When developing custom software, the technology stack behind your digital solution is an important decision to make. The tech stack directly impacts the product’s performance, ease of future updates, and more.

For IT leaders—particularly those focused on maintenance—selecting the right tools and frameworks is not just about building your software solution. It’s about ensuring it delivers business value immediately and remains scalable and cost-effective for years to come.

What is a tech stack?

A tech stack is the combination of tools, frameworks, and technologies used to build software.

Strategic tech choices—like front-end languages for user interaction, back-end systems for data and operations, and third-party tools for added features—can greatly enhance your product’s performance, security, and scalability

Choosing a tech stack is like selecting the materials for constructing a building—good decisions lead to a stable, long-lasting structure. On the other hand, rushed or poorly informed choices can result in high costs and constant repairs.

Key considerations for selecting your tech stack:

Some clients come to us with pre-selected tech stacks and great reasoning for their choices. Maybe they have an internal development team already experienced with a specific set of technologies, or their product needs to integrate with existing systems that rely on a particular stack.

Many others look for guidance in this decision. When this is the case, we make recommendations with a focus on both time to value and long-term ROI—ensuring the technology will align with your project’s unique needs and future goals.

When helping our clients select the right tech stack, we balance several critical factors:

1. Time to value:

Some frameworks and languages allow for faster development cycles.

For instance, if a client needs their app ready on both iOS and Android within several months, we might recommend React Native for its cross-platform efficiency. This selection could get a working product in users’ hands sooner, which translates to quicker ROI.

Additionally, incorporating third-party solutions like Azure Active Directory for pre-built user authentication or Payload for content management can reduce development time and provide robust, well-maintained solutions.

2. Performance and scalability:

The selected tech stack should allow your product to grow as your business grows.

While certain technologies like Python or C# are often recognized for their robust performance under heavy loads, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution. Every stack comes with trade-offs—and what works best for one project may not be the right fit for another. Factors like your app’s size, user base, and long-term growth plans all influence how we collaborate to make your best choice.

3. Maintenance costs:

Choosing the right tech stack can also impact how easily your software can be updated and maintained over time.

For example, native applications built specifically for iOS or Android tend to handle major system updates more smoothly. On the other hand, cross-platform tools like React Native can make it quicker to release new features—though they might introduce complexity when scaling large apps.

Leveraging modular frameworks or widely-supported third-party services can help ensure that future updates are less labor-intensive, reducing overall maintenance costs.

How MichiganLabs guides clients through smart tech stack decisions:

At MichiganLabs, we work side-by-side with our clients to make sure their tech stack choices line up with their business goals, budget, and long-term vision.

Whether a client comes to us with a specific plan or needs our guidance, we use our experience to help avoid common pitfalls and make smart decisions.

We start by understanding what the client values most—whether it’s speed to market, scalability, or user experience. From there, we tailor our recommendations to their specific needs.

• For example, if a project needs to be up and running quickly, we may recommend a cross-platform solution like React Native or integrations with widely supported third-party solutions to speed up development.

• But if the priorities include complex interactions or advanced device features, we might recommend developing natively for iOS or Android to take full advantage of the platform's capabilities.

• And when a project demands the best possible user experience alongside logic-heavy mobile development, we might recommend Kotlin Multiplatform for a hybrid cross-platform and native UX solution.

Choosing the wrong tech stack—or simply neglecting to think carefully about it—can lead to additional expenses down the road. Outdated or overly complex technologies can slow down development, drive up maintenance costs, or even force you to redo work.

On the flip side, choosing tools that are too new or untested can bring its own risks, like limited community support or uncertainty about long-term stability. As developers, we help clients navigate these possibilities and make recommendations designed to set them up for long-term success.

With our experience, we help clients feel confident that their tech stack will work right away and stay solid as they grow. This way, we’re not only delivering quick wins—we’re setting them up for lasting success and a solid return on their investment.