Posts

SaaSOps: Adapting the enterprise model for small and midsize businesses

/in ,

SaaSOpsThe term “SaaSOps” was first coined by David Politis, founder of BetterCloud. SaaSOps, short for Software-as-a-Service Operations, is the suite of processes, skills, and responsibilities for managing the lifecycle of software delivered as a cloud service. Most small and midsize businesses use multiple SaaS applications.

By effectively and efficiently managing these applications, we reduce operating costs and security risks.

The 5 SaaSOps Processes

Adapting the enterprise model for small and midsize businesses (SMBs), SaaSOps encompasses the following five processes.

1. Adoption

SaaS Adoption begins with discovery.  Discovery includes both (1) Selecting SaaS applications your business needs or wants; and (2) Identifying the SaaS applications in use by your team. In today’s world of cloud services, individual employees are likely signing up to use SaaS applications that they want or think they need. These are often free, or low cost, consumer oriented services. Often referred to as “Shadow IT”, these apps sit outside your control and outside of your security protections.  Selecting which SaaS applications you will use, as a company, and which you will not, sets the stage for successful operations.

2. Optimization

Optimizing SaaS operations requires cross-application and in-application analysis.  By examining SaaS applications and services, and how they are used, you can identify and remove redundant features and data sets.  Streamlining applications and systems in-use lowers complexity, support requirements, and cost.  Within applications, license management is key to ensure you do not under- or over-license your services.  Beyond the cost implications, unused licenses pose a security risk.

3. Management

SaaS Management includes the lifecycles for both users and applications.  If done well, SaaS Management automates common tasks prone to administrative error.

User lifecycle events focus on properly managing on-boarding, off-boarding, and mid-lifecycle changes.  These events cover accounts, access, security, permissions, and integrations users need to perform their jobs across your SaaS applications and services.  User lifecycle management also includes group management.  The ability to automate group membership based on user attributes gives you the ability to manage uses based on roles and responsibilities.

Application management focuses on application configuration, ensuring accounts, access, security, and data management. Active configuration management creates a dependable service for users.

4. Security

This includes five key integrated security pillars:

  1. Discovery of sensitive data, including data subject to industry or legal regulations.
  2. Mitigation of oversharing of data, externally and within your organization.
  3. App monitoring and remediation, spanning availability, access, and performance.
  4. User behavior analytics, providing data to support operations, planning, and improvements.
  5. Least privilege access management, ensuring

5. Experience

SaaSOps changes — improves — your business’ overall experience with your cloud-based services. The impact is visible to your employees and your IT administration.

  • Automation simplifies tasks and reduces administrative, security, and other errors while improving your IT team’s ability to respond quickly to change and support requests.
  • Change management ensures decisions to alter services are known and documented and helps ensure you remain compliant with policies, industry standards, and regulations.
  • Managed Access and Rights reinforces company policies, maintains compliance, and enables employees to access the applications, services, and data needed for their jobs.

In Summary

As your use of cloud services grows, implementing SaaSOps solutions becomes an important management tool.  Beyond monitoring and managing costs, SaaSOps helps reduce management and administration errors, provides a better experience for IT teams and end users, and improves security. The incremental cost to deploy SaaSOps tools delivers savings while reducing risk.

Call To Action

Schedule time with one of our Cloud Advisors or contact us to discuss how best you can support your remote and hybrid workers. The conversation is free, without obligation, and at your convenience.

About the Author

Allen Falcon is the co-founder and CEO of Cumulus Global.  Allen co-founded Cumulus Global in 2006 to offer small businesses enterprise-grade email security and compliance using emerging cloud solutions. He has led the company’s growth into a managed cloud service provider with over 1,000 customers throughout North America. Starting his first business at age 12, Allen is a serial entrepreneur. He has launched strategic IT consulting, software, and service companies. An advocate for small and midsize businesses, Allen served on the board of the former Smaller Business Association of New England, local economic development committees, and industry advisory boards.

The High Cost of Low Adoption

/in ,

Roughly 53% of the more than 33 million small and midsize businesses in the US rely on cloud services.  The vast majority use Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace for basic productivity tools: email, calendars, contacts, and files. The popularity is due, in part, to the ease of deployment.  You can quickly deploy either of the productivity suites and have your team on-board, running, and using basic features. Within Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace, however, our cloud adoption tends to be fairly low.

