The migration to a software-as-a-service (SaaS) model is not a one-time event—it is the first step in a larger modernization journey. To experience sustainable success with SaaS, higher education institutions must be intentional and treat SaaS as a continuous initiative that encompasses readiness, security and continuity standards, accountability, and organizational change management.
Institutions that struggle after adopting a SaaS solution often do so because the execution was treated as a one-off implementation, rather than an ongoing endeavor. This article focuses on four steps that can help institutions experience success with SaaS, enabling them to stabilize long-term operations, reduce risk over time, and ensure that the SaaS model aligns with institutional objectives and capacity.
1. Assess Institutional Readiness
An honest assessment of institutional constraints, capabilities, and capacity is critical to experiencing a sustainable SaaS transition. Given that higher education in general is experiencing talent loss, tightening budgets, and the need to do more with less, decision-makers must realistically comprehend what does or does not make sense.
SaaS will deliver real value when responsibilities and risks are shared across the organization, not necessarily pinned solely on IT’s shoulders. When more stakeholders are involved and accountability is dispersed, institutions are less likely to encounter fewer problems associated with performance or dissatisfaction down the line.
Here are a few questions decision-makers can ask when assessing their institution’s readiness.
- Is system and process knowledge retained by only a small number of staff?
- Is the existing technology ecosystem reliant on customizations, workarounds, or undocumented processes?
- Are staff more concentrated on maintenance than they are about optimization and innovation?
- Is there a backlog of deferred upgrades, integrations, or remediations?
Answering yes to some or all these questions may mean that an institution is not ready for SaaS from a capacity perspective. Even the most modern SaaS solutions may not perform up to expectations if institutions are overstrained or unable to allocate resources or talent to their sustainability.
2. Define Non-Negotiables
There are requirements and musts for any technology modernization initiative. Understanding what these non-negotiables are before transitioning to SaaS will not only make deciding which solution is best for an institution easier but will also help identify priorities and outcomes that align with institutional objectives.
Setting clear expectations with a trusted SaaS partner will enable institutions to mitigate risk before issues arise, not after. This is vital in terms of compliance, data security, and business continuity efforts. If these measures are treated as secondary considerations, institutions will face increased risk.
Here are a few non-negotiable factors that institutions should define on their SaaS journey.
- Support for meeting and maintaining compliance requirements through audits.
- Expectations for disaster recovery and business continuity efforts.
- Transparency into incident response and escalation protocols.
- Responsibilities for monitoring, patching, documentation, and reporting.
When non-negotiables are defined and established early on, institutions can strengthen accountability and minimize risk.
3. Work With a Trusted Partner
Through a SaaS model, an institution’s success is intrinsically tied to the vendor responsible for that cloud environment. Colleges and universities need to work with trusted, experienced partners that provide more than just technology—they deliver the support and services that institutions need to thrive in today’s fast-paced, constantly shifting higher education landscape.
When evaluating different SaaS providers and models, institutional stakeholders should look at the following factors.
- Does the vendor have demonstrable experience supporting higher education institutions of similar size and type?
- Does the vendor provide clear transparency into ownership and accountability structures?
- Does the vendor deliver personalized and responsive support?
- Has the vendor demonstrated its ability to learn from previous incidents and improve?
- Does the vendor have stable and scalable operational staffing?
It’s important that institutions recognize that transitioning to a SaaS model will require a long-term partnership, not a singular purchase. When making the move to SaaS, stakeholders need to look at the organization behind the solution.
4. Prepare for Continuous Change
Taken from a long-term perspective, a SaaS solution should enable continuous innovation and growth. As such, stakeholders need to ensure their institution—and fellow staff—are prepared for evolution. Because change fatigue can have a lasting impact on an organization, it’s best that decision-makers get ahead of these challenges and set expectations or enable new protocol.
The nature of a SaaS model calls for continuous updates and enhancements. For the organization, institutional stakeholders may consider making some of the following changes to better accommodate the cloud’s continuous change.
- Transitioning IT roles and departments from system maintenance to service enablement.
- Establishing plans and protocol to manage priorities for enhancements instead of relying on customizations.
- Setting expectations across campus about the frequency of updates and their impact.
- Building transparent communication plans.
- Investing in training to ensure staff are up to date on changes and can leverage SaaS solutions effectively throughout the updates.
Getting ahead of change fatigue and setting clear expectations can help staff stay optimistic about SaaS without feeling overwhelmed or caught off guard. This approach will enable more positive experiences and better long-term outcomes.
Execute With Intention
SaaS models provide myriad promises to institutions, including newfound flexibility, scalability, and security. But to achieve success, stakeholders and champions must invest in training early on, identify their organization’s overall priorities, work with a proven partner that has the caliber to successfully collaborate with institutions of their size and type, and understand that even the best laid plans can go awry.
In the end, SaaS initiatives that are executed with discipline and intent will demonstrate the difference between successful long-term modernization endeavors and short-lived, one-time updates.
