Why Scalability is Important for Your Call Center

Scalability tends to surface in conversations about the cloud and cloud-based technologies like TCN’s VoIP call center platform. Unfortunately, the word often serves as a signifier of “smartness” rather than a concrete term. To help you understand what scalability really means and why it matters, we explore some definitions, a bit of history, and a few benefits here.

What is Scalability?

The basic dictionary offers some understanding of scalability. To be “scalable” means to possess “the capacity to change in size or scale.” As applied to cloud computing and related services, the word refers to “the ability of a computing process to be used or produced in a range of capabilities.”

A few other sources, including sites like SearchDataCenter and Investopedia, offer greater insight into scalability. SearchDataCenter says scalability sees two uses in information technology.

1. It applies to software or hardware’s ability to “continue to function well when it (or its context) changes in size or volume in order to meet a user need.”
2. It captures software or hardware’s ability to “not only function well in the rescaled situation but also to take full advantage of it.” That is, the technology sees no downgrade in performance due to the rescaling.

Investopedia defines scalability in terms of the cloud, as well as broader contexts. “Scalability is a characteristic of a system, model, or function that describes its capability to cope and perform under an increased or expanding workload. A system that scales well will be able to maintain or even increase its level of performance or efficiency when tested by larger operations demands.”

Why is Scalability Important?

On-premise, or “legacy,” applications ruled businesses, organizations, agencies, and call centers. They worked, but they sometimes struggled to cope with changing user needs and shifting marketplace demands.

For example, the digital age ushered in workplaces where call center agents bring their own laptops, smartphones, or other portable devices to conduct work (BYOB). Using those devices to retrieve work-related information and applications puts additional loads on the business’ systems and infrastructure. If those two pieces can’t scale to meet the demand, performance suffers.

In addition, some call centers employ remote employees, which almost always necessitates cloud-based solutions. Such applications typically connect to multiple and geographically dispersed data servers to not only handle additional call center agent seats but also to secure and privatize information.

How Does Scalability Impact My Organization?

Some of the definitions outlined earlier allude to scalability’s impact on your call center agency or department. Scalability means potential. With it, hardware and software can “change in size or scale.” You sometimes hear this concept called “infinite scalability,” an idea referring to a system’s ability to seamlessly expand and contract.

Scalability also defines a system’s capacity for increased workloads. At its finest, a scalable system ensures top performance and efficiency no matter what you throw at it. It rolls smoothly along during election cycles, open enrollment season, or product launches.

If you want to see a scalable cloud call center in action, request a demo. Our platform rests upon the scalability premise because we understand the day-to-day realities of the call center. They require a software solution that adapts to changing needs, increasing or decreasing seats, and seasonal cycles. And you get that, always, with TCN.