We should look past the basics.  Both Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 offer a deep range of capabilities.  As small and midsize business owners and leaders, we should assess how well we are using these tools.  Better cloud adoption improves productivity, communication, and security. Higher cloud adoption within Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 also saves you money.

Improve Productivity

Studies show that typical users only leverage 10-15% of their Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace suites. With low cloud adoption, our teams fall into usage patterns that mimic prior systems rather than taking advantage of new capabilities.  Examples of habits that hurt productivity include:

  • Inefficient meetings
  • Poor inbox and email management
  • Searching for information
  • Limiting “collaboration” to attachments and file shares

Education and support enables your team to overcome these common productivity killers. Motivating your team to learn and use the 85-90% untapped potential helps them become more capable and effective in their roles.

Remove Duplicate Application Costs

Improving cloud adoption of Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace eliminates your need to pay for many other applications and services.

  • Microsoft OneDrive and Google Drive for Desktop remove the need for Dropbox, Box, file servers, and local network storage.
  • Google Meets and Microsoft Teams replace Zoom, WebEx, GoTo Meeting, Adobe Connect, and paid audio conferencing services.
  • Microsoft Yammer and Google Chat preempt the need for Slack, Jive, Facebook for Work, and other social messaging apps.
  • Features in Microsoft Outlook and Google Calendar eliminate the need for third party scheduling tools like Scheduly.
  • Google Voice and Microsoft Teams offer low cost VoIP telephony services than many other providers.

With fewer applications and services, you pay less in subscription fees and reduce support costs. Your team has fewer logins and fewer applications to learn. You spend less time managing integration and updates.

Reduce Your Security Risk

Improving cloud adoption is more than using additional features.  Successful cloud adoption includes learning how to best use the features you need.  With your data in the cloud, you rely on users making good decisions to avoid compromising security or data protections.  We often see teams where employees fall into these security traps:

  • Sharing files inappropriately
  • Emailing sensitive information
  • Incorrectly granting permissions internally or with external parties
  • Bypassing permission and security by storing files locally or in other systems

Matching appropriate security settings and protections with proper training, your team will make better data decisions. Understanding how to work efficiently within security guidelines eliminates the need, and motivation, to work-around protections.

Maximize Your Investment

Your Microsoft 365 or Google subscription may be one of your larger IT budget line items. Why leave that value untapped?  In both environments, we frequently observe under utilization of applications, features, and resources.  Some of the commonly underutilized capabilities include:

  • OneDrive for Business and Google Drive for Desktop
  • Microsoft Teams and Google Meets
  • SharePoint Online and Google Shared Drives and Sites
  • Security features and functions.

Ensure your team knows how to fully utilize the capabilities you have.  Doing so prevents them from using “shadow IT” — using other apps and services without your knowledge.

Create a Culture of Self-Learning

When your team adopts a culture of self-learning, they will optimize their use of the IT services you provide.  Your job: provide the leadership and resources your team needs in place to train and continue to develop their skills.

The results:

  • More productive individuals and teams
  • Fewer IT systems and services that lower costs
  • Improved security and data management
  • Better returns on your IT investments and spending

Your Call To Action

Schedule time with one of our Cloud Advisors or contact us to discuss ways to upskill your team, reduce IT redundancy, and streamline your IT budget. The conversation is free, without obligation, and at your convenience.

About the Author

Bill SeyboltBill is a Senior Cloud Advisor responsible for helping small and midsize organizations with cloud forward solutions that meet their business needs, priorities, and budgets. Bill works with executives, leaders, and team members to understand workflows, identify strategic goals and tactical requirements, and design solutions and implementation phases. Having helped over 200 organizations successfully adopt cloud solutions, his expertise and working style ensure a comfortable experience effective change management. 

The State and Future of Remote Work

/in ,

As noted in a recent article published by American City Business Journals, the state and future of remote work are still up for debate.  Remote work and hybrid work arrangements continue to face resistance. Our reduced need for office space still impacts city centers and commercial real estate markets.  And yet, employees still want remote and hybrid work arrangements. The desire to have work-from-home options is strong enough that many employees will take pay cuts in exchange for the flexibility.

