Bob Warfield from Callidus Software has a great article on the Sand Hill Group’s site, bringing some rationality to the SaaS discussion. As we’ve been saying for quite some time, there is no one “right” model (on-demand or on-premise) for software deployments. I mentioned in my last post that we’re seeing great adoption of ATG’s OnDemand offerings from some very large companies. Likewise, some smaller companies prefer a traditional licensed application model installed on-site, despite the “conventional wisdom” of SaaS/on-demand being THE model for SMBs.

Now more than ever, customers should have the flexibility to chose the model that is right for them. This should be self-evident and alone should dictate a hybrid model. But even for companies that are not motivated solely by their customers’ best interests, Bob makes a really good point:

“For established software vendors, the transition to a pure on-demand model can be daunting. The financial, engineering and customer service issues aren’t anything to be taken lightly.”

The hybrid model is best for customers and best for vendors - I can’t see why any software company would choose one over the other.

Can you?

 

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