‍Speed vs. Scalability: The Trade-off ‍

In today’s fast-paced business world, startups need speed and enterprises prioritise scalability. It’s no surprise why - startups need to move fast to gain an edge, while enterprises require scalability to handle growth. However, the real challenge lies in balancing both. Most businesses, regardless of their size, need both speed and scalability, but they often end up with neither. So, how do successful businesses tackle this issue in a way that’s fast but built to scale?

It’s about creating a system where speed and scalability aren’t at odds with one another, but rather work in harmony. We’ve seen this issue firsthand in the way many businesses approach product development - there’s often a trade off between quick decision making and the long term scalability of a product. 

‍Speed: the competitive advantage

Speed is the moat that sets businesses apart. The market is moving fast and if you don’t act quickly, you risk losing out. But if you move at lightning speed without thinking about how your decisions impact scalability, you're essentially setting yourself up for failure. Fast decisions are critical, but they need to be backed by the ability to iterate, learn and adapt.

In product development, the term “technical debt” is often thrown around. It's a perfect example of how speed and scalability conflict when not properly managed. If technical debt piles up and is ignored, it slows things down in the long run. It’s easy to get caught up in the speed of execution, but without considering how your decisions will affect scalability, you create problems that you can’t easily solve later on.

‍Speed with scalability in mind

At Studio Graphene, we advocate for prioritising speed in decision making and execution - but with constant evaluation of how those choices will impact scalability. The goal is to act quickly but be mindful of the long term impact. When you notice that a decision is hurting scalability, whether through technical debt or inefficient processes, it’s time to evaluate and make changes.

‍The issue with generic processes

A common mistake is treating scalability and speed as two separate tracks. You’ll often hear advice about adopting processes like Agile to build scalable products. But what works for one business might not work for another. Scalability challenges differ from product to product and applying a one size fits all process can be counterproductive.

For example, let’s talk about code reviews. They are essential, but they can slow things down if not managed properly. Similarly, while conducting extensive user research before building a product might seem like a smart move, it may not always be necessary. There are “unknown unknowns” that you won’t uncover until your product is out in the hands of users.

This is where businesses often can get it wrong. Instead of blindly following generic scalability processes, they need to tailor their approach based on their specific needs. Is the problem scaling the product for a large number of users? Is it about ensuring the product is configurable for a diverse set of clients? Or is it about fixing deployment issues that prevent scaling? The answers vary and they need to be addressed as they arise.

‍Getting products in the hands of users

The key to identifying scalability challenges lies in getting your product into the hands of real users, even if it’s just a pilot. Feedback from users uncovers nuanced issues that impact scalability. We’ve experienced this firsthand with our own product, Telsen. For example, in kitchen environments with poor connectivity, scalability issues are tied to connectivity constraints. If we didn’t have real user feedback, we wouldn’t have identified these specific challenges.

On the flip side, with other products we’ve developed, scalability issues have been tied to user concurrency rather than connectivity. Thousands of users might use the product, but they tend to use it less frequently, which presents its own set of challenges.

‍Bringing speed and scalability together

Many businesses fail to achieve both speed and scalability because they treat them as separate entities. They set up “speed teams” and “scalability teams,” but these teams often work in isolation. This approach often leads to failure. Speed and scalability need to be aligned and work together, not apart. The success comes from building a product that’s agile and responsive in the short term, while being able to scale as needed without sacrificing long-term growth.

Businesses that balance speed and scalability don’t treat them as trade offs but as two forces that must work together. By moving fast while keeping an eye on scalability and adapting processes as necessary, businesses can avoid the pitfalls that come with ignoring either element. The result? A product that can grow as quickly as it adapts and that’s the kind of product every business should aim to build.

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