Guest author: Kevin Gruneisen, Senior Director, Cloud and Data Center Solutions
It’s no secret the “as a service” model is continuing to gain popularity among CIOs, as these models can optimize processes, save money and leave more time for CIOs to focus on top-level strategies. When considering outsourcing, do any of the main as-a-service applications stand out from the rest?
Software as a Service (SaaS)
Cloud providers can tailor a software-as-a-service solution for different products and markets, software providers are increasingly able to provide consistent, always-up service and don’t require the cost and hassle of creating and maintaining in-house infrastructure.
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Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)
Infrastructure-as-a-service offers solutions that are self-managed and multi-tenant and can provide flexible computing resources, memory and storage. IaaS is great for testing and development, training and other short-term needs.
Data Center-as-a-Service (DCaaS)
Outsourcing select data center functions to the cloud, co-locating a data center, or deploying an energy-efficient, high-density computing modular data center may well be a very efficient way of moving on from purpose built, but now outdated DCs.
Storage as a Service
Storage-as-a-service offers affordable monthly terms and the ability to easily increase storage service levels as needed. It’s an efficient option, particularly for businesses legally requirements to retain large volumes of data for extended periods of time.
Disaster Recovery as a Service (DRaaS)
DRaaS solutions provide a standard DR in a cloud environment and can be bought on a pay-per-use basis. This is a highly cost-effective option for many companies.
IT Service Desk-as-a-Service
Outsourcing IT service desks can cut costs and increase the level of service to end users without sacrificing quality or impacting competitive advantage. There seems to be no glaring disadvantages to IT executives.
ITSM
ITSM is a solution that maintains order and keeps the reins of control firmly entrenched in the hands of the IT department. It will be difficult to avoid ITSM as an effective solution as CIOs move toward “aaS.”
All as-a-service applications have benefits. In the end, the services that stand out to CIOs will depend on the individual organization.
Has your company adopted any of these models? Which “as-a-service” applications stand out the most to you?