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Technology

SaaS for SMBs and Its Relevance - An Indian Perspective

Smitha Murthy, Head of Product Management, McAfee
Oct 2011

The market is ripe for more widespread adoption of SaaS to help SMBs reach greater levels of profitability in India. Security SaaS allows SMBs to focus on their business while leaving the security of their endpoints, email, web and vulnerability management to the security experts.

Security Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) is security controls that are available by subscription and are managed and delivered via the internet by a software vendor. The Security SaaS model is generally well suited for businesses that have few IT resources or none at all in-house, no desire to invest in security hardware, a large number of remote users, and little time for managing security. In other words, this model is a perfect fit for small and medium businesses (SMB).

For most CIOs and SMBs in India, like the rest of the world, taking on SaaS based software services is not an option anymore, it is a necessity. CIOs and SMBs have realized that for them to remain competitive they need to optimize their IT budgets and leverage the cloud for greater security in the ever changing threat landscape. If you are considering the offerings of security SaaS software vendors, be sure to enquire about the following:
Has the vendor been in the security SaaS business for a significant length of time and earned the reputation for being best in class?
Can you reduce or eliminate the on-premise hardware and software costs, deployment and maintenance by offloading the server management to a third party software vendor?
Does the SaaS management platform hosted by the software vendor on their infrastructure off site, offer centralized deployments, reporting and management online?
With an internet connection, regardless of connection to corporate network, are all users constantly protected with a “version-less” solution – with transparent updates and upgrades, and policy management?
From a longer term investment perspective, does this software vendor have the breadth of security portfolio so that you can get all security SaaS solutions, with a single, centralized management console from the same vendor for greater ROI?

If the answer is yes to all of the above, you have likely found your SaaS match.

According to a study by Zinnov, a management consulting firm, the domestic market for all cloud based services is estimated at around USD 50 – 60 million. Growth and interest in cloud-based computing solutions grew in 2010. Indian SMBs have adopted SaaS at par or more than the rest of the world. In fact, it may be more because many Indian organizations are not limited by regulatory or compliance requirements compared to their western counterparts, therefore giving them freedom to choose and adopt cloud more quickly.

As a result, the market is ripe for more widespread adoption of SaaS to help SMBs reach greater levels of profitability in India. Security SaaS allows SMBs to focus on their business while leaving the security of their endpoints, email, web, and vulnerability management to the security experts. All one has to do is subscribe to the service (one can also choose to auto-renew to avoid the hassle of not being protected if the subscription lapses), install the software and forget about it. The security is always on, always up to date with an internet connection. Take the example of a chartered accounting company in India. We all recently filed our tax returns. Imagine if this company had to worry about filing your and my tax and personal information through e-filing. Would they feel like doing it or would you feel comfortable allowing them to do it? The answer is likely no for both. At the same time, small businesses like this company cannot afford to have IT staff to manage security for them. This company adopted security SaaS services and they couldn't have been happier. Their endpoint, email and web access is secure allowing them to run their business, service their clients and make profits without worrying about security. This is just one example of the type of business that can benefit from adopting security SaaS solutions.

In conclusion, security SaaS solutions are designed and optimized for use by SMBs by offering easy to buy/renew, easy to install, and easy to manage solutions so that they can focus on their core business be it accounting, law or a small software startup. So, if you are an SMB and are in the market to invest in security, make sure to consider the questions I've highlighted above and focus on your business because you will never have to worry about security for your business anymore.

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