5 Strategies to Help Organizations Tackle Software Sprawl

Maximize your ROI on the technology you need.

“SaaS sprawl is a natural consequence of the SaaS revolution. An analysis of Okta’s 2020 customer database revealed that companies employing 2,000 or more individuals maintained an inventory of 175 SaaS apps on average” – TechCrunch

The infamous phenomenon that is software sprawl, occurs when the quantity of applications or software components in an environment experiences rapid growth and fluctuations, leading to a substantial rise in complexity and rendering traditional software management approaches ineffective.

In the fast-paced world of technology, businesses often find themselves grappling with the challenges of uncontrolled proliferation of software applications across an organization. Suffice to say that this seemingly innocuous issue can significantly impact Return on Investment (ROI) if left unaddressed.

In this blog, we explore how software sprawl negatively affects ROI and highlight 5 powerful strategies for optimizing software licensing through consolidation, expert guidance and licensing discounts.

 

The Hidden Costs of Software Sprawl

Walk Me’s 2022 - 2023 State of Digital Adoption Report showed that large enterprises are spending over $246 million pursuing strategic goals with digital transformation, IT and software spend being the majority portion.

Surveys from this same report showed that large enterprises spend an estimate of over $104 million on their digital transformation and software.

On average, businesses deploy 89 different applications, with enterprises having as many as 187. However, 30% of these apps are either duplicative or provide no evident value.

These findings conclude that many businesses are overspending by millions on software they don’t even need.

 

Furthermore, with the complexity and rapid growth of organizational software usage, hidden costs can arise for several reasons, such as:

 

Redundancy and Overlapping Functionality

Multiple software tools with overlapping features can lead to redundancy, increasing operational costs without providing proportional benefits.

 

Inefficient workflows

Workers toggle between different applications approximately 1,200 times a day, resulting in nearly four hours of wasted productivity weekly and increased frustration leading to higher turnover rates.

 

Licensing Expenses

Unmanaged software sprawl often results in unnecessary licensing expenses, as organizations may invest in more licenses than required for their actual usage.

 

Integration Challenges

Disparate software systems may struggle to integrate seamlessly, causing increased IT support costs and further workflow disruptions as previously mentioned.

 

Building a Strategic Approach

In the pursuit of organizational efficiency and streamlined operations, consider these five key strategies to optimize your software ecosystem:

 

How Managed Solution Can Help

As seasoned veterans of successful digital transformation projects, we help ensure you have the software you need with a measurable return on investment. By leveraging our team you free your company from the clutches of software sprawl through the following advantages:

• Consolidation for Efficiency: Streamline your software ecosystem by identifying and consolidating redundant applications, ensuring that each tool serves a unique and necessary purpose.

 

• Leveraging Expertise: Seek the expertise of IT professionals to conduct thorough software audits, helping you understand usage patterns, license requirements and opportunities for consolidation.

 

• Holistic Management: Implementing a comprehensive approach to the management of your software allows for centralized control and monitoring of your software environment, optimizing performance and ensuring compliance with licensing agreements.

 

• Strategic Collaboration with Vendors: Engage in proactive discussions with software vendors to negotiate favorable licensing terms, considering factors like volume discounts and flexible payment options.

 

• Regular Review and Updates: Stay informed about changes in software usage patterns and technology trends. Regularly review your software portfolio to identify opportunities for further optimization.

 

Centralized Control

Managed Solution provides a centralized platform for overseeing software assets, enabling efficient monitoring, updates, and compliance management.

 

Cost Optimization

By leveraging our experts, Managed Solution can facilitate the consolidation and efficient management of software applications. Our proactive approach empowers organizations to negotiate more favorable licensing deals, capitalizing on volume discounts and ultimately optimizing costs associated with software usage.

 

Expert Guidance

At Managed Solution, we have mastered the art of analyzing our client’s software environments to build better strategies and provide ample guidance and resources to maximize their cost efficiencies.

 

Enhanced Security and Compliance

Managed Solution will enforce security protocols and ensure compliance with licensing agreements, reducing the risk of legal and financial consequences.

 

Learn More

Tackling software sprawl is a strategic imperative when building a robust ROI for your technology. Through consolidation, expert guidance and licensing discounts, organizations can not only cut unnecessary expenses but also enhance efficiency, security, and compliance.

If you would like to learn more about how Managed Solution can help you overcome the costs of software sprawl, chat with one of our experts here.

6 Benefits of Working with a Managed Service Provider 

(For small or one-person IT teams) 

 

There is nothing wrong with having a small IT team. When your company is starting out and the caseloads are simple, that small-scale department works well! Benefits of working with a managed service provider.