Some of the Data

Work from Home Research noted that paid full days worked out of office was about 27%, year to date, in 2023.  This represents a very slight decrease from recent months.

In February 2023:

  • 60% of employees worked full-time in the office
  • 28% of employees worked in a hybrid arrangement
  • 12% of employees worked remotely full time

40% of employees continue to work some or all of their time outside the office.

A recent study by Robert Half found:

  • 28% of job postings were advertised as remote
  • 32% of employees who work in the office at least one (1) day per week would take an average 18%  pay cut to work remotely full time

Data from the Federal Reserve indicates that:

  • From 2020 to 2021, during the surge in remote work, productivity jumped from 108.57 per hour to 115.3 per hour
  • In 2022, productivity dropped slightly as more employees returned to the office

Using the Data

Remote and hybrid work arrangements will likely continue as companies and employees work to find the right balance for the company and employees.  As small business leaders, we understand that remote work is an attractive feature of job postings, and 1/3 of employees would take a pay cut or change jobs to work remotely.

We need to manage our remote and hybrid work arrangements in ways that employees see as flexible and accommodating. 

In-person interactions with colleagues can improve morale and enhance company culture. It makes sense that we want most employees in the office, interacting face-to-face, at least some of the time.

Employees see most hybrid work arrangements as designed to meet the needs of the company, not employees.  Employees see incentives, such as free meals and other “perks”, as gimmicks to attract employees to the office without addressing employees’ needs.  We need to present hybrid work arrangements honestly in terms of company needs and priorities and those of the employees. If we provide a real balance of needs and priorities, employees will feel respected and heard. They will be more accepting of change.

The Role of Technology

We have no doubts about the power of technology to empower your employees to do their best work — in office or remotely.  Many small businesses scrambled to support remote work at the onset of the pandemic.  These solutions were often rushed and, as such, less efficient or effective than needed.  Too many of us, however, have not stepped back to assess, revise, and improve our IT support for remote and hybrid work.

We need support and technologies in place to ensure the long-term viability of remote and hybrid work.

Employees, when working remotely, want and need the same resources and abilities as when they are working in the office.  They want the same user experience regardless of where or how they work.  At the same time, we need to ensure our systems and data remain secure and protected.

When assessing your IT services, make sure you have the SPARC you need:

  • Security
  • Performance
  • Availability
  • Reliability
  • Cost

Leveraging cloud services, you can provide secure access to your systems and data, with a consistent user experience, at a reasonable cost.

Calls To Action

1. Read our recent eBook, Cloud Strategies for Small and Midsize Businesses. In this eBook, we: Set the stage by looking at how small and midsize businesses acquire and use technology and IT services; Explore the challenges we face moving into the cloud; and Map out four strategies for enhancing your use and expansion of cloud services.

2. Schedule time with one of our Cloud Advisors or contact us to discuss how best you can support your remote and hybrid workers. The conversation is free, without obligation, and at your convenience.

About the Author

Allen Falcon is the co-founder and CEO of Cumulus Global.  Allen co-founded Cumulus Global in 2006 to offer small businesses enterprise-grade email security and compliance using emerging cloud solutions. He has led the company’s growth into a managed cloud service provider with over 1,000 customers throughout North America. Starting his first business at age 12, Allen is a serial entrepreneur. He has launched strategic IT consulting, software, and service companies. An advocate for small and midsize businesses, Allen served on the board of the former Smaller Business Association of New England, local economic development committees, and industry advisory boards.

Cloud Computing Trends, Challenges & Provider Insights in 2023

/in ,

Cloud Computing Trends

Earlier this month, CRN published a story covering Flexera’s 2023 State of the Cloud Report.  Flexera provides software and systems to manage enterprise private and public clouds.  The report on cloud computing trends originates with an annual survey of 750 technology leaders across sectors, geographies, and size of the business.  While the report classifies small and midsize businesses as those with under 1,000 employees, we still find the results interesting and relevant.

As small businesses, our concerns are spending, security, compliance, and managing cloud services. The cloud model hits our income statements and balance sheets differently than historical IT services. The need to protect our businesses, and our customers, has never been greater. And, we find it difficult to understand if we are spending efficiently and effectively.

