It’s 9:00 a.m., and you have just opened your inbox for the day. It’s overflowing with security alerts, license renewal reminders, requests for new SaaS tools, and a message from your IT director about a new software purchase!
That’s what the work life of a system administrator looks like—juggling between tasks and trying to keep control of the SaaS operations.
If you are experiencing something similar and finding it challenging to determine where, in what quantity, and at what cost you use SaaS tools, then you are not alone! To prevent this, you need visibility into your SaaS landscape.
But how? We will guide you through the SaaS discovery process, equipping you with the right tools and knowledge to break this cycle of frustration. Let’s get started!
What is SaaS Discovery?
“Too many manual steps were involved while tagging and saving information on new assets. Every time we made a purchase, we had to get the asset, tag it, scan the device, populate the information in the spreadsheet, and then save it. It was very tedious,” explains Michael Anton of The Kolter Group.
Does this sound familiar? This is the story of every system administrator relying on manual asset and software tracking. SaaS discovery smooths out this whole process. It involves strategically cataloging software tools like Slack, Zoom, and Adobe into a database for increased visibility. To create a holistic SaaS ecosystem, the database captures critical software information, including name, user, cost, and even the discovery type.
System administrators, like you, do not have to sift through tedious spreadsheets to find this information. It saves time, right? The primary purpose of SaaS discovery is to empower IT personnel to automatically sync and fetch SaaS details by scanning networks, allowing them to have the complete SaaS portfolio at their fingertips.
The real struggle behind SaaS discovery
Every process reaches a breaking point that compels people to take the next step. For system administrators, manual SaaS discovery is that point. Continuous IT issues manifest into inefficient SaaS discovery, hampering IT operations management. Let’s help you identify some of these issues:
1. Lack of awareness
How often do you hear the phrase “We did not know” from other system administrators? This is a typical response to a lack of visibility into the SaaS landscape. Most IT personnel do not even realize the need for a SaaS discovery tool, adopting a reactive approach to problem-solving rather than a proactive one. So, when an IT issue, such as a security breach, occurs, the first response is to address the “problem” rather than the “root cause.” This way, the real problem, which in this case is the lack of SaaS management, remains unsolved.
Another example would be the lack of effort to patch vulnerabilities and gaps in the existing SaaS landscape, which makes the system prone to attacks. This usually stems from the “Everything is fine” mentality and the assumption that the SaaS solutions are well-protected, even if the security system is outdated. It’s like assuming your house is safe because it hasn’t been burgled without checking the locks or installing an alarm.
2. Bureaucratic redundancies
Bureaucratic redundancies involve unnecessary processes and approvals to upgrade or purchase a SaaS solution. Gaining approvals from upper management can be tricky! The system administrators need to build a strong case to initiate a purchase. These purchases usually involve multiple layers of approvals from the department head, IT manager, finance head, and even the CEO, delaying the implementation of SaaS discovery.
In such scenarios, employees find the most readily available solutions to maintain records—mostly spreadsheets, which have their issues. Managing coordination between departments using spreadsheets can be difficult and lead to additional delays. Eventually, such complications demotivate employees to follow the set protocols, leading to our next problem: shadow IT.
3. Shadow IT
Cisco reports that 80% of end users use software that is not sanctioned by IT, a common practice known as shadow IT. It can add to companies’ hidden costs significantly due to the following reasons:
- Unapproved subscriptions: If these subscriptions are not recorded at the time of purchase, different departments may buy multiple licenses of the same software.
- Maintenance costs: Unvetted software may occasionally need upgrades, which may be charged to your company’s credit card without your knowledge, increasing the expenses.
- Inefficient resource distribution: Employees may use blacklisted software through VPN, which can hamper their productivity at work.
A standard issue companies face with shadow IT is automatic credit card payments due to unregistered software. For instance, an employee might buy software on a company card without the authorities knowing.
However, shadow IT is not entirely on employees; company administration also has a vital role in propagating it. Unnecessary hurdles in attaining approval for software, upper management’s involvement in the smallest of IT decisions, and constant requests can signify a lack of trust in employees.
Additionally, today’s users are more intelligent than ever, and these operational inefficiencies only encourage them to find solutions independently, adding to shadow IT. But is Shadow IT all bad? You have to decide this for yourself!
4. Unoptimized license usage
Companies often ask their employees to reduce IT costs by a certain percentage. But how? A common way to do this is by identifying unused software licenses that are simply going to waste. This is a significant problem in SaaS discovery! The absence of an IT asset management system can complicate IT operations as there would be no place to record these licenses.
It’s tough for IT and finance to work together when no one knows where the SaaS money is going. Without records, IT can’t say, “We’re using X licenses,” and finance can’t say, “That costs Y.” Basically, everyone’s in the dark, and budgets get messy.
These extra, unused licenses are the real troublemakers as they not only add to the costs but also create security vulnerabilities and compliance risks.
Unfolding the SaaS discovery process: From pain to gain
In light of the abovementioned issues, the question arises, “How can we make the life of a system administrator easier?” The answer is simple: invest your resources and time in SaaS discovery! But first, understand that SaaS discovery is a step-by-step process requiring a strategy. Here’s how SaaS discovery can work for you, especially with the help of IT asset management solutions:
1. Laborious manual tracking
Gone are the 1980s and 90s, when manual tracking was still standard. Nobody likes to log their software into an Excel sheet anymore. This practice is unscalable, especially if your company grows rapidly and can increase SaaS sprawl. Manual SaaS tracking is an outdated practice that no longer resonates with technological evolution.
