What is SaaS Management?

While the world embarks on a true digital transformation journey, most organizations are starting to prefer SaaS-based applications instead of in-house solutions. SaaS is a cloud-based software service that allows easy access to data from any device with an internet connection and a web browser, without the need to download any software. Despite the increasing use of SaaS to meet a variety of business needs, IT teams using traditional software asset management solutions find it difficult to gain full visibility into SaaS usage holistically within existing service management tools.

SaaS Management software allows to enjoy, manage and optimize the applications that the organization uses. The purpose of SaaS Management is to increase the value of their purchased software and increase the effectiveness of users deploying SaaS applications.

What is SaaS Management?

Developed in response to the unique features of SaaS applications in the business environment, SaaS Management is the practice of managing day-to-day operations across all software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications in an organization's technology portfolio. It is a business application that enables the acquisition, recruitment, licensing, renewal, and management of software applications as a service.

The purpose of SaaS Management is to manage processes such as identity and access, user lifecycle management, spend optimization, application configuration, and visibility and audibility in SaaS applications.

Why do Businesses need SaaS Management?

Many businesses today prefer cloud-based SaaS applications over traditional on-premises applications. SaaS Management eliminates the management problems that can be encountered when adopting SaaS applications. SaaS Management is software designed to manage processes such as visibility and audibility of SaaS applications.

• Shadow IT risks

Shadow IT is when technology applications or systems within the organization are purchased or built without the direct approval or knowledge of the IT department. The growth of Shadow IT is directly tied to the increasing frequency of business, team, and individual users directly purchasing SaaS applications.

With a strong SaaS Management process, SaaS applications can be found and made visible first, preventing the growth of shadow IT.

• SaaS license management

As organizations grow, the number of SaaS applications used increases as workloads and employee numbers increase. As more people buy SaaS tools, the potential for SaaS licenses to be abused arises. Among the licensing mismanagement concerns, the most important is the presence of underutilized or unused licensed software.

With an effective SaaS Management strategy, licenses that are not used and no longer needed can be unsubscribed from the platform. Optimizing SaaS licenses saves unnecessary costs.

• SaaS renewal management

SaaS applications serve on a subscription basis. Most SaaS apps have automatic renewals, including notice periods, as they near the end of their subscription period. It automatically renews unless the SaaS user notifies the company that there will be no renewal for another term. Subscriptions can be controlled and managed through the SaaS Management platform.

• SaaS spend visibility and analytics

Primary motivations for leading SaaS include seeing how much the SaaS application is being spent, who is spending it, and how much value this investment brings to the organization.

• SaaS data security, risk mitigation and compliance

SaaS applications store business data as soon as a corporate email account is used to purchase or store the application. Sensitive data such as customer information or business records are also stored in SaaS. A SaaS Management approach that defines all SaaS applications strengthens security.

• SaaS usage and value

It wants to understand and analyze user behavior for the adoption and use of SaaS applications. Measuring usage provides insight into how users interact with applications through distribution, adoption, and long-term use, and this guides decision-making for future application selection.

How to Manage the SaaS Spend Better?

What are the Advantages of SaaS Management?

Every organization has its own unique requirements and needs. SaaS Management provides many benefits such as regular updates and lower adoption costs. The SaaS Management platform is very easy to manage, requires no installation, and can be accessed from anywhere and any device where the internet is available.

• Provides central visibility.

It helps an organization to have a clear and centralized view of all existing SaaS applications on a single platform. Viewing all applications on a single platform makes it easy to create a strategy and target the target.

• Enables data-based strategy development.

SaaS Management provides transparent and helpful data to make more strategic decisions. This facilitates the creation of appropriate stakeholders and owners of practices. Thus, new strategies can be created according to your business needs.

• Increases efficiency and productivity.

SaaS Management provides the ability to manage SaaS applications from a single platform. Employees of an organization can view and manage the applications they want on a single platform, regardless of location. This alleviates the burden of managing multiple applications on employees and causes them to work more efficiently.

• Ensures employee happiness.

By adopting and intelligently controlling SaaS applications with SaaS Management, giving employees the right tools to do their best work significantly increases employee happiness, communication with other employees and productivity.

• Reduces costs.

SaaS applications and SaaS Management are software that you can have as a monthly or annual subscription. In addition, with SaaS Management, unnecessary expenses can be reduced by seeing dormant subscriptions and unused applications.

• Reduces security risks.

Instantly notifies all-new enterprise SaaS applications in the organization's technology ecosystem with SaaS Management platforms. Applications that do not pass security and compliance standards can be monitored and access terminated.

• Provides ease of management and access.

SaaS applications are fully managed by the SaaS vendor, so organizations don’t take on the burden of management tasks and related responsibilities. The SaaS provider gives organizations SLAs to manage quality, availability, and support commitments.

• Provides the opportunity to work independently of the location.

For organizations with multiple offices or global access, using SaaS applications and SaaS Management gives users the flexibility to work from any device with an internet connection and from any location.

Application Portfolio Management Best Practices