What are the key considerations for choosing cloud or on-premise budgeting software? How to determine what's the best for your organization.

Transcription

1 What are the key considerations for choosing cloud or on-premise budgeting software? How to determine what's the best for your organization.

2 What are the key considerations for choosing cloud or on-premise budgeting software? From cloud and on-premise to multi versus single tenant hosting, learn how to best determine what's the right fit for your organization. When it becomes clear that your organization needs to upgrade from spreadsheet budgeting to a comprehensive budgeting software solution, it s common to struggle with the next steps. Deciding when to make the switch can be hard, and so can determining what type of infrastructure to choose. Over the past decade, cloud computing software has drastically risen in popularity. There are many software experts who believe that cloud computing is the direction of the future. But countless public sector and non-profit organizations are often hesitant to adopt the practice for a variety of reasons. It could be due to concerns about security, cost, loss of control or access; however, these concerns about cloud-based software can often be unfounded. Organizations who choose on-premise software are choosing to be responsible for managing the hosting, access, and protection of their data. So, which deployment option for budgeting software is best for your organization? The following is a look at what each option offers, along with a few additional consideration. 2 COPYRIGHT QUESTICA.COM

3 Top things to consider when choosing between cloud and on-premise budgeting software A look at cloud hosting Cloud software is rising in popularity because it is an easy and effective solution to many everyday hassles. If you work for a smallto mid-sized public sector or non-profit organization, the cloud offers many benefits. It provides security that may be difficult or cost prohibitive to achieve on your own. It can also provide upfront savings since your organization is not paying for hardware or spending time applying infrastructure patches and upgrades. vendor cannot anticipate, and while a loss of service is possible at some point, any reputable company will work hard to ensure that these moments are the rare exception rather than the rule. In fact, cloud-based hosting generally outperforms on-premise solutions when it comes to minimizing outages and guaranteed uptimes or recovery times. Common concerns about cloud software are often related to security and privacy. If so much information is being streamed and uploaded, wouldn t that make it easier for hackers to get in, or for there to be a potential data leak? In truth, cloud software transfers the majority of the responsibility for data security to the vendor. And since a data leak would damage their reputation, they work hard to minimize potential problems. Optimal security and server hosting also means the software generally performs better. Another concern is lack of control. In the event of a software outage, there isn t much you can do other than wait for the vendor to get the service working again. This can be frustrating to deal with, especially if you re preparing for a key milestone such as a budget meeting, or audit. Sometimes, things happen that the COPYRIGHT QUESTICA.COM 3

4 Considerations for on-premise Some organizations don t have the option of hosting their data in the cloud. Some public sector and non-profit organizations have specific rules about software use and installation. Institutions with specific types of data sets, such as hospitals with patient information or government agencies that control 911 dispatch and undercover police operations, often choose to utilize on-premise budgeting software installation and management. To be clear, on-premise is not a bad or negative thing. However, it's important to be aware of the necessities if you go this route. It s essential to note that if your organization chooses on-premise, you will need to provide funding for your own IT infrastructure, software licensing, and IT chargebacks. Also, your IT team will need to educate themselves on how to maintain the budgeting software. Finally, since you are solely responsible for the data, you ll need to arrange for security and redundancies. On-premise budgeting software may be the best option for you, but it likely means making some trade-offs. RPO vs. RTO No matter what hosting choice you make on-premise or in the cloud you ll need to consider how to protect and save your data. There are two parameters to consider: Recovery Point Objective (RPO) and Recovery Time Objective (RTO). RPO refers to how much data would be lost if your individual web-based portal went down. Ideally, you want this number to be low. RTO refers to how quickly your business processes can be up and running again. Again, we want this number to be low, for minimal disruption. An optimal vendor backs up its data at regular intervals, (i.e., at least several times a day). That way, you can rest easy knowing that server uptime, RTO, and RPO are all optimized and tuned to levels that you wouldn t be able to achieve by yourself. This is a great benefit to small- and mid-sized organizations who may not have the infrastructure in place to achieve these results on their own. 4 COPYRIGHT QUESTICA.COM

5 Control & Customization Cloud providers might also impose limits or other controls for how their budgeting software can be used or customized. This is something to keep in mind when making your decision and evaluating cloud-based budgeting solution providers. Be sure that you understand your contract and address questions upfront. Ultimately, when choosing cloud software or on-premise, a big question to ask is: Am I comfortable giving up a measure of control to another company? If that s not an issue, then cloud computing is an excellent option that will only continue to grow and improve as more organizations adopt the method. Those who feel hosting in the cloud isn t right for them will want to investigate on-premise software hosting. At a glance: Cloud-based software Advantages Your data will be hosted within a very robust environment (such Amazon Web Services or Microsoft's Azure). This type of infrastructure can handle any personnel security, natural disaster, or network issue that typical organization networks can t afford. You can have your vendor application hosted within a tailored environment that your vendor knows best. There is a reduced strain on your own IT department. For example, the vendor will be responsible for all software access and performance-related guarantees. Disadvantages times The potential loss of control of data. Be sure to stipulate who owns the data in the event of contract termination. Also, ask if your data is being hosted in your country and under the legal protections of the laws your legal department is most familiar with. times A potential loss of access to data. How often might you need a backup of your data? Is this supported by your vendor? COPYRIGHT QUESTICA.COM 5

