General
scalable
What does scalable mean?
Describing a solution or business that can handle much more volume without a proportional increase in effort or cost.
"Hiring a person per customer isn't scalable."
Origin
From engineering/computing 'scale'; core startup vocabulary.
Frequently asked questions
What does scalable mean?
Able to grow to handle much more volume without a proportional jump in effort or cost. A scalable business can serve ten times the customers without ten times the work.
Why do startups care about being scalable?
Because investors want growth that isn't capped by adding staff one-for-one. If serving each new customer needs a new hire, the model doesn't scale.
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