Tasos Christidis

These days, there is a lot of discussion around the benefits that could software has on Small/Medium Enterprises (SMEs); and it does! But today, I’d like to focus on another area that SaaS could have great impact on: the case of large sales networks . First of all, let me define what I am focusing on: A large sales network is a distributed network that sells a specific range of products and/or services in a large geographical scale and/or from a large number of outlets (outlet being a dealership, a franchisee etc.). Usually, this network is operated by a “big” enterprise (not an SME), such as an exclusive importer in a country or the franchisor etc. Up until today – because of the fact that the network operator is a large enterprise – it is more than likely that software systems have been deployed by this entity to mechanize this or the other network operation. Some typical functions that the Operator would like to streamline are incoming sales orders from the network, visibility of st...

Automation of the on-boarding of new users on a SaaS platform is quite important and new. This is the kind of problem that does not exist in the traditional on-premise delivery model. So, it drives the SaaS vendor to “think differently” – and accumulate some costs in the process (!). It’s not just about “on-boarding”. If we discussed this issue more widely, we would talk about automation of the entire sales process . And while we are at it, we could also expand the discussion on the automation of the after-sales process, too (customer support, in this case). Let’s see some more challenges: Since there is no license sold but there is obviously a SLA, how can this be documented? In the traditional on-premise, license-based model, the buyer signs a contract that they have actually purchased and own this or that piece of software. In the world of SaaS, the buyer does not own anything… Well, that’s not true! They own, at least, their data, which are inputted on the remote, hosted SaaS a...

Can the process of boarding new users in a SaaS application be automated? When deploying a big on-premise ERP or a customized CRM etc. one can surely expect that the system installation, parameterization and deployment will not be a matter of minutes! It will take consulting and the provision of other services before you can say that you have a truly operational system. In my opinion, SaaS is (should be) trying to tackle this issue, too. It’s not just about a different delivery and charging method. It is also about the ease of use and the streamlined way of “doing things”. And part of “doing things” is the way the environment is boarding new users and giving them the initial working environment. So, what are the challenges for a SaaS vendor who is trying to move towards an automated activation process ? And is this “automation” a panacea that every vendor should pursue? (Don’t be hasty and answer “yes”, because there is a catch to that…!). Let’s have a look at those challenges: First o...

In the previous post we talked about collaboration capabilities that a SaaS platform offers to its end-users. The objective is to leverage two elementary SaaS facts: The fact that other users in that same platform share a common business model with you and that you share a common work space with others (not necessarily in your line of business). In this post we shall discuss what are the tools that will enable collaboration among these users; be them of similar business models or not. I believe that these tools and methodologies remain powerful, regardless of the mission of the SaaS application itself. It could be a heavy-duty ERP application or a low-end sales CRM tool. The essence of the user comments, questions and “agonies” is still the same. Chatting. I see a chatting tool very attractive in the sense that the user would be able to communicate with his/her colleagues inside the enterprise but also in the “community” or the “SaaS ecosystem”. Although there is no breakthrough in co...

First of all, I’d like to wish you Seasons Greetings and the Happiest New Year you’ve ever had. I will think of an even stronger wish for 2012, but this is too far in the future, so I may as well relax, for now! A lot has been said and written about possibilities that a SaaS platform gives to the end-user, which a traditional on-premise model cannot provide. Today, I would like to focus on one specific issue that keeps me busy the last couple of weeks: collaboration. Let’s start with the fact that when you operate in a SaaS environment (let’s talk about multi-tenant, which is the generally accepted “best” model) you reside in one database with other users, beyond your own enterprise. What you share with them is one of the following two (or maybe both): A common software platform and user-interface. We can safely assume that even if the modules that you are using are quite different from the other guy’s, the general rules of user interface, system rules, logging etc. are the same. A si...

In this era of Economic Crisis, things are dramatically changing inside the enterprise. Not only low-level employee headcount is decreasing but is some cases high-level, too. It is even possible that department merging takes place. For example typical HR processes are directed to the Accounting Dept. or Marketing is merged with Sales Dept., under one “roof” and management. This is a “business transformation” that needs to be supported by Information Technology, in new ways. In a traditional organization, the HR dept. could have been executing their tasks using spreadsheets or even paper-based processes. This was a system that had been “developed” by an old fashioned HR manager (who is now close to his/her retirement and who will probably not be substituted due to downsizing). If a non-HR specialist is given these tasks, he/she will probably have a hard time finding his way around paper-based processes and custom spreadsheets. Therefore, the procurement of a new HR system is now a “must...

Anti-SaaS arguments can have their source in true technical concerns or (in some degree) by the buyer’s physical resistance to sign-in to something that they don’t own . This can become a critical factor in some parts of the world, where the sense of ownership is very strong (my country, Greece, is one of them; I hear it’s the same in India and I’m sure that there are a lot more examples like that). And this sense of ownership is strong in other aspects of everyday life, too. For example, the acceptance of leased car versus owning an automobile is not the same in all countries. Let’s go on to see some more examples: I want it up and running on Sundays. It is possible that what the vendor is providing “out-of-the-box” is hot-line customer support on working days and hours. Some prospects are challenging that by raising the argument that they do not just work “nine to five”. In cases like that it is only logical that you will be charged more if your require hot-line availability beyond ...