Top Advantages and Disadvantages of SaaS migration

The cloud SaaS migration is a phenomenon that has taken the world by storm. This type of migration has been very popular in recent years because it helps with many aspects of business. Cloud migration is seen as an efficient and cost-effective solution for businesses to provide their employees with access to the platforms they need throughout their working day.

However, there are some advantages and disadvantages associated with this type of migration that you should be aware of before you decide whether or not it’s right for your company:

Some of the advantages of SaaS migration are:

On-demand software

• No need to install software or maintain it. With SaaS, you don’t need to buy hardware or software licenses, and you don’t have to manage upgrades. You just sign up for an account, pay each month as long as you want, and enjoy using its features without thinking about anything else.
• No need for costly hardware upgrades with growing user base or processing power increase needs in future due to new functionalities being added every now and then.

Affordable software

• Cost savings — Because software is automatically updated and maintained, you’ll have fewer recurring costs. Plus, many SaaS models offer no-cost trials or free basic versions that allow you to try out the product before committing, which makes it easy for you to find the right fit for your business without having to pay anything upfront.
• Reduced maintenance costs — You won’t need to hire staff in order to keep your software up-to-date with patches and updates; instead, this can all be handled by the provider’s engineers. You also won’t need any hardware — in fact, some SaaS providers don’t even require servers!
• No need for upgrades — With a traditional on-premise solution like an Oracle database or Microsoft Office suite (which may cost thousands of dollars), it’s essential that you upgrade regularly in order not only keep up with changing technology but also avoid being left behind by competitors who are relying on newer solutions. With SaaS solutions like Salesforce CRM and Office 365 Business Premium (which come free with some Microsoft Office 365 plans), however, there are no upgrade fees — and since they’re constantly updated by their providers anyway it makes sense that every employee at every company using them would be using exactly the same version across all platforms at all times!

Lower costs

A SaaS approach lowers costs in the following areas:

• Software costs are lower. The cost of software is often higher with a traditional model, because you’re paying for perpetual licenses rather than on-demand service or only for the features you need.
• There’s no need for hardware. There’s no need to invest in costly hardware like servers and storage units if your company is using a cloud computing solution, which often comes with its own infrastructure that’s ready to go when you sign up for SaaS services.
• You don’t need IT staff or an IT infrastructure. Because all of the heavy lifting has been done by the provider who hosts your data, there isn’t much else that needs to be done — or paid for — to support it except regular maintenance and any upgrades they might provide as time goes on.

Automatic updates

One of the great things about SaaS is that it allows you to streamline your business. In order to do this, it’s important for you to know what’s going on behind the scenes. With SaaS, you don’t have to worry about updating your software because it does all of this for you remotely. The updates are done in the background and automatically, so there isn’t any need for manual intervention from users or IT teams.

Reduced risk of compliance non-compliance

Many companies struggle to keep up with compliance standards, especially those related to data security.

For example, if you use a service like Salesforce which is used by thousands of other companies, it’s likely that they have already put in place many of the measures required by GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation). This means that your company doesn’t need to worry about those issues as much.

Similarly, if the provider offers a multi-tenant environment (where different clients’ data is kept separate) this also helps reduce risk and liability.

Compatibility

The SaaS model is more compatible with other software. A lot of the time, the cost of moving away from a proprietary solution that you have been using for years is prohibitively high. In contrast, the SaaS model allows you to integrate your existing systems and data with ease. This means that your IT department can maintain all their expertise in-house with minimal disruption or investment on their part.

This also means that you have access to an entire ecosystem of third-party tools and plugins that make it easier than ever before to integrate your new solution into other essential apps (like customer relationship management or email marketing). You can even use cloud storage services like Dropbox or Google Drive as an alternative way of keeping track of files without having to invest in additional hardware or software licenses!

Challenges of SaaS migration:

Data Security

Data security is a major concern for SaaS migration. In the past, data was stored on-premises, meaning that a business’s customer information and other sensitive data were housed in its own server. Now, however, many businesses are migrating to the cloud and storing their data there instead — which means they’re entrusting their most important information to third-party companies.

