The world of B2B digital commerce is in motion. We’re hearing from our business partners that the solutions they adopted just a few years ago are already starting to cause more problems than they solve. There is a tangible sense of turbulence in the market, driven by complexity fatigue and the relentless pace of change.
On a Sana Commerce webinar, a recent insight from guest speaker and Forrester Principal Analyst Emily Pfeiffer brings the situation into sharp focus: Of those planning to make a change (which is about 20% of the market,) 86% of B2B decision-makers plan to change their commerce software within a year. That’s a massive mandate for transformation.
Why the urgency? Businesses are grappling with platform performance issues, painful integrations, and a growing disconnect between what IT systems can deliver and what the business – and its customers – actually need.
The fundamental truth is that the era of managing a dozen fragmented, “best-of-breed” systems is becoming unsustainable. This pressure is accelerating a shift toward solutions that are unified, cohesive, and perfectly aligned with core business logic. The time for the B2B commerce reassessment is now
What’s driving the change: Complexity fatigue in B2B commerce
Let’s get to the heart of why so many organizations are ready for a clean slate. It boils down to complexity fatigue. The core function of B2B commerce is to handle complexity, but too often, the platforms themselves introduce it.
Integration overload is draining resources
A commerce ecosystem built of multiple specialized tools – a separate commerce platform, a separate Performance Information Management (PIM) system, various integration layers – end up requiring heavy, custom maintenance.
On the webinar, Pfeiffer terms this the ‘Expansion/Contraction cycle’. At Sana Commerce, we believe that when IT spends all its time managing delicate integrations, trying to make patchwork systems talk to one another, those resources are drained away from innovation and strategic growth.
Misalignment undermines progress
Pfeiffer also points to a critical challenge: a lack of alignment across the organization. Security, budget, and the sheer cost of replacing legacy systems consistently rank among the biggest challenges in executing software strategy. This disconnect is often seen in the different priorities of the C-suite, IT, and business teams. When the roadmap is fragmented, project execution slows down or fails entirely.
If your commerce stack is holding you back, you’re clearly not alone. The market is demanding something better.
You’re not alone if your commerce stack feels like it’s holding you back—you’re in the majority.
Emily Pfeiffer, Principal Analyst, Forrester | Sana Connect 2025
From fragmentation to focus: The rise of unified commerce solutions
The industry pendulum is now swinging back toward consolidation. But this isn’t a return to rigid, monolithic systems. Instead, we are seeing the rise of unified, yet modular, platforms designed specifically for B2B.
Consolidation today means finding a single vendor capable of delivering a powerful B2B suite that eliminates the need for numerous specialized systems. It’s about replacing homegrown or cobbled-together systems with a modern, singular solution built for resilience.
According to Pfeiffer, this shift directly supports some of the most important software initiatives emerging from Forrester’s research:
Consolidate customer-facing systems
Mitigate organizational risk
Update/modernize key legacy or custom-developed applications
By moving toward a natively integrated solution, we believe organizations realize value faster, simplify upgrades, and drastically reduce the hidden integration risks and maintenance costs that plagued their earlier, fragmented approach.
The B2B buyer behind the shift
The ultimate pressure, of course, comes from the customer. B2B buyers now expect the frictionless ease of consumer shopping — but they also require the depth, precision, and control necessary for complex transactions.
The B2C experience sets the bar for user experience, but B2B operations require much, much more.
(Source: Sana Commerce Webinar Featuring Emily Pfeiffer, 2025)
Pfeiffer makes a strong point that in B2B, precision is paramount. You need to sell the right parts to the right customer at the right time, with correct pricing, without question. This is non-negotiable. For a customer of industrial parts, “close” is wrong.
Aligning strategy, systems, and stakeholders
So, what are the next practical steps? It starts with aligning strategy, systems, and stakeholders.
Focus on expectation management and communication
If we don't proactively set and manage customer expectations, Pfeiffer notes, customers assume the worst. According to Pfeiffer, that means your system needs to deliver on three key communication points to build trust:
1. Delivery promises pre-purchase.
2. Confirmations (order, shipping, delivery).
3. Changes and updates (especially delays).
In short, transparency is your strongest tool for building repeat business and reducing customer service friction.
Questions for your next tech investment
Before making your next move, consider these vital questions to ensure alignment and value:
- Does our platform truly reflect our buyers’ complex, account-specific needs today? Is it integrated with our core business logic, or is it a decoupled layer that requires constant custom synchronization?
- Are we spending more time maintaining fragile integrations than selling, innovating or servicing customers?
- How well do our commerce and ERP systems communicate with each other in real time?
Looking ahead: AI and the next leap in B2B commerce
As we look forward the future, the coming wave of AI is set to accelerate the push for unified, clean tech stacks. AI thrives on clean, centralized data – the exact opposite of a fragmented system.
Future B2B leaders will leverage AI to tackle complexity head-on:
AI assistants will improve internal workflows, automating administrative tasks and removing more friction for your teams.
We'll see intelligent systems for inventory optimization and replenishment.
AI will enhance the buyer experience with guided selling and precision-based product discovery.
The businesses that thrive will be those that have spent the next few years modernizing their legacy systems and establishing a solid, unified commerce foundation ready to ingest and utilize AI, rather than waiting for AI to “catch up” to their fragmented reality.
Conclusion: From reassessment to reinvention
Rethinking your B2B commerce stack isn’t just about catching a trend — it’s about eliminating the friction points that waste time for your customers and burden your internal teams. Pfeiffer’s research confirms that consolidation and modernization are no longer nice-to-haves; they are business imperatives.
The complexity of B2B commerce is real, but your solution shouldn’t be. By choosing a solution engineered specifically for this environment and natively integrated with your core business systems, you secure a foundation ready for the future.