Step#1 Automate data entry through ITAM Discovery Agent
As a system administrator, you are swamped with IT work that requires you to patch servers, support users, and ensure timely SaaS management of all software. Manual tracking is usually the norm, which means typing in software details and updating them regularly. That’s not humanly possible!
This is where your less common ITAM discovery Agent comes into play. It enables auto-discovery of essential software details, including the software name, installation date, current user, and version. Consider the discovery Agent your assistant who helps you quickly manage your IT tasks! You simply deploy it onto the devices you and your colleagues are using, and it fetches details of the software being used in no time.
Even a missed software installation can pose challenges for you. The discovery agent helps avoid these instances and ensures that your records are always up-to-date. It is one of the most efficient ways to ensure SaaS governance and develop a holistic SaaS landscape.
2. Data fragmentation
Scattered data is one of the major roadblocks to categorizing information. If your data is everywhere, how can you ensure your software is tagged correctly? Different departments maintain separate sheets to record their SaaS subscriptions, leading to dissonance. Disparate sheets also confuse employees, making it hard to determine which source to trust for information.
Take the example of BDS—a company specializing in document management solutions. The company’s heavy reliance on spreadsheets resulted in data silos and errors in data entry until they implemented auto-discovery using an ITAM solution. So what’s the solution?
Step #2 Strategically categorize data
Start with breaking these data silos and centralize SaaS information into one consolidated platform. Wouldn’t it be cool to open your system and know exactly what software each department uses and at what cost? No more dealing with a flooded inbox! Here’s a checklist you can follow to make this task easier:
- Identify the need for categorization (cost tracking, usage analysis, or overall SaaS monitoring)
- Install a Discovery Agent to fetch software data automatically
- Import data or install an MDM to create a holistic database
- Integrate with other SaaS applications
- Remove duplicate software
- Apply categories and tags to software records
While this is not a detailed list, it can help you take the baby steps toward complete SaaS categorization. SaaS mutualization is also a helpful way to avoid using multiple systems that more or less do the same thing. Audit and identify one software that does everything for you, or simply mutualize the subscriptions to benefit from huge discounts.
3. Security vulnerabilities
With great power comes great responsibility—this is what we all grew up hearing! SaaS tools offer various solutions to SaaS management and spend control needs. However, as companies adopt more of these tools, they become responsible for ensuring data integrity, managing user access, and ensuring compliance.
SaaS tools are highly vulnerable to online attacks. Forbes highlighted a report that 96.7% of organizations used at least one application that encountered a security breach. Data breaches are the biggest worries of any system administrator. Exposure to data can lead to extensive financial loss, which can threaten an administrator’s job.
Step #3 Gain a foothold into the world of threats and vulnerabilities
Adopt a forward-looking and proactive approach to identifying vulnerabilities and security gaps before they impact you. First, strengthen your fight instincts and ensure SSO compliance. This involves implementing security and authentication standards, such as SAML and MFA, to provide secure access to your system. Encourage your company’s users to enable MFA so instances of compromised credentials can be eliminated altogether.
Ensure that users have the latest versions of the SaaS applications to ensure security updates are installed on time. SaaS governance can be further streamlined by allowing users to use only the necessary software. Keep a checklist and ensure that each software installation complies with it.
4. Unneeded SaaS renewals
Identification of underutilized SaaS applications is also a pressing challenge. Companies may be paying for software they do not even need. This usually happens when system administrators do not know what and how many applications they use, their pricing structure, or whether they need them.
Step #4 Optimize spending and compliance with SaaS renewal management
Automate SaaS renewals to ensure you never miss a renewal and save on costs. Utilize a SaaS renewal calendar that highlights your upcoming renewals along with their costs, seats, and vendors, keeping this information readily accessible. This way, you can present the necessary data to your IT manager to determine whether to renew or not—optimizing software license management.
Set alerts and reminders so you won’t miss a renewal. Track the renewal history to see when a particular amount was paid to the SaaS provider and develop better visibility into your spending.
5. Increasing SaaS and data sprawl
The use of multiple SaaS applications translates into unimaginable data sprawl. Different applications may serve various purposes, but the data is likely to overlap at some point. This means a waste of energy and time in data entry and difficulty fetching data from these sources. Similarly, fragmented data is more challenging to secure and creates inconsistencies in SaaS management.
Step #5 Enable SaaS-to-SaaS integrations
How about bringing all this data into one place? SaaS-to-SaaS integrations break data silos and enable you to benefit from two applications in one place. You can easily synchronize data and manage your software better. For instance, by integrating with software like Slack, you can send alerts and reminders for SaaS renewals directly to your Slack account, so you don’t have to sign in multiple places.
While SaaS-to-SaaS integrations are not a direct method of SaaS discovery, they are critical to consolidating data that helps in SaaS management.
SaaS discovery as the new way forward
SaaS Discovery is not just a buzzword! It’s a powerful tool that lets you systematically map your SaaS ecosystem. 47% of organizations already have some visibility in their SaaS landscape, while 23% have it all. These organizations are indeed saving significantly through controlled SaaS management.
You can do the same by adopting ITAM solutions and automating SaaS discovery. Be the master of your SaaS strategy and help your company save while reducing your overload with efficient software asset management.
