In our technological age, many services have become available to companies to boost their productivity. Software as a Service (SaaS) is one of these services offering a unique way to transform business operations. These Cloud-based solutions can enhance efficiency, scalability, and cost-effectiveness.

Software as a Service (SaaS) provides businesses with on-demand access to software applications without the need for extensive infrastructure, available online 24/7 for your company to access whenever you want. While this service has many benefits, it can be especially helpful for RPA, allowing an easy and seamless way to introduce your company to automation.

This article will explore the evolution and impact of Software as a Service, its benefits and how useful it is alongside Robotic Process Automation solutions.

What is SaaS? 

Software as a Service, or SaaS, is a solution to the cumbersome local installation of software services, by offering a connection and subscription to IT software services on a shared platform via the internet. Likely, you’ve already been using SaaS for a long time. Services like Gmail, Google Docs, Dropbox, and Zoom are all common examples of internet-based services. As long as you have an internet connection, you can access these services on any device, anywhere you want. This is a major help to companies who use terminals to access their data, which is now a very outdated and inefficient way of working. Additionally, while the costs vary per service, instead of paying a one-time license which can be expensive, you’re able to pay a fixed rate monthly or yearly, which can significantly reduce the upfront investments for your company.

Subscription-based services are not a new concept in technology; in fact, it was common in the 1960s because of the extraordinary costs of computers at that time. The highest level processor by IBM had 2MB of RAM; 1 GB of hard drive capacity cost $200 000 in 1980¹. Renting these processors for much less money from a provider was much easier. Time-sharing, as it was called, allowed companies to have data located in a different place than their own workspace. This mitigated the effects of companies having to install software on mainframe computers and access it via terminals (which meant you were forced to be physically present at your company, since laptops and mobile phones were not invented yet). Companies no longer had to purchase expensive licenses and maintain complex infrastructures, which was not efficient in the long term.

By the 1980s and 1990s, software vendors introduced “on-premise enterprise applications” like Oracle, which required local installation and dedicated IT management. But time-sharing became less popular in this time because of the development of personal computers. But in the 1990s, Salesforce’s use of SaaS changed the game by helping companies manage the data of hundreds of computers that these companies were running. SaaS significantly helped to get business applications on computers without using too much expensive hard drive space. Since then, SaaS has only grown and so has its reputation.

Today, advancements in cloud computing have made SaaS a dominant model and much more useful than before. Companies like Google and Microsoft have revolutionised software accessibility. SaaS is now a $200 billion industry and is a perfect way to boost your company’s performance.

How can it help your company? 

SaaS can provide many ways to give your company a boost, especially in streamlining business operations and reducing costs. Without the significant upfront investments needed into hardware or software licenses, the subscription pricing option allows businesses to pay only for what they use.

Since it’s all internet-based, updates and support are handled by the provider, meaning you do not have to do extra work managing this application maintenance.

The scalability of SaaS is exponential. Your company can quickly scale operations by upgrading your plans, and new features can be added without complex installations. This is particularly advantageous for companies facing fluctuating demands, as you can change your subscription as you wish.

Accessibility is also extremely flexible, as your SaaS applications can be accessed anywhere with an internet connection. In a post-COVID era, this helps remote teams to collaborate efficiently without worrying about commutes.

Online services mean your data is easier to manage, faster, and up to date. Providers handle security patches and ensure the latest cybersecurity measures are in place. Frequent updates on software mean your company will always use the best version of your applications. Since they are designed to integrate with popular business software, your company can automate workflows without disrupting existing IT infrastructure.

The Match between SaaS and RPA 

Traditional RPA required supplementary investment in infrastructure and licensing, which SaaS changes by allowing businesses to pay per bot, task, or user at a specific subscription rate. In conjunction with advancing technology, RPA has benefitted from many new technological solutions, to make automation simpler for companies to incorporate into their operations. Introducing SaaS with RPA has taken away the complex configurations and high maintenance needed to keep these automations running. Now, RPA can be incorporated and maintained from anywhere!

This is especially useful for small and medium businesses (SMEs) to benefit from automation, even when your company has not yet had the chance to explore robotic processing. SaaS can help companies start small with automation; by limiting some factors, such as the number of runs available per month, you can get the look and feel for RPA without investing heavily. As you become more aware of how RPA works, and how it can help you, your provider can easily increase your accessibility to automation to benefit more sectors of your company.

Standardised integration APIs allow SaaS RPA tools to integrate seamlessly with other cloud-based applications and enable workflow automation across multiple software environments. This makes RPA more applicable than ever, allowing these solutions to even automate Outlook emails.

RPA can become as scalable as SaaS, depending on workflow needs. Big data that companies must manage can easily be sorted by automation solutions, making your company more efficient, boosting productivity, and allowing a solid base for AI implementations. There is no need to invest in additional servers, as your provider can manage those for you, depending on your contract and your company’s needs. The right SaaS providers can also offer enterprise-grade security, with encrypted data handling and compliance with regulations, so your company can feel safe knowing your data remains private.

However, there are some challenges with SaaS RPA that your company should consider. The most significant challenge is that SaaS operates purely on the internet, and as such, an internet outage or a place with no service will struggle with these automation workflows. Additionally, some companies, especially long-standing companies, may still have older on-premise systems which may not be fully compatible with cloud-based automation, requiring additional hardware. Some companies can also prefer to keep these tools behind their own firewalls, and as such, the licencing agreement can require an upfront investment.

SaaS RPA offers many solutions to companies in this new era of technological advancement.

Conclusion

SaaS has become a fundamental solution to any business’s operations. This service has transformed how businesses employ automation workflows in their operations. The benefits are extraordinary, and can help your company reduce costs, become more accessible, and boost efficiency. Without the burden of extra IT infrastructure, SaaS offers a compelling way to enable businesses of all sizes to automate their tasks.

As more businesses embrace solutions such as these, SaaS and RPA will continue to drive efficiency, innovation, and competitive advantage in an increasingly automated world.

Source

https://www.ai-bees.io/post/history-of-saas-its-challenges-and-bright-future