The Tool Stack Audit: Is Your Program Drowning in Software?

A program manager sent me a Loom video last week, and I could hear the exhaustion in her voice.

She screen-shared her desktop and started clicking through tabs.

"This is our applicant tracking system. This is our CRM for founder data. This is our mentorship matching platform. This is where we track office hours. This is our Slack for communication. This is our project management tool. This is our—"

I stopped counting at eleven.

Eleven different tools. For a program with fifteen founders.

"I spend half my day moving data between systems," she said. "Copying names from Airtable into our mentorship platform. Updating founder status in three different places. Manually creating reports because nothing talks to each other."

Pause.

"I thought more tools would make us more efficient. Now I realize they're drowning us."

Sound familiar?

Here's the thing: tool proliferation is one of the most common—and most insidious—problems in accelerator operations.

You start with a spreadsheet. Then someone tells you about this great CRM. Then you add a mentorship platform because the matching process is a mess. Then you need project management software because Slack threads are chaos. Then you—

And before you know it, you've got a Frankenstein tech stack that costs thousands per month, creates data silos, and eats up 30-40% of your team's time on admin work instead of founder support.

Let me show you how to audit your tool stack, cut what's not working, and build something that actually makes you more efficient—not less.

The Tool Proliferation Problem

Let's start by understanding how this happens.

Nobody plans to end up with eleven disconnected tools. It happens gradually, one "solution" at a time:

Stage 1: Scrappy Startup Mode You launch your first cohort with Google Sheets, Gmail, and pure hustle. It's messy but it works.

Stage 2: The First Tool Someone on your team says, "We need a real CRM. Let's get Airtable." You set it up, migrate your data, feel professional.

Stage 3: Feature Creep Now you need mentorship matching. Airtable doesn't do that well, so you add a mentorship platform. Then you need better communication, so you add Slack. Then you need—

Stage 4: Tool Chaos You're now paying for five tools, none of which talk to each other. Your team is manually copying data. Founders are confused about where to find information. And you're spending more time managing tools than supporting founders.

This is where most programs get stuck.

They keep adding tools to solve specific problems without realizing each new tool creates new problems: integration headaches, data silos, team confusion, rising costs.

And here's what makes it worse: sunk cost fallacy.

You've already paid for the tool. You've already trained your team. You've already migrated your data. So even when the tool isn't working, you keep using it because switching feels too hard.

The Hidden Costs of Tool Proliferation

Before we get into solutions, let me break down the real costs of having too many tools:

Cost 1: Time (30-40% of your workday)

Every additional tool adds:

• Data entry time (copying info from System A to System B)

• Context switching time (clicking between 11 browser tabs)

• Training time (onboarding new team members on every tool)

• Troubleshooting time (when tools break or don't sync)

If your team is spending 30% of their time on admin work instead of founder support, that's a massive opportunity cost.

Cost 2: Money (more than you think)

Let's do the math:

• CRM: $100/month

• Mentorship platform: $200/month

• Project management: $50/month

• Communication tools: $50/month

• Analytics/reporting: $150/month

• Misc subscriptions: $100/month

That's $650/month, or $7,800/year—for a small program.

Larger programs easily spend $20K-50K/year on tools. Is that worth it if your team is less efficient?

Cost 3: Data Silos

When your tools don't talk to each other, your data lives in silos.

Founder status is in the CRM. Mentor match history is in the mentorship platform. Workshop attendance is in a Google Sheet. Progress updates are in Slack.

Good luck building a comprehensive report or understanding what's actually working.

Cost 4: Founder Confusion

"Where do I submit my progress update?" "Where do I book office hours?" "Where do I find mentor contact info?"

If founders have to ask these questions, your tool stack is too complicated.

Cost 5: Team Burnout

When your team spends half their day wrestling with software instead of helping founders, morale tanks.

Nobody became a program manager to copy-paste data between systems.

The Tool Stack Audit

(Step-by-Step)

Alright, so how do you actually fix this?

Let me walk you through a tool stack audit I run with programs. It takes about 2-3 hours, but it's worth it.

Step 1: Inventory Everything

Make a list of every tool you're currently using. Don't skip the small ones.

For each tool, capture:

• Tool name (e.g., Airtable, Slack, Calendly)

• What it does (e.g., "CRM for founder tracking")

• Who uses it (just you? whole team? founders?)

• Monthly cost

• How often it's used (daily, weekly, rarely)

Pro tip: Check your credit card statements and your team's browser bookmarks to catch everything.

Step 2: Map Your Workflows

Now, map out your key workflows and see where tools overlap or create friction.

Example workflow: Founder application to acceptance

1. Founder applies → Tool A (application form)

2. Team reviews → Tool B (spreadsheet)

3. Selection decision → Tool C (CRM)

4. Acceptance email → Tool D (email)

5. Onboarding → Tool E (project management system)

See the problem? Five different tools for one workflow. Each handoff is a chance for something to break.

Do this for your top 5-7 workflows:

• Application → Selection → Onboarding

• Mentor matching → Session scheduling → Feedback collection

• Workshop planning → Attendance tracking → Follow-up

• Progress tracking → Reporting → Stakeholder updates

• Demo day planning → Investor outreach → Follow-up

Where are the friction points? Where are you manually copying data?

Step 3: Identify Redundancy

Now, look for tools that do similar things.

Common redundancies:

• Using both Airtable and a separate CRM

• Using both Slack and a project management tool for task tracking

• Using both Google Calendar and Calendly for scheduling

• Using multiple spreadsheets when one database would work

Ask yourself: Could we consolidate these into one tool?

