps:
Map your current tech stack - Visualize all systems using the layer framework to get more clarity on your tech stack.
Identify complexity hotspots - Determine where business processes are most complex and how technology struggles to keep pace.
Watch our webinar - Get deeper insights from our free "Making Technology Decisions" webinar with case studies and practical frameworks.
Consider expert guidance - For a comprehensive assessment, our Discovery Workshop is a fast track to getting your digital capabilities in place and aligning your technology & team on the strategic direction. Work directly with our founders Jons & Martin.