Growing Pains: The Importance of Software That Scales With Your Company

Whether your workplace has five or 5,000 employees, chances are you’re looking for ways to grow. While it can be tempting to focus on perfecting the here and now of your company, it’s critical that business owners and facility managers are always looking toward the future, keeping an eye out for roadblocks.

Just imagine: it’s the biggest sales day of the year and your website crashes because it can’t handle the traffic. Or think about how it will look if six new employees start on the same day and you only have three vacant desks.

Being ill-equipped for growth is a sign of an underprepared company, and as such, it is important that the software and processes put in place are scalable from the outset. It may seem inefficient for small companies to dedicate time and resources to considering the potential needs of their business in the next five or ten years, but overlooking the scalability of your company can have detrimental—but avoidable—effects.

Scalability defined

A system or company is deemed scalable when it can grow without being restricted by its resources or structure. A scalable company is therefore able to cope with an increased workload without needing to be redesigned to maintain performance levels. Essentially, if your company experiences sudden growth or demand, your systems shouldn’t fail and profit margins shouldn’t be negatively impacted.

Why scalability matters

For most business owners, the goal is to continually expand their company. This expansion includes acquiring new clients or customers, but it also means growing your employee base. To make this business growth manageable from a facilities management perspective, it’s crucial that companies invest in scalable software from the get-go—there’s no point dedicating time to training employees on a particular software if that product will become obsolete after more hires are made. As such, software that scales with your company should be a priority from the outset. Investing in software that is capable of growing with your business can prevent delays to progress and help predict when you may need to move offices or incorporate new systems or products.

• Scalable software simplifies IT problems. IT departments already have a lot on their plates, so ensuring office software is scalable is an easy way to help their team avoid unnecessary headaches. For instance, if an office’s existing software isn’t integration-ready, the company runs the risk of its data becoming siloed as the business grows and acquires more software.
• Scalable software can predict the future. The right software will not only help with your current business processes, but it will also help you look to the future. By keeping track of your employees and your resources, scalable software can help you decide when it’s the right time to hire more people, move offices or implement new management processes. Implementing software that has the capacity to run detailed reports and analytics will ensure FMs never find themselves at the helm of an overstaffed and under-resourced office. Ultimately, it will ensure the business has a smooth transition from a small venture to a booming enterprise.
• Scalable software is more cost-effective. Software packages can be an expensive investment and can come loaded with features your business might not need. Similarly, adding licences to software can be expensive if the software isn’t SaaS. Consider a scalable software package that offers different features based on your needs or company size. This allows you to adjust the program to suit your changing requirements, instead of having to transition platforms entirely as you grow. Ultimately, this will save you time and money because you won’t blow your budget on multiple programs.

With the right software, scalability may never be a problem again. If the main intention is to grow your company, ensure you set yourself up for success by investing in software that will grow with you.

OfficeSpace offers a full suite of features that can help with your growing pains. Contact us for a free demo a facilities management software that scales with your company.

Photo Credits: Shutterstock / luchunyu, Shutterstock / Rawpixel, Shutterstock / takayuki