IT scalability

Defining Scalability

Before diving into the nitty gritty of what exactly „scalability“ means, let’s take a moment to remember one very important consideration:
Scalability isn’t a matter of „if“ a new product or service will be able to perform well in an evolving environment. Rather, scalability is a characteristic of a system’s capabilities, and is a sign of stability and competitiveness. A system that is considered scalable has a tendency to work well in an expanded technical environment. Scalability is closely related to availability, and can be gauged by measuring the number of servers, disks, and connected devices that can be handled by a system in terms of availability.
So without further ado, let’s take a closer look at what IT scalability entails…

Suppose that Alice and Bob are founders of a certain company. If they decide to start a business together, they both need to have an up-front cost for their technology. If they start with a relatively simple system, it is cheaper just to use the cheapest technology available. However, if they continue with more sophisticated systems, they will require more technology upgrades to support their increased workloads and computing power.
Suppose that when they first start out with their systems, they only have access to a small part of the technology they will be using. If they were to add a new server, disk, and so forth, the list of items that must be purchased increases dramatically. If the business demands more technical capacity, the number of processors, memory, and so forth will also increase. With each additional server, disk, and so forth, the nature of the increased workload demands on the system changes. In the beginning, the increased demand on the software may not be that great. After all, the workload may not be that demanding in the early stages of a company.
However, as the workload increases, the problems that arise from under-engineering begin to bubble up to the surface. The more complex the software gets, the more resources are required to support it. And because the software can only handle so much work when running smoothly and efficiently, there’s bound to be some sort of instability or performance issue.
And that is exactly why, as an organization matures and invents its tech infrastructure, it’s imperative that the IT team that is to be used for the foreseeable future is one that can handle and adapt to the changing needs of the company.

Final Thoughts

While there is obviously a lot of room for improvement when it comes to the way that companies are structured and managed, the potential for scalability has quickly become one of the defining characteristics of today’s global economy.
Whether it’s the way that companies are able to scale by adopting new-found-platforms, or the ease with which a company can modify their existing software and workstations to take advantage of their platforms, one thing is for sure, and that is, that organizations aren’t too far off track when it comes to realizing their full potential, and looking to the future. The fact that the infrastructure isn’t yet mature enough to support the level of sophistication that is expected of a lot of businesses, demands that the IT department implement a scalable solution. Complexity makes diagnosing problems on an on-going basis more challenging. That’s why we implement automation systems of scalable technologies, which has made it easier to cut costs and move toward a service-oriented business model, to ensure that new systems aren’t just older-style platforms but actually use our new technology to its full potential.
As organizations grow and evolve, so too does their need for scalability. And while there are different ways to achieve this, and while different organizations will require different amounts of technology infrastructure, one thing that is for sure, and that is, that organizations that aren’t yet mature enough to purchase into the CIO movement will find that implementing scalable solutions isn’t something that is easily done later on.
And while there are certainly cases when outsourcing a key IT function to a third-party isn’t the best idea, when it comes down to it, the scalability of a business is predicated on the ability of the business to grow and change organically without any external forces forcing the IT department to adapt.
And just like any good entrepreneur, when it comes to starting your own business, the first step is to get the technical know-how that will support you from the beginning. Contact us now, since we both, have much ability and serve the customers well, and we are experienced in implementing these new scalable platforms for companies.