What is The Cloud or Software-as-a-Service (SaaS)? There does not exist, even today, a widely accepted definition. One can, however, assign a principle description of the concept that few would disagree with, and that would be:
SaaS is "Software deployed as a hosted service and accessed over the internet."
The concept of hosted software is certainly not a new one, and even Mettis's own iTax (link) service, developed in 1999, already employed the basic principles of SaaS. Since then, however, the internet has transformed the face of many an industry, meaning that many companies needed to adapt the way they do business in order to stay abreast with the times. Doing this often meant that additional budgets were needed to redesign core competencies. In the last five (5) years too, operating costs, many that are ultimately dependent on the cost of oil, began to rise significantly.
Large corporate entities that had seemingly bottomless coffers of cash were looking for ways to save money. Often the first place they thought to look was at cutting staff compliments and associated benefits, resulting in additional problems. As technology progressed in leaps and bounds since the turn of the millennium, so did internet speeds and hosting capabilities. Enter SaaS.
As the appeal of SaaS grows, many organisations are experiencing the following benefits:
No client/server software installation or maintenance
Those intimidating planning and implementation guides of hundreds of pages are a thing of the past.
Shorter deployment time
Following on from the point above, deployment can potentially take minutes as opposed to phased implementation that can take months.
Global availability
Granted, there is technology that can make on-premise software available off the premises, but SaaS means functionality that can be accessed from any place where an internet connection is available. This allows individuals to be able to work on the move or from home, freeing up valuable time in this fast-paced world.
Service Level Agreement (SLA) adherence
Reported bugs or fixes can theoretically be resolved in the blink of an eye, as opposed to having a developer come out to the premises to access the software housed there.
Constant, smaller upgrades
As opposed to on-premise software, where upgrades or patches would usually incorporate major changes involving more roll-out time and money, using a SaaS application means that the vendor can constantly make tiny changes all the time to improve the application experience. With traditional licensed software, you typically have to wait for the next release to benefit from the latest innovations or to move your organisation to a new browser or operating system. Given the cost and complexity of moving to a new version, it may not even be practical to upgrade each time a new release becomes available.
With a SaaS subscription, on the other hand, you benefit from innovations on an on-going basis. As soon as a new or improved feature appears in the application, you can begin using it.
Ease Your Internal IT Pains
The points above all refer to lessening the burden on IT staff that usually have to trouble shoot 3rd party software or maintain aging infrastructure. This means that more time can be spent on improving day-to-day technical operations. This in turn means - Redistribute IT Budget By outsourcing software functionality to a provider, the enterprise realises a cost savings in infrastructure requirements and IT personnel knowledge requirements. This allows the enterprise to focus on core competencies. It also means that the cost savings from using SaaS applications can be flat out saved, or reallocated to boost productivity through other services.
Join a community of interest
Purchasing a traditional software license is very much an individual affair. When you subscribe to a SaaS application, however, you become a member of a community that has the application at the centre.
SaaS changes the relationship between software vendors and customers. In a service environment, there is "a convergence of interest between customer and vendor that's more intimate than that expressed in the world of conventional on-premises applications."
The intimacy results because:
* SaaS vendors constantly monitor how their customers are using the application.
* Customers easily benchmark themselves against their peers.
Awareness of how customers in the aggregate are using an application presents the vendor with a constant supply of metrics it can't ignore. Typically, this awareness translates into improved usability, performance, and functionality.
In addition, when you contact technical support, you're likely to experience faster and better service because support professionals can look at your implementation to see exactly what's happening.
As a SaaS customer, you benefit from your peers in a way that you're less likely to do with an on-premises implementation. SaaS customer user communities "tend to thrive" and are excellent sources of best practice tips and even templates or add-ons.