6 Additional Considerations Licensing: To buy software or rent (SaaS)? What are the advantages of buying vs. renting software? In this scenario, an effective way to think about it is to compare it to buying or renting a house. Either way, you still get to live in a house. It s the same with software. Buying software is a good, economical option if you plan on owning the software for an extended period (typically five years or longer). It s a larger upfront cost, but over time, you ll be paying less. One thing to consider is that a large upfront cost often triggers the threshold for a formal procurement process or a Request for Proposal (RFP). In contrast, renting software as a service (or SaaS) has a lower initial cost, but it could be more expensive in the long run (typically after three to five years). One other element to consider is if your organization has a monthly or annual level of spending authority. If your organization exceeds that spending authority, it could trigger the need for an approved budget. This process can be very time-consuming. SaaS is a great option in this situation because the lower monthly costs don t trigger that need. Thus, SaaS cloud-based budgeting software solutions are quicker to implement. 6 COPYRIGHT QUESTICA.COM

7 At a glance: Subscription-based software (i.e., SaaS) Advantages The flexibility of paying as you go. Renting does not include a large upfront cost and can avoid triggering the requirement for additional funding or an RFP. While software that is regularly updated is beneficial, it's important to understand how those updates occur. Make sure updates occur on your organization's schedule, not the vendor's. Be sure to know what updates you re allowed under your license agreement. Disadvantages times The total cost of ownership could be higher if evaluated over the long-term (typically more than 5 years). COPYRIGHT QUESTICA.COM 7

8 Multi-tenant vs. single-tenant software There is another important consideration: whether your budgeting software provider decides if, and when, to activate product updates. After all, your organization might not have a standard fiscal year and budget cycle. What happens if the software changes at a critical time, for example in the middle of a budget season? Are you just out of luck? Perhaps. If you are in a multi-tenant environment, you are likely at the mercy of your vendor s decisions regarding when they force upgrades. The only way to avoid this potential pitfall is ensuring that your vendor supports you having a unique instance (or single-tenant) of their software. If you are concerned that forced upgrades may be a significant inconvenience or disruption for your organization, it is important that you are set up with a single-tenant instance that allows you the flexibility of choosing when you receive upgrades. While this approach to software is more effort for the vendor to support, it allows you to control the updates and improvements your organization receives and when they are implemented. The other upside to this is that your software can be customized specifically to your needs. Multi-tenant means that many people are sharing the same application instance, and that your data may or may not be completely segregated. It also means that your software is the same version everyone else has. Singletenant means that your system is tailored specifically to you and your data is likely completely segregated. Multi-tenant software is great for the vendor because it helps them maintain version control, which in principle can help them lower their costs. This can be a benefit to the organization if these lower costs are passed along as savings. But, this is software that is constantly being updated and approved. The software provider doesn t ask permission or check whether the moment is right for your organization to update. 8 COPYRIGHT QUESTICA.COM

9 At a glance: Multi-tenant software Advantages Generally, multi-tenant software should be cheaper because it s more economical for the vendor to manage releases, versions, and upgrades. Disadvantages times Multi-tenant typically means you re locked into the vendor s upgrade schedule. When they have a new software release, everyone gets the changes at the same time, and this may not be great for your organization. times Often, with more complicated software, you ll need the application to be tailored to your business processes or integrations to other software. This level of configurability is difficult put into a multi-tenant application. times Your data may not be completely segregated. times There s no vendor option to host your purchased application within your own network. n COPYRIGHT QUESTICA.COM 9

10 Choose Questica and get the best of both worlds Ultimately, we want you to make the choice that s right for your public sector or non-profit organization. At Questica, we believe that choice begins with open and honest dialogue about the decisions you and your organization make, and what s best for your needs. As such, we have budgeting preparation and management solutions that meet your needs. Do you need to be on-premise? No problem. If you want to eliminate the IT headaches, or take advantage of the other benefits then cloud-hosted or SaaS might be right for your organization. At Questica, our service is customer centric, reliable, and affordable. Our software is single-tenant, so you re always able to get changes and updates on your own schedule. And we back up data at regular intervals, so you can be confident that there will be minimal disruption in any emergency. Most importantly, we offer expert consulting and advice to help you determine what solution is best for you. 10 COPYRIGHT QUESTICA.COM

11 At a glance: Questica Budget advantages Questica Budget is single-tenant, so your data is segregated. You also get the customizations you need, along with the application updates that meet your schedule. You can select the type of infrastructure you prefer. You can host the software yourself or within our robust Microsoft Azure cloud. MS Azure allows a very secure and safe data center and meets all levels of security compliance. The Questica hosting environment is custom fit to host our Questica Budget Suite. Your data is stored in the country of your choice. (Canada or U.S.) You own your data. We can easily support robust and offsite backups. If you d like to learn more about Questica, visit our website. our success stories to learn more about our products and decide which one is right for you. We look forward to hearing from you. COPYRIGHT QUESTICA.COM 11

12 As a leader of capital and operating budgeting software since 1998, Questica s goal is to make public sector and non-profit finance better for everyone. Over 600 local governments, colleges, universities, K-12 schools, hospitals, healthcare facilities, and non-profit organizations throughout North America have eliminated spreadsheets, opting for smarter planning, budgeting, management, transparency and sharing with our solutions. Questica.com info@questica.com