Let us be honest, maintaining software installation library onsite is a very expensive undertaking. There is a cost for acquiring, maintaining, changing and upgrading hardware which hosts the software business need to use for day-to-day operations. Of course, as the lifecycle of software comes to an end, that incurs the cost of upgrading to the next supported version of software on the same hardware.
Enter software-as-a-service, where the cloud in a layman’s term becomes the host of the application instead of the local device. There is no expensive hardware to buy, operate, maintain and eventually decommissioned. Companies that depend on SAAS can continue to use the same computers they used a decade ago, as the software is not running natively. This means that the software will continue to run from the cloud, disregarding the specifications of the client computer.
Of course, there is a need for companies to do their homework first before jumping into SAAS-based computing. There are a handful of mainstream and second-tier SAAS vendors to choose from, it maybe difficult at first but in this article are will guide you with your purchase decision, what brand of SAAS best fit your requirements.
Storage
The more applications to be migrated from its desktop version to the cloud version will surely occupy more space. Storage needs is a very sensitive topic even for a company that uses traditional desktop applications. Planning ahead what hardware to buy to satisfy storage needs is much more straightforward for SAAS, as the GB allocation is based on the SKU of the package that the company will purchase. There is no more need to thinker each individual PC to upgrade hard drives in the event that is already full and can no longer accommodate more installed applications. In the cloud, the expansion of storage is as easy as a few clicks, leveling-up the SKU to the next higher package with more storage for apps and data that the users will generate. Capacity planning is still a nice skill for the IT teams to have even if the apps used by the organization is already cloud-based.
Vendor reputation
Stick with big names such as Amazon, Microsoft, Google, Apple etc. Yes, it is a lot of savings for an organization to just pick a less well-known cloud app vendor. However, the strength of the brand comes from the company that is already in the Tech industry for a long time. The rich experience and expertise of the above-mentioned vendors cannot be matched by no-name brands or second-tier brands. It is very important that the company which will host not only your cloud apps but also corporate data has a good track record when it comes to securing their overall infrastructure.
Level of support
This is directly related to Vendor reputation, mainstream cloud vendors are much more accessible. They have large teams of support that are easier to contact and responsive to the needs of their clients compared to a start-up cloud company. These companies operate within their SLA (Service-Level-Agreements) and usually meets the baseline defined in SLA when it comes to the quality of their support service.
Data Integrity
Data uploaded in the cloud must be downloadable from the cloud with full integrity. That means the data is not lost nor corrupted if downloaded. Not all network and storage infrastructure is created equal, some may spend more for their hardware, while other service providers build their infrastructure from the ground-up using off-the-shelf parts. Be sure to read the fine print before signing-up for a cloud service. Read reviews from its current client in order to ascertain the dependability of the company offering the service.
Scalability and Expandability
Companies, regardless if it is for-profit or non-profit has the goal of expansion once all visible indicators allow it to do so. The expansion of business operations also means expansion for the use of computing resources. In a traditional sense, cloud app and storage system ease the transition when it comes to expanding the “hardware” needs of the firm. This is because expanding the current subscription is just a few clicks away.