With organisations increasingly seeking cost-effective solutions for the procurement and management of software, cloud computing is seen as one of the best approach to satisfy on-demand environments whilst offering flexibility, cost savings and reduced maintenance. Gartner, the research specialists for the technology sector, predict that by 2016 all leading global organisations will take advantage of cloud services to some degree.
The biggest attractions of SaaS for both SMEs and large enterprises are hugely reduced up-front costs, lower commitment contracts and a 'pay as you use' billing process. However, for the latter benefit to be realised, it is important that all end-users can confidently use systems, meaning they complete processes in a time-efficient manner.
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Realising the cost-saving benefits: It is important that end-users can complete their working processes accurately and swiftly, as well as being made aware of the implications of not doing so. Role-based, user focused training enables organisations to realise the cost reductions far quicker. Research from Gartner estimates that each hour of effective training is worth five hours to the employing organisation. This is attributed to well-trained users reaching the required skill level in a quarter of the time, needing less support from peers and helpdesks and spending less time correcting errors.
Tackling time constraints: Another documented benefit is that SaaS can speed up business system implementations, as the software infrastructure is easier to integrate and manage. Although implementation time will still be heavily dependent upon the nature of the system and the organisation, there will be more pressure on training teams to prepare all users for the transformation in a shorter timeframe. We can provide highly skilled and experienced additional training resources to ensure that your user training programme gets delivered on time.
Embedding training in your SaaS strategy: Cloud computing applications give development teams the ability to simplify integration with their disparate and legacy systems. As this may be constantly evolving, user training solutions need to be embedded into the systems strategy to ensure that end-user learning materials remain relevant.
Working alongside your cloud providers: Whether you choose to opt for a private, shared service, public or hybrid cloud option, it is important that the nature of the managed service contract is taken into consideration before user training solutions are developed. We not only work closely alongside your in-house team, but will communicate with your cloud providers to ensure that the training approaches used are most suited to your applications.
Addressing security concerns: Shifting business system infrastructure to the cloud needs to be done safely and securely. Often there is concern amongst organisations and users about security implications in SaaS, particularly with open source applications. Optimum will design training solutions that incorporate security measures, using change management approaches to address resistance and concerns.
Visit www.optimum.co.uk to find out more about our end-user training solutions for enterprise application systems.
