I'm curious to find out what y'all have to say on this… what is the upper threshold of company size for one IT person before they need help?
Our company has grown from 5 people to 45 people, most of it in the past 3 years. I started with it, designed all the systems, and did extensive coding in those early years as well (for our local VB based order management app, as well as PHP and MySQL stuff for our website). Now, it seems like it’s all I can do to keep up with everybody’s constant IT-related needs, and have no time for anything other than just actual IT stuff. If so, that’s fine, but I will have to have a talk with The Man to get him to stop adding stuff to my plate like it was 4 years ago, OR to get me some help with administration and maintenance of all the IT / systems stuff.
Jeez, I used to love all this, but nowadays it just feels like I’m scared all the time because something’s constantly breaking. If 5 people shared a single car, the wear and tear on that car would be somewhat reasonable, or at least predictable and manageable. With 45 people in that same car, it’s like those old VW ads where they cram in as many college kids as possible and see what the thing will do - except in this scenario the car is a daily driver. That car would be in need of constant fixing, tweaking, etc., and the mechanic would have no time for anything else. For me, the fun has always been designing and building and implementing the various systems… now, it feels like I have no time for anything other than being a high-tech janitor.
Is there actually a formula for figuring this stuff out based on number of employees? Am I just whining? Am I turning into the guy in the back room that just wants everyone to leave him alone? I hope not, because I helped build this company and I love it, but something has to shift.
In summary, based on the number of servers/computers, you're a ways from justifying another person, but throw in the software development and it's real hard to measure. Have you considered outsourcing desktop support to a managed services company or outsource the application development?
As for getting away, you need to create backup for yourself, whether it's another employee or outside firm. What if sonething happens to you - I think the company needs to be prepared.