Software As A Service - SaaS

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Software As A Service - SaaS

• Ian Mitchell, FNZCS

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What is SaaS? - Wikipedia

• Software as a Service (SaaS) is a model of
  Software Delivery where the software company
  provides maintenance, daily technical operation,
  and support for the software provided to their
  client.

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Key Characteristics

• Network-based access to, and management of,
  commercially available (i.e., not custom)
  software
• Activities that are managed from central
  locations rather than at each customer's site,
  enabling customers to access applications
  remotely via the Web
• Application delivery that typically is closer to
  a one-to-many model (single instance,
  multi-tenant architecture) than to a one-to-one
  model, including architecture, pricing,
  partnering, and management characteristics.

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Variations Deprecated Terminology

• ASP Application Solutions Provider
• Not just web front-ends SAP, Oracle
• Turnkey rather than tailored - LiveUpdate
• Way to deliver BPO services
• Often billed per user per month
• Typically not hosted in house but maybe
• Pure utility model pay for what you use
• Software on Demand.

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Definition of the Day

• Hosted remotely (typically in a web farm)
• Web front end only
• AJAX HTML, JavaScript
• Back end Database
• Usually multiple users different legal entities
• Billing Per user per month or similar.

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Advantages

• No large upfront costs - usually free trials
• High levels of security physical, power, pipes
• No install costs low one-time costs
• Minimal training
• Anywhere, anytime, anyone - mobility
• Operating costs only can be terminated re-sized
  No capex hoops.

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Disadvantages

• Core functionality out-sourced
• Broadband risk
• Limited personalisation/tailoring
• No competitive uniqueness advantage
• Not suited to high volume data entry.

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New Business Models

• Mobile models any PDA
• Deliver to screen format in use
• Working out-of-office Real Estate Agents
• Salespeople who visit the client
• Build the plan and place the order there
• Hot-desking
• Virtual Organisations
• Franchise models.

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Enhancements

• Introduced silently
• Only when multiple clients clearly want them
• In a way which does not impact other users
• No roll-out
• Simple conversational interface
• Irrelevant if all users not on same OS
• Minimum development costs test on single O/S.

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Open Source

• Not a particular issue
• But why use the products of a company which
  fundamentally opposes this approach?
• Why pay more?
• Will you ever know?

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24/7

• Why ask for 24/7? Do you need it?
• 23.5 x 6.5 much, much cheaper.
• Expensive Dual servers special storage
• Do these apps need it?
• They are not your ERP apps.

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Whose doing it?

• Google complete Java library
• Writely and spreadsheet
• Salesforce.com and CRM are hot
• Oracle and SAP have web interfaces
• BI to have web interfaces
• Web shopping sites are SaaS now
• Most mobile apps are actually SaaS now.

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Screenshots

• SalesForce
• NetSuite

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Cost of Roll-Out

• Was 1 SysAdmin per 30 PCs 1/50 thereafter
• Now better with Ghost and similar
• Then Citrix
• Virtualisation
• Cost of tailoring each users package options
• Now done from any PC by privileged user
• 1500 per PC to lt99!

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Cost of training

• Web forms and conversational modes
• Simpler forms less data intensive
• Confirmation of each step
• Help actually there
• Product must be easy to use or it wont survive
  the free trial
• Collaborative
• Comfort because I can see the data.

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Value to SMEs

• Smaller enterprises have an easier road to
  adoption and installation
• Need minimal (No?) technical staff
• More work from home
• More work on the street
• More work while traveling! New inflight options!
• SMEs are 80 of . . . Your market!

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Ease of Maintenance

• Because there is only one copy of the software
  maintenance is substantially eased
• The software only runs in one environment an
  environment totally controlled by the supplier
• IE and Mozilla damn!
• Reduced operating costs.

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Reduced Hardware Costs

• A single server handing multiple customers can be
  optimised no extra peripherals no CRT.
• Mass storage optimised
• No need for virtualisation
• Rack mounts
• Minimum cabling - at both ends.

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Myths Jeffrey Kaplan

• 1. Saas is still relatively new and untested.
• 2. SaaS is just another version of the failed ASP
  and hosting models of the past and will suffer
  the same fate as its predecessors.
• 3. SaaS only relieves companies of the upfront
  costs of traditional software licenses.
• 4. SaaS is only for small and mid-sized
  businesses and will not be accepted by
  large-scale organisations.

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Myths Business Week Online

• 5. SaaS only applies to applications such as CRM
  and Salesforce automation.
• 6. SaaS will only have a minor impact on the
  software industry and will fade over time.
• 7. It will be easy for the established software
  vendors to offer SaaS and dominate this market.
• 8. SaaS is only for corporate users.

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Conclusions

• SaaS will be the way most apps will be delivered
  not unique competitive advantage s/w
• All but high-volume data entry for large
  corporates and specialised apps
• Much higher proportion of staff will have only
  PDAs or small footprint notebooks
• Low risk try b/4 you buy get the CxO ticks.

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Thank You

• Ian Mitchell, FNZCS
• eIan_at_Mitchell.co.nz
• http//www.SoftwareAsAService.co.nz
• http//www.AboutIT.co.nz
• http//www.Mitchell.co.nz