Step 4: Calculate True Cost

For each tool, calculate the true cost—not just the subscription fee.

True cost = Subscription fee + (Team hours spent ÷ hourly rate)

Example:

• Tool cost: $200/month

• Team spends 10 hours/month on data entry and troubleshooting

• Team hourly rate: $50/hour

• True cost: $200 + (10 × $50) = $700/month

Suddenly that "affordable" tool is 3.5x more expensive than you thought.

Step 5: Score Each Tool

For each tool, rate it on a 1-10 scale for:

1. Value (How much does this tool actually help us?)

2. Ease of use (Is it intuitive or a constant headache?)

3. Integration (Does it play well with other tools, or create silos?)

4. Adoption (Is the team actually using it, or is it collecting dust?)

Decision rules:

• 8-10 on all four = Keep (this tool is working)

• 5-7 on most = Optimize (could be better with training or configuration)

• Below 5 on multiple = Cut or replace (this tool is hurting more than helping)

Step 6: Make Decisions

Based on your audit, put each tool into one of four categories:

Keep: Core tools that are working well

Optimize: Tools with potential but need better setup or training

Replace: Tools that aren't working but serve a real need (find alternatives)

Cut: Tools you're barely using or that create more work than they save

What a Healthy Tool Stack Looks Like

So what's the right number of tools?

There's no magic number, but here's what I've seen work for most programs:

For small programs (1-2 cohorts/year, 10-20 founders):

• 3-5 core tools max

• Focus on consolidation over specialization

For mid-size programs (3-4 cohorts/year, 40-60 founders):

• 5-8 core tools

• Invest in integration (Zapier, APIs)

For large programs (5+ cohorts/year, 100+ founders):

• 8-12 core tools

• Likely need custom-built systems or all-in-one platforms

The 3-Tool Core (what every program needs):

1. Founder Database (CRM or Airtable)

   • Tracks founder/startup info, application status, progress updates

   • Single source of truth for all founder data
     

2. Communication Hub (Slack, email, or all-in-one platform)

   • Where you talk to founders and team

   • Ideally integrated with your database
     

3. Scheduling/Calendar (Calendly, Google Calendar)

   • For booking office hours, mentor sessions, workshops

   • Must sync with team calendars

Everything else is optional—and should only be added if it clearly solves a problem and integrates well.

When to Use Specialized Tools

(And When Not To)

Some programs need specialized tools. Here's when they're worth it:

Mentorship Matching Platforms (Together, Joinee, Mentorloop)

Worth it if:

• You have 20+ mentors

• You're running structured matching at scale

• You need engagement tracking and feedback loops

Not worth it if:

• You have fewer than 15 mentors (use a spreadsheet + Calendly)

• Your matching process is mostly manual anyway

• The platform creates more admin work than it saves

All-in-One Accelerator Platforms (Innoloft, F6S)

Worth it if:

• You're running 4+ cohorts/year

• You need applicant tracking + founder management + reporting in one place

• You have budget ($5K-20K/year)

Not worth it if:

• You're running 1-2 cohorts/year (too expensive for the usage)

• The platform doesn't fit your workflow (forcing you to work around it)

• You'd spend more time configuring it than just using Airtable

Project Management Tools (Asana, Monday, Notion)

Worth it if:

• You have a team of 3+ people coordinating complex workflows

• You're drowning in Slack threads and losing track of tasks

• You need transparency across the team on who's doing what

Not worth it if:

• It's just you or one other person (use a simple to-do list)

• Your "project management" is really just task tracking (use Trello or Todoist)

• Nobody on your team actually checks it

Common Tool Stack Mistakes

Before you go audit your stack, watch out for these traps:

Mistake 1: "This tool does everything!"

All-in-one tools sound great in the demo. But they're often:

• Expensive

• Over-featured (you use 20% of the functionality)

• Rigid (hard to customize to your workflow)

Mistake 2: "Everyone else uses this tool."

Just because YCombinator or Techstars uses a tool doesn't mean it's right for your program. Your size, budget, and workflow are different.

Mistake 3: "We'll integrate it later."

If a tool doesn't integrate with your core systems now, it won't later. Don't add it hoping you'll figure out integration eventually.

Mistake 4: "It's free/cheap, so why not?"

Free tools still have a cost: setup time, training time, and cognitive load. Every tool you add is another thing your team has to remember and manage.

Mistake 5: "We just need better training."

Sometimes tools fail because of poor training. But often, the tool just isn't a good fit. Don't keep pouring time into training if the tool fundamentally doesn't match your workflow.

The Bottom Line

If you're drowning in software, you're not alone.

Tool proliferation is a silent killer of accelerator efficiency. It eats up time, creates data silos, burns money, and frustrates your team.

The solution isn't to keep adding more tools. It's to audit what you have, cut what's not working, and consolidate around a core set of tools that actually make you more efficient.

Start with the audit. Map your workflows. Identify redundancy. Calculate true cost.

Then make hard decisions. Keep what's working. Fix what's fixable. Cut the rest.

Your team will thank you. Your budget will thank you. And your founders will benefit from a team that's spending time on them, not on wrestling with software.

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Ready to audit your tool stack? I've built a Tool Stack Audit Worksheet that walks you through every step: inventory, workflow mapping, cost calculation, scoring, and decision-making. Download it here.

You might also find the Tool Integration Map helpful—it's a visual template for understanding how your tools connect (or don't) and where you're losing data. Grab it here.

This post is part of a series on program operations and scale for accelerators, incubators, and startup studios. If you found this useful, you might also like: "From Spreadsheets to Systems" and "The Integration Playbook."