Digital leaders are usually confident they understand their organisation’s technology estate. Yet many councils rely on unofficial tools, spreadsheets and workarounds that sit outside formal systems. While these ‘shadow systems’ can create risks, they can also provide valuable insight into gaps in processes, integration and user experience.
Understanding why they exist is often the first step towards improving services.
The unofficial systems keeping councils running
In local government, shadow systems are unofficial tools employees use alongside, or instead of, approved technology.
They often emerge when staff feel existing systems do not fully support their work, or when gaps in digital infrastructure create barriers to delivering services efficiently.
Common examples include messaging applications, consumer file-sharing tools, personal databases, shared trackers and spreadsheets.
It’s important to recognise that not every spreadsheet or locally developed tool should be considered a shadow system. Many authorities use these tools legitimately for analysis, modelling and operational management.
Challenges arise when unofficial tools begin performing functions that would normally be expected from a formal business system, becoming critical to service delivery without appropriate governance, support or oversight.
Why do shadow systems emerge?
Shadow systems rarely appear because employees are deliberately trying to bypass governance or ignore agreed processes. More often, they represent practical attempts to solve operational problems.
They commonly emerge when:
- Staff can complete tasks more quickly or efficiently than through official systems.
- Two systems do not integrate effectively, creating the need for a manual workaround.
- Reporting requirements cannot be met through existing technology.
- Services have evolved faster than supporting systems.
- Teams are working under significant resource pressures and need simpler ways to manage workloads.
- Official systems technically support a process but are difficult or time-consuming to use in practice.
In many cases, shadow systems reflect a desire to maintain service quality rather than a failure to follow policy.
The risks of invisible infrastructure
Although shadow systems often solve genuine business problems, reliance on them can create risks that digital leaders need to understand and manage.
Data security and compliance concerns
Unofficial tools may store personal or sensitive information without appropriate security controls, creating potential vulnerabilities.
Knowledge concentrated in one individual
If the creator of a shadow system leaves the organisation, critical knowledge can leave with them.
Data quality and version control problems
When information is duplicated across multiple systems, it becomes difficult to know which version is correct and current.
Limited organisational visibility
Leaders may be unaware of how widely unofficial tools are being used or the dependency services have on them.
Reduced efficiency
Manual processes and duplicate data entry can consume valuable staff time that could be spent on higher-value activities.
These risks should not be ignored. However, focusing solely on risk can mean missing a more important question: why was the workaround needed in the first place?
What shadow systems can tell you about your digital estate
For many councils, shadow systems are not simply governance failures. They are often evidence of staff finding practical ways to deliver services despite budget pressures, fragmented technology estates or slow system development cycles.
Shadow systems are typically symptoms rather than causes. They can reveal:
- Gaps in system integration.
- Processes that have become overly complex.
- Reporting requirements that existing systems cannot meet.
- Poor user experience or usability issues.
- Communication and training gaps.
- Areas where valuable data exists but cannot easily be turned into actionable insight.
Viewed through this lens, shadow systems become an important source of organisational intelligence. They highlight where technology, processes and service needs have become misaligned.
Rather than asking, “How do we eliminate this?”, digital leaders may achieve more by asking, “What problem is this solving?”
Deciding what to do next
When a shadow system is identified, the instinct may be to close it down and require staff to return to approved platforms. However, removing a workaround without understanding its purpose rarely addresses the underlying issue.
Instead, organisations should assess who uses the tool, how frequently it is used, what information it contains and what business problem it solves.
From there, several options may be available:
- Keep it
If the tool presents low risk and continues to provide value, it may be appropriate to retain it with basic oversight. - Control it
Where a shadow system has become important to service delivery, organisations can introduce ownership, governance and backup arrangements to manage it more effectively. - Improve it
If the functionality is genuinely valuable, consider incorporating it into a supported and managed solution that can be maintained over time. - Replace it
In some cases, an approved system can provide a more secure, scalable and sustainable alternative. - Retire it
Occasionally, the underlying process itself is no longer needed. Eliminating unnecessary activity can be just as valuable as improving technology.
Looking beyond the workaround
Shadow systems are easy to classify as governance risks, but they can also be valuable signals.
They often show where technology, processes or organisational design have failed to keep pace with service needs.
They can reveal unmet user requirements, integration challenges and opportunities to improve how services operate.
Rather than treating every workaround as a problem to eliminate, digital leaders should use them as evidence.
Understanding why unofficial tools exist and what needs they fulfil can provide valuable insight into where investment, redesign or modernisation will deliver the greatest impact.
In many cases, the shadow system itself is not the real issue. The real opportunity lies in what it reveals.
Author bio
Ellie Wallbank is a Marketing Executive at Spencer Clarke Group, a specialist public sector recruitment organisation working with local authorities across areas including change and transformation, SEND, housing and the built environment.