These third parties can be hacked just like any other company; therefore, it’s important to make sure your company has an adequate plan in place for protecting your customer data before migrating over to Saas. You may want to speak with an experienced cybersecurity expert before starting any sort of transition process so that you can ensure your customers’ personal information remains safe throughout this shift in technology.

Customization limitations

There are certain features of your software that are important to you. Perhaps your business relies on custom reports, or perhaps you hand-code all of the transactions in your ERP system. This is where customization comes into play: it’s what allows you to configure the software so that it works exactly how you want it to.

Unfortunately, when it comes to choosing a SaaS option for your company there are some significant downsides here too — and they can be quite detrimental if they aren’t taken into consideration before making any final decisions about how exactly you’re going to implement this new technology into your business processes.

The first issue with using a Saas model as opposed to traditional installation methods is that when things go wrong (and they will), there’s no one else but yourself who will be able access those systems and fix them; depending upon what part of the process needs fixing, this may mean waiting several weeks before someone can even look at whatever problem has arisen which means losing money every day during that time period since nothing gets done until then!

Internet Connectivity

If your business relies on a web-based service, it’s critical that the internet connection in your office is fast and reliable. You need to be able to rely on your SaaS software working when you need it to.

If you’re migrating from an on-premise system to a SaaS solution, make sure you have enough bandwidth in place before migrating. If your current ISP can’t meet your needs, consider switching providers or upgrading their equipment until they do have the capacity for high speed internet connectivity in both directions (upload and download).

Redundant connections are also important if there is any chance of downtime with an ISP for whatever reason — including weather related issues like power outages or natural disasters like hurricanes or earthquakes which could affect electricity supply as well as internet communication channels such as fiber optic lines being cut by falling trees or landslides blocking roads between facilities in remote locations.

Upgrade Issues

If you’re switching from your current software to Saas, you’ll probably be dealing with some upgrade issues.

First, upgrades can be difficult. A lot of the time, there is no way for your application to know exactly how it should react when an upgrade is released. This means that developers need to manually go through and make sure that everything works properly.

Second, upgrading can cost more money than you think! When switching from a “traditional” model where users pay per license at a set price every month, Saas gives companies flexibility in pricing that can lead to unexpected costs as they try out different price points or free trials on users who are already paying for something else (such as Amazon Web Services). If a company has signed up for several types of services under one contract then all those contracts need to be changed manually before doing anything else.

Rapid Migration

Rapid migration is not a good idea. It can lead to problems, it can be expensive, and it can cause downtime. Here are some of the ways that rapid SaaS migration will harm your business:

• You need to be sure that you have the resources available in case something goes wrong during the migration process. Running into technical issues during a migration will cause delays and cost you money; therefore, it’s best to avoid this by planning ahead with adequate preparation time in advance of your scheduled launch date.
• Because there may be unforeseen problems with your application after migrating over to new software versions or infrastructure changes, rapid migrations should always occur under controlled conditions rather than rushed ones because they take longer than expected due to unforeseen issues while being performed (such as unexpected bugs).

Innate Integration Capabilities

The fact that Saas doesn’t integrate well with existing business processes (as opposed to on-premises software) is one of the biggest reasons many companies hesitate to migrate.

What does this mean? If you have an existing platform where your users are used to working, and you decide to move it all onto a SaaS platform, you’ll have trouble getting them accustomed to the new interface and functionality. This can lead to confusion and frustration among employees that don’t want to learn something new just so they can do their jobs better.

Additionally, if you choose SaaS for its easy deployment capabilities but need more integration with other tools or platforms at some point in future, then this might become problematic because most SaaS solutions are designed not only for ease of use but also ease of implementation — and that means less flexibility when compared with traditional solutions that offer greater integration abilities out of the box.

Software as a service may be more secure than on-premise software.

There are many benefits to SaaS migration. One of the biggest advantages of migrating to Software as a Service (SaaS) is that your business will be more secure. With SaaS, you’ll have access to software hosted and managed by a third party, so you won’t have to worry about patching it yourself or keeping antivirus software updated. You also won’t need any additional hardware for this software and can access it from anywhere without having to worry about any physical security issues.

Conclusion

Software as a service is one of the most popular ways to deliver software. It has many advantages, particularly for small businesses. As we’ve seen, there are some challenges as well, but with careful planning and research, you can overcome them and reap the benefits of this technology for your business.