However, as your company grows, and your IT needs begin to stack up – you might find that working with a Managed Service Provider (MSP) could be a match made in heaven (compared to traditional in-house additions). 

We understand that outsourcing may feel like a big step, so we want to speak to that and shed some light on all the ways that teaming up with an MSP can help you and your team succeed in all things IT!

 

Save Money

You may be surprised to find out that outsourcing usually saves companies money or provides more value for a lower cost. This is primarily because when you outsource, you no longer pay for the expenses associated with hiring a new team member, or members for that matter.

Most Managed service providers offer tiered (silver, gold, platinum) packages that allow you to set a budget that works for you while giving you a larger breadth of talent and support. 

Managed Service Providers can go beyond managed services to save you and your team money. From procurement to security, there are plenty of cost-saving services and software’s that come with the right outsourcing partner.  

Many MSPs (Managed service providers) have procurement experts that can provide you with more affordable and robust licensing opportunities. Furthermore, the right MSP should also be able to help you bolster security measures to ensure that your data and networks are secured.  

The latter being especially important for cost-savings, as Cybersecurity prevention is now estimated to save businesses up to $1.4 million per incident. 

Learn more about the financial benefits of MSPs in our recent article, where we discuss how outsourcing IT can help with cost-savings and potentially boost revenue.

 

Scale Support 

With an MSP you can scale your reach as needed. For example, at Managed Solution, cases are escalated up the ladder until resolved.  

Meaning that if you get a case that you would like to assign to our team, we will align it with expertise according to its priority level and it will escalate up from there until resolved. 

Another great benefit of working with an MSP, like Managed Solution, is if the MSP you work with is a Microsoft partner – you also get t Microsoft Premier Support as a final escalation for the especially challenging cases that revolve around Microsoft services/ software. 

Furthermore, as your company’s IT needs grow, you will have the support you need to increase your overall service level in real-time. 

Your MSP will monitor your needs and offer guidance on what services should be scaled up or down. Helping to optimize user-satisfaction and cost-effectiveness, simultaneously.

 

Security 

By 2025 humanity’s data will reach 175 zettabytes. We’ll take a quick pause for you to look up zettabytes. There are about 21 zeroes following that 175.  

There is a TON of data available now, and as that pool grows, so too do its attackers. Last year alone global cyberattacks increased by 38%. 

Now more than ever security should be brought to the forefront of business conversations. When considering working with an MSP make sure they are security focused and can offer the abundance of tools and services you can leverage to ensure that your data is protected.  

Another one of the great benefits of working with a Managed Service Provider? Many MSPs offer the markets’ best and most current cybersecurity products and services. These include company-wide training, email two-step factor authentication, and network monitoring.  

Some can also provide software that leverages artificial intelligence to help you detect potential viruses and attacks. Another vital aspect of security is having a solid plan for data backup and disaster recovery, which, you guessed it, MSPs can provide. 

With disaster recovery comes the benefit of minimized downtime which can save companies hundreds of thousands of dollars. An equipped and adept managed service provider can prove to be a vital resource for those worse case scenarios.  

But of course, with the amplified support and governance of your system and technology, the chances of disaster streaking are greatly decreased.  

 

Onboarding and Remote Work 

With an MSP, your onboarding process becomes streamlined. You can work with your MSP to acquire, track, and manage technology for new hires as well as employees throughout your company. 

This is all done through a suite of Microsoft technologies including Active Directory, Intune and Autopilot. As a Microsoft partner, we recommend one of the best active directory software on the market, Azure.  

Azure active directory allows companies to manage applications, authentications, devices, domains, maintain governance, identity protection and so much more!  

Beyond Active Directory, if you need support in multiple cities/states, you will need to find a national or international MSP depending on your locations. This way you can ensure that you’re being supported in the correct time zone so that cases are promptly worked to completion. 

 

New Technology 

With technology evolving quickly and constantly, staying up to date on all-things tech can prove to be extremely costly.  

It isn’t always financially viable to invest in single-use technology. However, with an MSP, you can access the latest tech without having to make huge financial investments.  

This is because many MSPs offer procurement services that allow you to harness the latest technology at an affordable price. 

The right MSP should provide you with expertise and guidance as to which technology licenses and opportunities best fit your current and ever-changing needs. 

 

Focus on Tasks You Love 

When you outsource IT you get to be in control of what kind of work you do in your day to day, and how much you do in your day to day. 

You’re more in control than ever when you outsource. When you delegate tasks and projects, you free yourself up to focus on areas that you enjoy more or that matter most to you! 

In our recent case study with Red Door Interactive, Dennis Gonzalez, their sole, lead IT servicer claims that he is now able to spend less time focusing on low-level helpdesk tasks. Saving him both time and stress. 

