"True to form, Melvin Greer's futurist thinking provides new applicability to Software as a Service that identifies ways of reducing costs, creating greater efficiencies, and ultimately providing significant long-term value through business transformation. He continues to be on the cutting edge of merging business function evolution and technology innovation to increase customer satisfaction and return on investments." -Kevin Manuel-Scott, chairman and CEO, RONIN IT Services, LLC "Melvin Greer provides an excellent guide to the Cloud computing IT model with a solid overview of concepts, business aspects, technical implications, benefits, challenges, and trends. Definitely a 'must read' for IT managers and enterprise architects considering adoption of this flexible, beneficial business model within their organization." -John Magnuson, senior staff engineer, Lockheed Martin "This book offers the most comprehensive view of Cloud computing and SaaS on the market today. The author skillfully lays out a game plan for government and commercial entities alike looking to stay relevant in this burgeoning business paradigm." -Ken Brown, program account executive, IBM Federal Almost every business reaches a time when the fundamentals change. This time is referred to as a strategic inflection point. Adopting new technology or fighting the competition may not be enough when these critical moments arise. That's because inflection points build up force so quickly that organizations may have a hard time even putting a finger on what has changed. The way a firm responds could propel it to new heights or lead to its demise. Over the last few years, industry has begun developing a model of information technology known as Cloud computing, which includes Software as a Service. This new model has reached an inflection point and will give users the choice to purchase IT as a service, as a complement to, or as a replacement of the traditional IT software/hardware infrastructure purchase. It's time for businesses to transform how they approach advanced software and innovative business models so they can achieve real agility. If you are a decision maker involved with the deployment of information technology, then it's imperative that you understand Software as a Service Inflection Point.

Software as a Service Inflection Point

Using Cloud Computing to Achieve Business AgilityBy Melvin B. Greer, Jr

iUniverse, Inc.

Copyright © 2009 Melvin B. Greer, Jr.
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4401-4195-9

Contents

Introduction......................................................................................................................................................xxviiOne: Inflection Point.............................................................................................................................................1Two: The Significance of Business Agility.........................................................................................................................5Three: Cloud Computing and SaaS...................................................................................................................................11The Benefits of Cloud Computing...................................................................................................................................19Emerging Trends in Cloud Computing and Next Steps.................................................................................................................22Four: Public Cloud Offerings......................................................................................................................................25Azure Services Platform...........................................................................................................................................25Google App Engine.................................................................................................................................................28Amazon Web Services (AWS).........................................................................................................................................29Feature Comparison................................................................................................................................................30Analysis of the Cloud Offerings...................................................................................................................................33Five: Cloud Computing Privacy and Confidentiality.................................................................................................................37Privacy and Confidentiality Findings..............................................................................................................................39Six: Software as a Service, the Business Model....................................................................................................................43Potential Risks...................................................................................................................................................46Seven: SaaS and Business Performance..............................................................................................................................49Challenges to Business Performance................................................................................................................................50Three Major SaaS Business Considerations..........................................................................................................................51Eight: SaaS Cost Benefit Analysis.................................................................................................................................57Making the IT Budget Go Further...................................................................................................................................57Better Estimation of People Services..............................................................................................................................61SaaS Allows Better Growth Management..............................................................................................................................63Accountability of the SaaS Vendor.................................................................................................................................65Nine: SaaS Technical Considerations and Architectural Options.....................................................................................................73Technical Challenges..............................................................................................................................................73Architectural Options.............................................................................................................................................80Ten: Impact of Virtualization.....................................................................................................................................91Eleven: Value within Select Vertical Markets......................................................................................................................97Federal Government................................................................................................................................................97Energy............................................................................................................................................................101Aviation..........................................................................................................................................................105Healthcare........................................................................................................................................................107Twelve: What should my business enterprise do now?................................................................................................................111Experiment with free-form environments............................................................................................................................113Help users innovate...............................................................................................................................................113Stop trying to provide everything.................................................................................................................................114Segment users according to their role and the value they produce..................................................................................................116Pay attention to privacy and confidentiality issues...............................................................................................................116Conclusion: SaaS and the Agile Business Enterprise................................................................................................................119Acknowledgements..................................................................................................................................................123List of Acronyms..................................................................................................................................................125Reading Group Guide: Questions and Topics for Discussion..........................................................................................................127How will Cloud computing be defined, and how will it evolve?......................................................................................................128How will Cloud computing affect the strategy and direction of IT and business?....................................................................................128Can Business Agility be enhanced by SaaS and Cloud...