Tools · Software
The Minimum Software Stack for a 10-Person Business
Most small companies need fewer tools than they pay for. Here are the categories that matter, what each one replaces, and the security basics that should come with them.
- (Author)
- Ines Calloway
- (Published)
- (Reading)
- 2 min
- (Section)
- Tools
In this guide 4 sections
A ten-person company can easily end up paying for twenty tools, several of which do the same job. The opposite problem is just as common: work held together by personal email accounts and a shared password in a spreadsheet. Here is the minimum set that covers most small businesses well.
The six categories
| Category | What it does | What it replaces |
|---|---|---|
| Email, calendar and documents | Company accounts on one office suite | Personal email and scattered files |
| Team chat | Quick questions and announcements | Email threads for small things |
| Accounting | Invoicing, bank feeds, tax records | Spreadsheets and paper receipts |
| Tasks or projects | Who is doing what, by when | To-do lists in chat |
| File storage | Shared folders with permissions | Attachments and USB sticks |
| Password manager | Shared logins without sharing passwords | The password spreadsheet |
Whether you need a dedicated project tool or a well-kept spreadsheet is a judgement call; our comparison of spreadsheets and project tools covers when to switch.
How to choose within each category
Ask three questions. What does it replace? If the answer is nothing, you probably do not need it yet. What does it cost per person per month, and what happens at the next price tier? And how hard is it to leave: can you export your data in a usable format?
Security comes with the stack
Use company accounts, not personal ones. Turn on multi-factor authentication for every tool that offers it. Remove access the day someone leaves.
The security basics
Small businesses are frequent targets precisely because they rarely have an IT team. The UK's National Cyber Security Centre publishes a practical small business guide, and most of it is free to implement: backups, updates, multi-factor authentication and a password manager. Where possible, use one company login across tools (single sign-on) so access can be removed in one place.
Keep the stack small
Review every subscription each quarter. Unused seats, overlapping tools and forgotten trials are among the easiest costs to cut, and they belong in your cash flow forecast. Before adding automation between tools, read which admin tasks are worth automating.
The best tool is the one your whole team actually uses. The second best is the one you can leave.
