When you think of growth, what comes to mind? Is it sales? Maybe it’s company size or how many employees you have. IT scalability probably isn’t the first thing that comes up, but as an organization grows, IT has to grow with it. That’s why creating an IT infrastructure that’s designed for scalability proves to be an invaluable asset.
1) IT’S BETTER TO SCALE HORIZONTALLY THAN VERTICALLY.
It’s better to scale horizontally than vertically. There is a limit to the size of any individual physical or virtual server, so eventually you’ll need more capacity. It’s more cost effective to add another server as needed (horizontally) than it is to upgrade to a larger server (vertically).
2) IT HAPPENS.
IT happens. Even the best IT has a problem at some point. That’s why it’s imperative to have redundancies built into your IT infrastructure. For instance, every organization should have a secondary internet provider in case their primary ISP goes down. While it adds cost, this cost can be balanced by the elimination of downtime when interruptions occur.
3) IT’S BETTER TO MAINTAIN THAN REPLACE.
It’s better to maintain than replace. Like any machine, IT infrastructure needs maintenance. By maintaining not only your hardware, but your software as well, your organization is always well positioned for growth opportunities when they arise. Regular checkups, like periodic walkthroughs and remote monitoring, are crucial to optimizing your organizations operations.
) SCALABILITY EQUALS STABILITY.
Scalability equals stability. Growth, be it number of locations, employees, or assets, is almost always a sign of organizational success. However, if IT infrastructure doesn’t grow as well, stability declines. By designing IT infrastructure with scalability in mind (e.g. planning for increased server capacity, ordering user licenses in bulk), stability issues can be resolved before they ever come up. So, scalability creates stability, and that stability creates an environment that promotes sustainable growth and long-term success.