A Stack of Good Intentions: Simplifying Marketing Ops

Simplify to Multiply 

There’s something deeply satisfying about a clean dashboard. The way it looks. The promise it holds. But that feeling fades fast when the data doesn’t speak, the tools don’t connect, and no one remembers who bought what or why.

That’s the quiet problem marketing leaders like Dreya Armstrong are tackling…one calendar invite, one MarTech audit, one frustrated team at a time. Dreya was a guest on our latest episode of “Some Goodness.”

The real work of marketing isn’t stacking tools. It’s making them useful.

 According to Gartner, marketers are now using just a third of their tech stack. That’s down from 58% a few years ago. And it shows.

There’s a rhythm to how these tools appear. A vendor says it’ll save time. A colleague used it at their last job. A competitor mentioned it at a conference. The purchase gets made. The training happens. Then… silence.

No one opens it. No one knows where to start. No one has time to figure it out.

Eventually, it’s not a tool anymore. It’s a trophy. Proof that someone tried something.

Dreya put it plainly: “Automation without understanding is like painting a dirty room.” It hides the mess instead of fixing it. And when that happens, the clutter wins.

Complexity Leaves Clues

Want to find what’s broken? Don’t start with the tools. Start with the tension.

Listen for eye-rolls. Notice where people get defensive. Pay attention when someone says, “Well, that’s just how we’ve always done it.”

Emotion is data. Frustration is a flag. These aren’t small annoyances—they’re early warning systems.

And if you’re hearing confusion around how a report works, or why a tool exists, or who’s supposed to be doing what—that’s not a communication problem. That’s a structure problem. One worth solving.

Too Many Tools, Not Enough Alignment

The danger zone is mid-size. Big enough for tool sprawl, not big enough for a governance layer.

Marketing has a tool. Sales has theirs. Customer success is off doing their own thing. Everyone’s solving the same problems in different ways—and no one’s comparing notes.

That’s how you end up with four CRMs, six email platforms, and a reporting stack that requires a legend.

The fix isn’t a better system. It’s a better question: “What are we using this for?” If the answers are vague or historical it might be time to let it go.

Draw the stack. Circle what matters. Eliminate overlap. If it’s not solving someone’s real pain, it’s solving nothing at all.

Bridging the Tech Gap

If you’ve ever been in a meeting where marketers and analysts are talking past each other, you know the problem isn’t intelligence. It’s language.

“Campaign” means one thing in Salesforce, another in Marketo, and something entirely different to the person writing subject lines.

Dreya’s advice? Start by assuming good intent. Then build from there. Marketers should explain not just what they want, but why. Analysts should prepare for some translation work. And everyone should expect to meet in the middle.

It’s not about being fluent. It’s about being human.

First Step? Look at the Work

If you want to simplify, start with what your team is already doing.

Dreya runs a dead-simple audit: for one week, have every team member write down what they worked on. Then ask honestly, “does this tie directly to one of our core goals?”

If 30% or more of the work doesn’t connect, the issue isn’t effort. It’s focus.

She also uses a weekly “Three Up, Three Down”: what got done last week, what’s on deck this week. No slides. No filler. Just rhythm. It keeps the team clear. Keeps the priorities real.

And maybe most importantly it builds trust.

Simplification Has a Soul

We like to think the wisdom sits at the top. But often, the newest hire is the one who sees what’s actually slowing us down.

Dreya schedules regular “show and tell” sessions where someone on her team demos a new shortcut, system, or AI trick. It’s a way to keep learning alive. To flatten the hierarchy, just enough.

Because the goal isn’t to control the stack. It’s to clear the path.

And that only happens when leaders are willing to listen, simplify, and when needed start over.