07 Jan 2009

SaaS can curb unnecessary expenses, expert says

Businesses could reduce their outgoings by switching to software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications as part of their IT systems management, it has been suggested.

Martha Young, writing at ITWorld, commented on the role of SaaS within the broader concept of cloud computing and the hosted services options it provides.

She said SaaS could help firms achieve growth at lower expense by controlling software licensing expenses, because the technology could monitor patches, upgrades and renewals and only pay for what is needed.

Rogue software installations could also be monitored using SaaS, which can streamline application support to improve efficiency, Ms Young noted.

The technology can also reduce the cost of IT systems management, because web-based applications give firms flexibility over how much "desktop horsepower" is needed to get a done.

Finally, SaaS vendors often offer 30-day trials which could help firms avoid wasted investments.

Ms Young concluded: "SaaS isn't the holy grail to all your business challenges, but implementing it in key areas will help to curb unnecessary expenses."

Her assessment of SaaS comes after a recent survey of 258 IT executives by industry analysts Gartner found that 90 per cent of businesses were considering the technology because of its cost-effectiveness, ease of use and speed of deployment.