What You Don’t Know About SaaS Management Platforms

Have you ever been betrayed by your devices? Maybe your laptop decided to update the operating system while you were downloading a file from your online storage drive. Or your smartphone refused to load the email application when you received a time-sensitive OTP? We’ve all been there but #WeStillLoveTechnology

This is why there’s a growing preference for device-agnostic SaaS deployed applications. They allow easy access from multiple devices through a simple web browser. Moreover, they are managed by the SaaS provider, which means the business can scale without buying expensive hardware and servers. According to BMC’s The State of SaaS in 2022, 99% of organizations will be using one or more SaaS solutions in 2022. With such high adoption, businesses need tools that proactively monitor and manage everything from the purchase to retirement of every Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) application within their business portfolio.

Read on to know what SaaS Management Platforms are, how they evolved, their working, benefits and future!
 

What Are SaaS Management Platforms, Professor?

We’re sure you remember Charles Xavier AKA Professor X from the X-Men Universe. His telepathic abilities helped him locate other mutants – no matter where they were. This allowed him to seamlessly manage and build a network of mutants called the X-Corporation. Don’t you wish you had Professor X for your business, too? Someone who could scan your entire enterprise infrastructure and tell you where all your SaaS applications (mutants) resided? Someone to say “Hey, you already have a SaaS-based project management application, why are you using Microsoft Project?”

You see, SaaS Management Platforms are like Professor X – they enable IT teams and administrators to view the entire SaaS infrastructure and manage the day-to-day operations of SaaS applications, no matter where they are installed. These platforms allow businesses to easily set policies, take corrective responses, track usage metrics and automate tasks related to the lifecycle of SaaS applications. It enables organizations to maximize the benefits of deployed SaaS applications by assisting in purchasing, licensing, onboarding, updating and renewal management. Moreover, the platform reduces security risks and boosts governance as applications are monitored frequently throughout their lifecycle. If you rely on SaaS deployments, this is one tool you need!

Most of us know how the young and naive Charles Xavier evolved into an exceptionally powerful and visionary telepath – let’s see how SaaS Management Platforms evolved over time!
 

How Did We Get To Software-as-a-Service Management Platforms?

Professor X, can you give us a brief look at the evolution of SaaS management and its platform, please?
 
1970s: Businesses started using applications/ software on personal computers for business tasks.

1980s: Applications transitioned to an OS-based infrastructure which improved the speed and performance of applications. Yet, this meant limitations based on the operating system.

1989: The invention of the World Wide Web led to businesses working on the concept of delivering services online.

1990s: Through digital transformation, enterprise applications moved to a faster client-server architecture. Furthermore, large businesses started using mainframe computing for critical applications and services. This was also the first time that applications were deployed remotely by a third-party hosting service. Although it was a single-tenant model, this was the first iteration of SaaS applications.

1998: By the late 90s, multi-tenant SaaS deployment models were developed. Here, a single instance of an application could serve multiple customers (tenants).

2010: A decade later, Salesforce showed that the future of software delivery will be cloud-based Software-as-a-Service, as it quickly became the world's best SaaS provider. Businesses were quick to hop on the SaaS bandwagon.

Early 2020s: By the early 2020s, there was an unforeseen rise in SaaS adoption as sophisticated services could now provide almost every functionality as a cloud-based package. This is when the need to manage multiple SaaS applications emerged and SaaS Management Platforms were developed.

Today, SaaS Management Platforms are a necessity for every business that uses cloud-delivered applications. It is incredibly challenging to manage multiple SaaS deployments, including their renewal, update, licensing, retirement, etc. This is where Professor X, we mean, SaaS Management Platforms can help – here’s how!
 

How Do SaaS Management Platforms Work?

The thing to remember is there is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to SaaS Management Platforms. The functionality and features of the tool should align with your business portfolios, such as the number of deployed applications, security requirements and application usage. Yet, most SaaS Management Platforms function similarly!

SaaS Management Platforms act as a single point of record for all SaaS solutions within an organization. They keep track of each SaaS application's usage statistics and benchmarks. SaaS Management Platforms frequently try to reduce subscription costs or streamline the management of SaaS applications. The common expense management capabilities include license management, contract renewal management, application budgeting and reporting, etc. On the other hand, operations management features include managing secure user access and keeping track of application onboarding, implementation and offboarding.

Just as Eye-Boy (the X-Men mutant with 57 eyes!) saw in all directions simultaneously, SaaS Management Platforms observe everything within your SaaS application infrastructure. Eye-Boy only had one superpower (360-degree vision) while Professor X could read and control minds, levitate objects and change people’s perceptions!

We’re sure SaaS Management Platforms also offer a handful of benefits!
 

What’s The Benefit Of Using A SaaS Management Platform?

 
There are several benefits of SaaS Management Platforms that help businesses improve the value of SaaS deployments in the enterprise ecosystem. Some of the primary benefits include:
 

• Reduced Expenses Through Multi-Tenancy:

  The affordability of SaaS management tools is one of their most notable advantages. The expense of operating the software can be distributed among numerous enterprises thanks to multiple-tenancy arrangements, making the investment in SaaS Management Platforms inexpensive.

• Strategic Advantage:

  SaaS solutions give users access to the cloud, doing away with the requirement for on-premises hardware and applications. Besides, companies can experiment with several SaaS deployments with distinct functionalities. For instance, you can utilize a separate PPC (pay-per-click) solution in addition to an SEO tool. The addition of multiple applications does not create a problem as SaaS Management Platforms can handle it flawlessly.

• Cloud-Based Access Features:

  Another benefit of SaaS Management Platforms is that these solutions are cloud-based. This enables the business stakeholders to access the software on the go. There is real-time visibility into application usage and access, without having to worry about investing in additional in-house servers.

• Real-Time Reporting:

  SaaS Management Platforms provide real-time reporting and analytics. SaaS deployments can then be instantly updated or modified, which can aid in the optimization of application management policies. For example, SEO tools need to align with changes to search engine algorithms, which is made simple by a SaaS Management Platform.

Pretty awesome, right? One of the top concerns with SaaS was its cumbersome integration and management. With this mutant of a management tool, managing SaaS applications is quick and simple! That’s not all – with the rising adoption of SaaS delivery and better services being hosted over the cloud, SaaS Management Platforms will get a revamp soon.

The Future Of SaaS Management Platforms

All you need to do then, Professor X, is look at the future trends for SaaS Management Platforms!

According to Allied Market Research, by 2030, the Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) market is expected to reach a valuation of $702.19 billion! Considering this, service providers will make it simpler to deploy, manage and modify SaaS applications at scale through tailored SaaS Management Platforms. Most software vendors will help businesses create their personal, no-code “as-a-Service” capabilities. You can bet that these new-age tools will integrate Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, offering autonomous and self-improving operational efficiency features. This will allow businesses of all sizes – from nascent start-ups to major enterprises – to deploy multiple SaaS applications in the blink of an eye!

The future SaaS Management Platforms will aim to reduce overall operational costs and improve business retention. Additionally, as SaaS Management Platforms improve, they will accelerate the adoption of SaaS services and applications.
 

Conclusion

SaaS and cloud computing are both mutating (pun intended!) quickly and don't appear to be slowing down anytime soon. According to some experts, the SaaS revolution's growth hasn't even hit its pinnacle yet. Hence, every business would benefit from investing in a SaaS Management Platform today to easily manage their cloud-hosted software and service deployments. These tools also assist in locating improperly managed SaaS deployments, enhancing the cost-effectiveness of SaaS applications and the value of licensed software. That’s almost like having a superpower yourself!