Now Dennis is able to focus more on overseeing important projects and maintenance of cybersecurity, while also leveraging a large team in support and services. 

If you are considering outsourcing some or all of your IT, but do not know where to start, reach out to us! We are happy to help give you an idea of what an MSP partnership can look like for you.

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Milliman chooses Power BI Embedded for their Integrate application

As written on microsoft.com

Today, we’re excited to share how Milliman, a global market-leader in actuarial-products and services, has integrated Power BI Embedded into its solutions. Saptarshi Mukherjee, Senior Product Marketing Manager of Microsoft Power BI, met up with Paul Maher, Principal and Chief Technology Officer of the Life Technology Solutions Practice at Milliman, to welcome him and talk more about their solutions.

Saptarshi: Can you tell us more about Milliman and your market-leading cloud solution, Integrate™?

Paul:  Milliman is among the world’s largest actuarial and consulting firms, with offices in major cities around the globe. The Life Technology Solutions practice provides products and services to the actuarial community. Powered by the Microsoft Azure Cloud, Integrate is the first solution to effectively tear down silos and replace old tools and protocols with a state-of-the-art platform that improves financial and risk management, maximizes operational efficiency, and enables strategic allocation of human capital. Insurance companies can now access unlimited computing resources with Microsoft Azure to perform compute-intensive, mission-critical work.

Saptarshi: How are you using Power BI Embedded in Integrate?

Paul: Power BI Embedded enables Integrate users to quickly create and share data through interactive dashboards and reports, all in the cloud. Power BI Embedded provides a rich immersive experience that allows Integrate users to visualize and analyze data in one place, simply and intuitively. Using Power BI Embedded, Integrate delivers a scalable and cost-effective solution that meets the ever-growing BI demands of users.

The ability to embed Power BI in Integrate was key to ensuring that the end-user experience was seamless for all dynamic BI requirements.

Saptarshi: Why did you choose Power BI Embedded?

Paul: After extensive research on so-called “best of breed” offerings in the market today, it was clear that Power BI Embedded was the right choice for Integrate. In summary, some of the key capabilities that made Power BI Embedded so compelling are:

• Cloud-scale analytics service that could be embedded in our solution

• Ability to visualize and analyze data in one place, simply and intuitively

• Unlimited data visualization possibilities through open-source custom data visualizations

• Scalable and cost-effective, and able to meet ever-growing BI demands of our customers, in a pay-as-you-use pricing model

• Power BI Embedded is a cloud service, which allows the user to constantly take advantage of new features and improvements as they are rolled out

Saptarshi: Data security is obviously very important in your industry and at your company.  Can you tell us more about the security details implemented in Integrate?

Paul: All access to Integrate by our customers, end-users, and by our Milliman team, is governed through industry-standard security processes.  These include customer-managed authentication through SAML 2.0+ and ADFS 2.0+ single sign-on, and role-based access control.

With the establishment of single sign-on, all authentication and role assignment responsibilities are given to our customers, allowing them full control over assigning and configuring access for their personnel. The role-based access control allows customers to craft custom roles based on their needs, using a robust set of granular permissions.

This ensures that each user is only allowed to perform the specific role they have been assigned, and controls what data they have access to. The app-token based authentication and row-level security in Power BI Embedded allowed us to continue using our existing security methods and make it transparent for the end-users.

Saptarshi: What are your customers saying?

Paul: The reaction has been extremely positive from our customers. The addition of dynamic BI in Integrate by leveraging Power BI Embedded and Azure Cloud Services gives users access to data, and the ability to interpret data in ways that have never before been possible! Being able to do all of this in a secure and cost-effective way was a key requirement. Other capabilities include:

• The ability to secure data in a multi-tenant application using Power BI Embedded, with row-level security. Users can create one set of reports and datasets, and then use them with multiple users and customers. Each customer can view the same reports, but only see the data that they are allowed to see.

• The simple billing model, which uses report sessions, has been well received by end users.

Integrate provides business insights and real-time information to help decision makers react quickly to known and unknown risks, and to help them make decisions to protect their company.

Saptarshi: Those are all great insights on Integrate and Power BI Embedded. Thank you, Paul, for taking the time to talk with us. It’s been great to hear how Milliman has been able to fully leverage Power BI Embedded. We look forward to staying in touch with the work you’re doing.

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WEBINAR: Commitment Phobia – How Today’s Pay-as-You-Go Licensing Really Works

Pay per user, per month has revolutionized the way companies are forecasting expenses, consuming technology and boosting productivity. But how does it really work? Do you really save? What about software assurance? Tune in for all of those answers and more.

 

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