Software as a Service

If a company cannot afford a large software package such as an ERP, one possibility is to subscribe to it on a network. The rise of cloud computing makes software as a service a viable option for managing some IT applications. This is not a new idea, but has gained widespread use as cloud has expanded. In any procurement software as a service (SaaS) should be considered as an option.

Tasks
Question: Define software as a service and give an example of how it works. How big is the SaaS market? What benefits does it offer? What are the risks? Besides ERP and CRM, what other applications may be provided as SaaS? What are the security risks? Who are the main providers of SaaS? Explain how an IT director might make a decision on whether to use SaaS and what applications should be provided in this approach. ServiceNow provides an IT service Management application. What is an ITSM application and how is it delivered as SaaS by ServiceNow?