Who’s Watching the Technology?
Why Small and Mid-Market Companies Need Technology Oversight at the Board Level
There is a question I believe more small and mid-market companies need to start asking:
Who is actually watching the technology?
And I don’t mean who resets the passwords, manages Microsoft 365, fixes the computers, updates the website, or calls the software vendor when something stops working.
I mean who is looking at technology from the business side?
Who is sitting at the table asking whether the systems the company is investing in actually support where the business is going?
Because technology is no longer sitting quietly in the IT department.
Technology is touching revenue, operations, customer experience, compliance, hiring, marketing, cybersecurity, intellectual property, data, automation, AI, and almost every other part of the company.
That makes technology a leadership issue.
And eventually, it becomes a board issue.
Small Companies Are Making Big Technology Decisions
One of the biggest misconceptions I see is that technology governance is something only large corporations need.
I actually believe the opposite.
Large corporations usually have layers.
They may have a CIO, CTO, CISO, data officers, legal counsel, compliance teams, enterprise architects, cybersecurity teams, AI governance committees, and consultants advising leadership.
A $10 million, $25 million, or $75 million company may have none of that.
They may have an IT provider.
Maybe a software developer.
Maybe an operations person who has become the unofficial "tech person."
And yet that same company may be purchasing software platforms, automating customer interactions, implementing AI, storing sensitive information in the cloud, connecting systems through APIs, giving vendors access to company data, and making technology investments that will affect the business for years.
Those are not small decisions just because the company making them is smaller.
Your IT Person Shouldn't Have to Carry This Alone
This is also where companies sometimes confuse IT management with technology oversight.
They are not the same thing.
Your IT team may be excellent at keeping systems operating.
Your managed service provider may be excellent at cybersecurity, networks, devices, and technical support.
Your developers may be excellent at building software.
But somebody still has to step back and ask:
Does this technology support our business strategy?
Are we solving the right problem?
Are we creating unnecessary dependencies on one vendor?
Who owns the data?
What happens if this platform disappears?
Are our systems actually talking to each other?
Are we automating a good process or simply automating dysfunction?
Where is AI being used inside the company?
Who approved it?
What information is being entered into those systems?
What happens when an automated decision is wrong?
And one of my favorites:
Are we buying technology because we need it, or because somebody gave us a really good demo?
That last one has cost businesses more money than people like to admit.
Technology Oversight Is Really Business Oversight
This is why I believe growing companies need someone at the board or advisory level who understands technology beyond the technical language.
You need someone who can connect the dots between technology and business.
That person doesn't necessarily need to be the best programmer in the room.
They need to understand enough about technology, AI, automation, data, risk, operations, and business strategy to ask the questions everyone else may overlook.
Because board oversight isn't about knowing how to build every system.
It's about knowing what questions need to be asked before leadership approves the investment.
There is a huge difference.
AI Makes This Even More Important
Artificial intelligence has accelerated this conversation.
Companies are adopting AI faster than many leadership teams understand it.
Employees are using AI tools.
Departments are introducing automation.
Marketing teams are generating content with AI.
Customer service is implementing AI agents.
Business owners are purchasing "AI-powered" software because AI is printed across the sales page.
Meanwhile, the board may have no idea where AI is being used, what data is flowing into it, what decisions it influences, or what risks were introduced.
That is not an AI problem.
That is an oversight problem.
And telling the IT department to "handle AI" doesn't automatically solve it.
AI crosses too many areas of the organization.
Technology.
Data.
Operations.
Legal.
Compliance.
Human resources.
Customer experience.
Reputation.
Strategy.
You need people who understand how those pieces connect.
Mid-Market Companies Are Especially Vulnerable
The mid-market is in an interesting position.
You are big enough to have complexity but sometimes still structured like a small business.
You have more employees.
More customers.
More vendors.
More systems.
More data.
More automation.
More risk.
But you may not yet have the governance infrastructure of a large corporation.
That's exactly when technology oversight becomes critical.
Because the decisions being made today may determine whether the company can efficiently scale tomorrow.
Sometimes what looks like a growth problem is actually a technology architecture problem.
Sometimes what looks like a staffing problem is a workflow problem.
Sometimes what looks like a marketing problem is really a disconnected customer-data problem.
Sometimes companies don't need another piece of software at all.
They need someone to look at the twelve platforms they're already paying for and ask why none of them are working together.
The Board Does Not Need to Become the IT Department
Board-level technology oversight doesn't mean your board meetings should turn into technical support meetings.
It means technology should receive the same strategic attention as finance, operations, legal risk, and growth.
The board should understand where major technology investments are being made, what business outcomes those investments are expected to produce, where significant risks exist, and whether the company has the right people overseeing those decisions.
And when the expertise isn't sitting on the board?
Bring it in.
Create a technology advisory position.
Add an independent board member with technology and AI experience.
Use an outside technology strategist.
Establish a technology or AI governance committee as the company grows.
But somebody needs to be asking the questions.
The Question Isn't Whether You're a Technology Company
Almost every modern company is operating through technology now.
The better question is:
Does anyone at the highest level of the organization understand enough about that technology to challenge the decisions being made around it?
Because technology shouldn't only become a board conversation after the cyberattack.
After the failed implementation.
After the AI mistake.
After the expensive software contract.
After the data problem.
After six departments purchased six systems that don't communicate with each other.
Oversight works best before the problem.
Small and mid-market companies do not necessarily need the same governance structure as a Fortune 500 corporation.
But they absolutely need governance appropriate for the technology they're using, the risks they're carrying, and the company they're trying to become.
Growth changes the conversation.
And once technology becomes central to how your company operates, generates revenue, manages customers, protects information, or makes decisions, it deserves a seat at the boardroom table.
Jamilah N. Lawry
Founder & CEO, My Biz Consulting LLC
Business Strategist | AI & Technology Consultant
