For years, SaaS (Software as a Service) has promised to transform businesses by streamlining operations, improving collaboration, and making data-driven decisions easier.
But something isn’t working.
Instead of creating alignment, SaaS has led to:
- Fragmented priorities: Different departments use different tools that provide varying data, leading teams to form their own priorities based on partial information.
- Siloed decision-making: When sales, marketing, and finance teams rely on separate platforms, they make decisions based on their own isolated data, with no understanding of how it impacts other teams.
- Data overload: With so many tools collecting data across departments, businesses are overwhelmed with information that doesn't align with broader goals or offer clear insights.
- Slow, reactive decisions: Leadership is forced to make decisions based on incomplete or inconsistent data, which delays the ability to act quickly and make aligned, impactful choices.
This isn’t just an operational issue—it’s a revenue issue.
SaaS isn’t dead. But SaaS as we know it is failing.
The real problem isn’t the technology—it’s the lack of alignment it creates.
Expert Insight: The Real Issue Behind SaaS Fragmentation
According to Toni Keskinen, co-founder of 180ops,
"The real issue with SaaS today isn’t the technology itself, but rather the purpose behind its use. Businesses implement SaaS tools in silos, each addressing only one specific need. However, they often fail to connect these tools to create a unified view of their entire operations.”
This fragmented approach limits businesses from gaining actionable, cross-functional insights that are essential for strategic alignment.
As Toni points out,
“What we need isn’t just another tool to solve a specific problem—it’s a system that aligns and integrates every part of the business, providing one source of truth.”
This shift towards central intelligence can drive more meaningful, data-backed decisions across the organization. By moving beyond the isolated functionalities of traditional SaaS tools, companies can unlock growth potential through better alignment between departments, making decisions not only faster but smarter.
SaaS Was Built for Functions, Not Business Alignment
Most software was designed to optimize specific functions:
- CRM for sales
- ERP for finance
- Marketing automation for demand generation
But optimizing functions in isolation doesn’t create business-wide success. It pulls teams apart rather than bringing them together.
That’s why companies struggle with:
- Disjointed priorities—Each function sets goals based on its own tools, not the company’s bigger picture.
- Endless data but no clarity—Businesses are drowning in dashboards but lack actionable insights.
- Slow, reactive decision-making—With no shared understanding, leadership teams waste time debating different versions of the truth.
This isn’t just an operational issue—it’s a revenue issue.
The Purpose of Technology Needs to Change
The problem isn’t SaaS itself. The problem is how we use it.
Right now, businesses are focused on more tools, more automation, more data—but what they actually need is alignment.
Technology should help businesses:
- Unify teams around shared priorities
- Provide a single source of truth for decision-making
- Help leaders focus on the 20% of actions that drive 80% of results
Right now, that’s not happening. Instead of aligning teams, SaaS is pulling them further apart.
What Comes Next? A New Approach to Business Intelligence
The future of business intelligence isn’t about collecting more data or adding more dashboards. It’s about changing the way we recognize what matters—so teams can focus on opportunities, risks, and shared priorities in real time.
At 180ops, we’re introducing a new approach:
🟣 A central intelligence system that eliminates misalignment.
🟣 AI-powered insights that cut through the noise and highlight true priorities.
🟣 A shift from function-based tools to a shared perspective for all revenue teams.
Instead of making every department more efficient in isolation, we need technology that aligns teams to execute on what matters most—together.
SaaS Isn’t Dead—But It Must Evolve
SaaS was never meant to be the goal. Technology’s real purpose should be to create business alignment—not just generate more data.
The companies that thrive won’t be the ones with the most tools. They’ll be the ones using technology to build a shared understanding, align their teams, and drive decisive action.
