This content was written by Dell Technologies
For some small businesses, the transition to a larger organisation can be unexpectedly quick. Your product or service may result in stronger sales than expected, or a move into new territory or market could provide a significant boost. Taking over a competitor – or the demise of one – could also result in unanticipated growth. This could mean rapid expansion in both your employee numbers and offices, in order to meet customer demand and achieve your business’s full potential.
While this is good news for your business, it also means you must rapidly adapt your ways of working, including ensuring you have the right IT infrastructure and equipment to cope with changing requirements.
The potential for rapid growth is something that you should think about before it arrives, and ideally from day one. Having a plan as to how you would cope means you will know what’s required when the time to scale up comes, and will have a plan you can call on.
Planning your IT infrastructure as a start-up
An important part of this is finding the right IT partner. This can ensure compatibility of products and user familiarity into the future, and avoid a hotchpotch of brands and service providers.
Look for a partner that will be able to advise on what technology is needed and when, as it’s unlikely that you will have much in the way of expertise or experience in that area in the early days.
Some companies, such as Dell Technologies, offer this as a free resource to small businesses, providing guidance on the best Dell solutions for your business. If you are a start-up, it also has dedicated start-up tech advisors through its Dell for Startups programme.
The programme can offer tailored advice around the right Dell tech solutions that would suit the needs of your business, throughout your start-up journey. Even if you aren’t yet at a point to be making significant purchases, you can be sure to have the right information to prepare you for what is needed and lies ahead.
What’s important for your technology set-up as a start-up?
For companies moving from start-up to SME and beyond, it’s likely any IT strategy will include servers, networking technologies such as ethernet switches, and powerful data storage devices. These will allow you to conduct business safely and efficiently, harnessing the power of cloud computing – whether public, hybrid, or on-premise – while storing and backing up data securely.
It may also mean installing a suite of more powerful desktop PCs for a rapidly growing team and standardise technology across the organisation, as well as upgrading laptops to a higher specification to make sure they’re able to cope with what’s required while on the move. Security should be a recurrent theme throughout any growth journey, including data protection and protection from cyber-crime.
Funding your technology upgrades
It’s important to think, too, about how this will be financed. Even if you’re performing well or have recently raised funding, you’re unlikely to want to allocate resources to capital expenditure, instead preferring to direct this towards areas such as staff or operational costs.
Something to consider here is whether there’s potential to spread the cost of IT equipment, such as through Dell Financial Services. This means you can benefit from the technology immediately, and pay for it further down the line when the increased sales materialise.
Taking the time now to plan your journey, from start-up to established business and beyond, can ensure your IT requirements can grow with you, meaning when that rapid growth period arrives you’re in the perfect position to cope.
This content was written by Dell Technologies
Dell understands startups as we started as one more than 35 years ago! Our Dell for Startups program provides startup expertise from a dedicated technology advisor and scalable solutions to ensure your business is ready to grow. Find out how Dell could help your business prepare for the next stage on its growth journey.
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