We take a look at the top 3 cloud challenges, discuss managing clouds, and explore cloud waste.  Understanding these issues, you will better understand how to create better cloud solutions. You will also be better able to set expectations from those providing cloud solutions and related services.

Top 3 Cloud Computing Challenges

For 2023, SMB respondents identify the top three cloud computing challenges as:

  • Managing Cloud Spend (80%),
  • Security (73%), and
  • Compliance (71%).

These concerns make sense. The spending model for managed cloud services, based on subscriptions or usage, is an operating expense.  Most smaller companies are used to making capital expenditures and paying for service contracts and managed services.  Additionally, many of the IT firms working with small businesses will replicate on-premise networks and servers in a public cloud service. They may lack the expertise and tools to actively manage costs.

Concerns about security and compliance reflect the increasing need and demands of protecting sensitive business and personal information.  We face the same increased regulations and expanding industry standards as larger enterprises. But we do not have the in-house resources or the same access to experts. We place our trust on local or regional IT service firms.

Latest Trends and Developments in Cloud Computing

Undefined Cloud Management

Following closely behind the top 3 cloud challenges, governance (67%) and subscription management (61%) indicate that small businesses are not sure how to best manage their cloud services.  As cloud infrastructure matures, the number of options expand.  To make simple decisions, such as whether to subscribe monthly or make an annual commitment at a lower per unit price, we need to understand the operating cost models.  We need standard operating procedures, such as on/off-boarding and access controls, in place.

Cloud is still new. We need our IT service firms and managed service providers to guide, if not lead, our cloud management efforts. Co-management is a viable strategy, provided it includes policies and procedures as well as products and services.

Cloud Waste

On average, the survey results show that businesses spent 18% more than budgeted on public cloud services last year.  The greatest contributor to the overspend appears to be Cloud Waste.

Cloud waste is spending on cloud services that go unutilized or are under-utilized.  Reducing cloud waste can be as simple as

  • Shutting down unused resources after hours
  • Selecting lower cost regions / data centers
  • Periodically right-sizing systems and resources

Policies that scale resources in real-time based on usage will increase efficiency, but require expertise and planning during the solution design process, monitoring, and refinement over time.

How to Pick a Cloud Computing Provider

Traditional managed service providers, or MSPs, are experts in buying, monitoring, and managing things. They focus on network components, servers, systems software, and end user devices.  To get the most value from our cloud services, we need partners that understand service and cost management.

Managed cloud service providers, or MCSPs, understand how the “as-a-Service” model is different. Security, compliance, and cost management only work when they are built into the requirements, design, and management of your cloud services.

Before picking your cloud provider, ask about their management and co-management models. Understand if they actively work to monitor and manage security, compliance, and costs. Ask them to explain how.

Call To Action

Get a copy of our recent eBook, Cloud Strategies for Small and Midsize Businesses. In this eBook, we: set the stage by looking at how small and midsize businesses acquire and use technology and IT services; explore the challenges we face moving into the cloud; and map out four strategies for enhancing your use and expansion of cloud services.

To discuss how your business can better utilize a broader range of cloud services, please contact us or schedule time with one of our Cloud Advisors at your convenience.

About the Author

Allen Falcon is the co-founder and CEO of Cumulus Global.  Allen co-founded Cumulus Global in 2006 to offer small businesses enterprise-grade email security and compliance using emerging cloud solutions. He has led the company’s growth into a managed cloud service provider with over 1,000 customers throughout North America. Starting his first business at age 12, Allen is a serial entrepreneur. He has launched strategic IT consulting, software, and service companies. An advocate for small and midsize businesses, Allen served on the board of the former Smaller Business Association of New England, local economic development committees, and industry advisory boards.

Fast Fact Friday: AWS vs Azure vs Google

/in ,

fastfacts2According to the RightScale 2016 State of the Cloud report …

57% of respondents are running applications on Amazon Web Services. 

30% are running apps in Microsoft Azure Iaas and PaaS.

13% are running Apps on Google Cloud Platform and App Engine

 

Are you moving to the cloud? Is your roadmap in line with your business goals? Contact us for a no-obligation Cloud Advisor session.