THINKstrategies announced today that Rosslyn Analytics has been named the latest winner of the Best of SaaS Showplace (BoSS) Awards program, which is aimed at promoting the measurable business benefits being delivered by today’s Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solutions.
 
The BoSS Awards program was announced in January 2009 by THINKstrategies as an initiative aimed at bringing greater attention to SaaS and cloud computing companies that are producing tangible business benefits for specific user organizations. These benefits include increased sales, lower costs, higher customer satisfaction, faster operations and greater profitability.

Rosslyn Analytics’ pre-built applications run on Rapidintel, a web-based automated spend analytics (SaaS) platform that aggregates data from multiple sources, such as accounts payable, procurement, travel and procurement cards, into a single online view of all organizational spending activity. Rapidintel automates the collection, categorization, reporting and monitoring of enterprise-wide spend data.

Click here to read about … Read More »

I’ve been suggesting for years that the IT system management (ITSM) market is ripe for a new generation of Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solutions, and a widening array of emerging players are finally fulfilling my vision.

Up until recently, IT departments have been plagued by the same frustrations which permeated most large-scale enterprises contending with overly complex, cumbersome and costly business applications.

In the case of the business units, it was trying to implement and maintain enterprise applications, such as CRM or ERP, which drove them crazy and in the direction of SaaS alternatives from companies like Salesforce.com and NetSuite.

Now, IT organizations are starting to migrate away from the ITSM platforms offered by IBM, HP, BMC and CA in favor of SaaS-based alternatives from Service.now and others.

Why are IT departments moving in this direction? For the same reasons as their business unit counterparts,

Frustration with the costs and complexities of traditional, … Read More »

There are many myths that are propagated by legacy software vendors to discredit the insurgent Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) and cloud computing movements. But, the SaaS industry has also harbored its own myths for many years as well.

For instance, many SaaS vendors aren’t truly ‘on-demand’. You can’t acquire and utilize their web-based applications instantaneously because they lack the automated provisioning capabilities. And, in many cases they don’t want you to use their online applications ‘by the drink’ because it undercuts the predictable revenue stream which is essential to the SaaS model.

The second and related myth is that most SaaS solutions are not ‘pay-as-you-go’. Instead, you are often asked to pay for a one-year agreement up front before you can utilize the SaaS app.

Despite these limitations, SaaS solutions have flourished because they are still far more flexible and more cost-effective than their legacy … Read More »

Everyone is talking about Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), but we want to know what you or your clients are really doing with SaaS…and why – and if people like the results.
 
So, Datamation and THINKstrategies are teaming up to conduct a quick SaaS survey to gauge the level of interest and use of these online, ‘on-demand’ services.
 
 We’re conducting this survey because we’d like to learn what types of services are being used or considered, and why or why not organizations are using these services. And, we’d like to know how SaaS users feel about their experiences, and what SaaS providers must do to convince others to take advantage of these services.
 
 The survey consists of eleven (11) quick questions…and a short set of optional demographic questions to help us understand your views based on your company size, location and industry. We are also looking … Read More »

Despite the down economy which has decimated the traditional conference business, escalating interest in Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) and cloud computing continues to fuel the growth of forums focused on these trends.

THINKstrategies is supporting the following upcoming events,

Xchange Service Provider, March 8-11, Los Angeles, CA.
SaaScon, April 6-7, San Jose, CA.
Under the Radar – ‘Commercializing the Cloud’, April 16, Mountain View, CA. (Friends of THINKstrategies get $100 off their conference registration by clicking here.)
AlwaysOn ‘OnDemand’ Conference, April 19-21, Palo Alto, CA. (Friends of THINKstrategies receive a special 50% discount on a conference registration by clicking here.)
CloudSlam’10, April 19-23.
SaaS University, hosted by SoftLetter, April 20-22, Washington, DC.
Telecomms Cloud Services Summit, April 22-23, London, UK.
All About the Cloud, SIIA Conference, May 10-12, San Francisco, CA. (Use promo code PRMTHINK to get $100 off the SIIA non-member regisration rate. Discount does not apply to current registrants.)
Gluecon, May 26-27, Denver, CO.
2nd Annual … Read More »

THINKstrategies announced today that Cloud9 Analytics has been named the latest winner of the Best of SaaS Showplace (BoSS) Awards program, which is aimed at promoting the measurable business benefits being delivered by today’s Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solutions. 

The BoSS Awards program was announced in January 2009 by THINKstrategies as an initiative aimed at bringing greater attention to SaaS and cloud computing companies that are producing tangible business benefits for specific user organizations. These benefits include increased sales, lower costs, higher customer satisfaction, faster operations and greater profitability.

Cloud9 Analytics is the global leader in on-demand business analytics delivered directly to line-of-business managers. Cloud9 Pipeline Accelerator Suite for salesforce.com, enables sales leaders to more effectively manage their opportunities and teams. The result is a dramatic increase in deal conversion rates, higher CRM adoption, and improved forecast accuracy.

Click here to read about Cloud9 Analytics’ … Read More »

My travels this week have taken me from Miami to San Francisco, for Parallels Summit and Pacific Crest Securities’ Emerging Technology Summit to hear and see the latest developments in the ‘clouds’.

In Miami, I witnessed the emergence of a key new player in the rapidly evolving cloud computing industry. Parallels is not a new company, but it has recently realigned its various corporate capabilities into a singular focus on cloud computing enablement.

The company is specifically targeting the vast community of service providers — hosting companies, VARs and telcos — that are supporting the IT needs of small businesses with limited or no IT staff.

In short, Parallels is seeking to help these service providers replicate the success of Amazon Web Services (AWS) in the mainstream small business marketplace.

Although AWS has found a very receptive audience among start-ups and enterprise developers, it hasn’t generated much interest with mainstream small businesses which lack … Read More »

THINKstrategies announced today that TeamSupport.com has been named the latest winner of the Best of SaaS Showplace (BoSS) Awards program, which is aimed at promoting the measurable business benefits being delivered by today’s Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solutions.

The goal of the  BoSS Awards program is to bring greater attention to SaaS and cloud computing companies that are producing tangible business benefits for specific user organizations. These benefits include increased sales, lower costs, higher customer satisfaction, faster operations and greater profitability.

TeamSupport.com is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Muroc Systems, Inc., a Dallas-based holding company focused on developing productivity enhancing software products delivered via the SaaS model. TeamSupport.com’s integrated SaaS-based customer service, product management, and bug tracking system allows manufacturers, their customers, and key client-focused teams to better communicate so they can reduce the time and cost to perform critical business functions.

Click here to read … Read More »

One of the key battlefields in the cloud computing market for 2010 which I identified earlier this year is IT service management (ITSM). Last month, I discussed BMC’s latest foray into the SaaS-based ITSM world, as well as Service-now.com’s recent win at PepsiAmericas.

Last week, Service-now.com issued a press release summarizing its 2009 accomplishments. The company reported that its recurring revenue increased approximately 136 percent in 2009. Cynics might discount the significance of this growth rate by suggesting it’s easy to report a substantial jump when you’re starting at a low base. However, the company’s CEO, Fred Luddy, revealed to me during a private lunch preceding a company marketing event in Boston that Service-now.com is generating signficant, albeit confidential, revenues and is on a run-rate to double its revenues again in 2010.

The company’s success in the enterprise was personified by the room full … Read More »

In my latest column for E-Commerce Times, I suggest that “once again, Microsoft may be a late entrant in the market with a set of solutions that lag those offered by today’s industry innovators, but it is still in a good position to regain its momentum and become a dominant force in the rapidly evolving cloud computing marketplace.”

Click here to read why.