Reduced budgets and limited resources need not constrain utilisation of the latest software. Increasingly, organisations are turning to Software as a Service – a delivery model where applications are typically rented on demand, on a per-user basis.
IDC, the Framingham, Massachusetts research firm, estimates that the worldwide software-on-demand delivery model will reach $14.5 billion (U.S.) by 2011, representing a compound annual growth rate of 30 percent. (1)
Today CIOs need to:
- Reduce IT costs including maintenance
- Reduce IT complexity
- Reduce risk of software ownership
- Improve productivity/ROI
IDC highlights the adoption patterns for SaaS, and other utility computing models, including companies with fewer than 100 employees and small and medium-sized businesses. IDC predicts that adoption of utility computing will incrementally increase while large companies with 10,000 or more employees will look towards integrating utility computing with traditional outsourced arrangements. (2)
The SaaS delivery model offers these benefits:
- Faster time to value
- Reduces the complexity of managing IT
- Reduces the cost of owning and managing IT infrastructure and software
- Enables access to functionality that would not otherwise be affordable
With SaaS, organisations can achieve a greater value in their software applications and reduce business risk. A pre-deployed SaaS infrastructure and team of experts lets organisations focus on their business instead of implementing and running software applications and investing in an infrastructure and resources for software deployment. Instead, an organisation develops a relationship with the SaaS provider for ongoing deployment, training and mentoring on demand.
Traditionally functional groups have benefited by taking the management of these software tools out of IT and into their own functional groups for greater control. However, IT organisations now also are beginning to adopt SaaS solutions as a way to optimise internal resources and quickly gain expertise on new software tools.
When should you consider SaaS?
- You need faster deployment of software applications.
- You lack the resources or infrastructure to run the software.
- You need to focus on internal initiatives, not manage another software solution.
HP and Software as a Service
HP Software as a Service can help businesses optimise HP software implementations. For flexibility, HP begins working with customers immediately to help achieve value and get up running quickly. The typical HP Software as a Service process is:
- Map the SaaS deployment and project plan, according to the customer's business needs
- Establish continuous value check points
- Impart established best practices
HP Software also provides an in-house deployment option for customers who prefer to transition their deployment in-house.
Melissa Siems, business development manager for HP Software as a Service, says,
"Our goal is to make sure the customer is successful. We drive the process to make sure that they are fully deployed using the best practices we have accumulated.”
Driving ROI
SaaS enables organisations to reduce software implementation time for a faster ROI so they can focus on business-critical projects.
As for the future, IDC anticipates that adoption of software on demand will continue to accelerate among companies of all sizes and across a spectrum of industries. Key drivers include the need for IT cost reduction, cost predictability and shared risk, and value placed on the software experience.
HP SaaS accelerates time to business outcomes by:
- Offering a pre-deployed infrastructure and team of experts
- Mitigating risk associated with installation, performance, testing and other foundation activities
- Maximising the full value of HP Software through best practices and ongoing mentoring
- Enabling you to focus on your business and letting HP run the solution
(1) IDC: Worldwide Software on Demand Forecast, April 2007.
(2) Source: "Utility Computing: Market Adoption Road Maps and Customer Requirements”, IDC (July 2007). |
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