Does SaaS make sense for small business BI solutions?
This a good question to ask when you are looking at using BI in your small business. How does software-as-a-service BI function in a small business? How can these tools benefit customers and other stakeholders? Let’s dive in.
Increased Productivity with Little Investment
Bob Dieterle, senior VP & GM of
Smart Online, calls SaaS BI applications a good replacement tool for “backend IT functions including the management of operating system licenses, upgrading patches and fixes and managing servers and networks which distracts the small business from their core mission.”
He also says the ability to get a “360-degree view of critical information and data” across the organization wherever you can access the Internet gives you a serious advantage in making timely decisions from HR to sales to responding to customers.
Take this example. A small consultancy of 10 people all working remotely can benefit from a SaaS BI application because they manage their own sales pipeline and prospecting. Organizational benefits include:
· Each consultant can input prospect data into the tool, assign sales process tasks and gain an educated guess at sales probability.
· The individual consultant can instantly develop a quote for the sales lead with pre-defined parameters – right inside the tool.
· The CEO or owner can keep up with what’s happening with each consultant via a daily report because all information is updated in real-time and accessible from the Web-based BI tool.