Collegiate Project Services
Higher education isn’t our business…it’s our passion.
Latest posts by Collegiate Project Services (see all)
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- 5 Ingredients for Project Success - April 14, 2016
- 4 Common Barriers to Systems Change - February 9, 2016
This week we hosted the webinar “The Questions Every CFO Needs to Ask About Cloud ERP” featuring Jennifer Albrecht and Dave Becker. We had a great turnout from CFOs across a wide variety of institution types – all tuned in to learn more about Cloud-based ERP, how to interpret the evolution of SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) ERP offerings, and how institutions need to be ready to respond.
Here’s a recap of the webinar highlights! (Contact us if you’d like to access the webinar recording.)
We Assumed Three Things
We came at this topic with a few underlying assumptions:
- CFOs and institution leaders need experts to educate and advocate for a deeper understanding of cloud-based ERP in higher ed – not necessarily ‘evangelizing’ cloud-based or SaaS ERP for every institution.
- As the funding and enrollment pressures facing institutions continue to increase, the role of the CFO is critical in ERP decisions on campus.
- There are a lot of misconceptions (due in part to savvy marketing and in some cases ‘cloudwashing’) in higher ed about the difference between Cloud and SaaS.
So we shaped an hour-long discussion around 6 essential questions to help CFOs gain a deeper level of understanding and confidence around cloud-based ERP.
We Answered 6 Essential Questions to Inform Cloud-Based ERP Strategy
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Is SaaS the same as Cloud?
Quick recap: Not exactly. SaaS is one of a number of services available via cloud technology. So, all SaaS is Cloud, but not all Cloud is SaaS.
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What are the major differences between installed ERP and SaaS ERP?
Quick recap: It depends on your perspective. Most campus stakeholders won’t experience a ‘difference’ with a SaaS solution, but CFOs will see a difference in funding models, and IT will see a huge shift – especially in institutions where ERP in installed and maintained on-campus.
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What changes will the institution need to embrace with SaaS ERP?
Quick recap: Make no mistake – SaaS ERP brings about a fundamental change in how you know ERP today, and it will be a tremendous cultural change. Two of the biggest changes to consider for your campus: moving from customization to configuration, and away from institution-driven system updates to vendor-driven updates.
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How do we adequately protect the institution in a SaaS environment?
Quick recap: The focus here should be on knowing your exit strategy upfront. Your long-term investment in a SaaS ERP may not be a forever investment, and you need to be mindful of how you will successfully migrate to a new solution when the time comes.
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What are the true costs of SaaS ERP?
Quick recap: Calculating Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) for SaaS ERP is more complex than comparing maintenance and subscription costs. While institutions can make significant gains in their overall investment in ERP with a SaaS solution, there’s a bigger picture you need to keep in mind. The cost categories really don’t change much with SaaS ERP, they just take on bigger or smaller parts of the whole.
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How do we go about developing a business case for SaaS ERP?
Quick recap: Investing in SaaS ERP isn’t about investing in technology – it absolutely must be about investing in a solution that meets the business needs of the institution. So, to build a business case, you first need to take SaaS out of the equation, and focus on articulating the pain points and needs of the institution, which in the end might be well-served by a SaaS solution. Remember: Cloud-based ERP is about strategy, not technology.
Reactions to the Security of SaaS Surprised Us
We know that security is a big question for many institutions looking into SaaS ERP. The idea of institutional data being housed by someone else, somewhere else makes a lot of people nervous. But at the core, these concerns around the security of SaaS solutions are really based on emotion, not fact. SaaS ERP providers have built their businesses around comprehensive security measures – many of which will far outperform any on-campus security protocols. Concerns about ‘how secure is my data in the cloud’ are quickly addressed by any SaaS provider. But people will continue to think what they’re going to think – and in large part that is driven by emotion, not fact. Institutions will need to move past the deep-seated doubts that are hard to overcome.
A Prediction about SaaS ERP Adoption in Higher Ed
We predict that roughly 1 in 4 institutions will adopt a SaaS ERP system in the next 5 years. And that’s a conservative prediction. Of course, SaaS ERP vendors are really in the drivers seat here – and their ability to deliver on roadmap and product development will be a huge factor in the level of adoption we see in higher ed. But SaaS ERP is here to stay – the transition won’t be immediate, but more and more schools will begin to move away from ‘installed ERP’ to a cloud-based ERP.
What do you think about the pace of adoption for SaaS ERP in higher education?
Interested in viewing the entire webinar? Contact us to get a copy of the recording.
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It is critical that institutions obtain an apples to apples comparison of functionality offered by SaaS versus on-premise or hosted ERP vendors. Most of the SaaS solutions are still developing the required functionality.