Cloud and SaaS Applications: Migration, Adoption, and Measuring Impact

Companies with cloud applications improved their profitability 1.9 times more than companies with on-premises solutions.

Following the Covid-19 pandemic, remote working became the norm and required a rapid adaptation of information systems. In search of flexible solutions, many companies accelerated their migration to cloud and SaaS software.

In this article, Sales Manager Sophie Causeret and Project Manager Anthony Beun explain how to:

• Operate a migration to cloud and SaaS software efficiently
• Improve the performance of information systems
• Support users on your applications (with real customer cases)
• Use data to measure SaaS deployment impact

Cloud and SaaS applications: migration essentials

"Companies that leverage the full benefits of the Cloud stand out from the crowd, and those that haven't often struggle to stay in the game."

Sophie Causeret

Stable business activity during the health crisis was possible largely because of the Cloud. This trend has continued to grow since 2020, driven by the expansion of remote and hybrid working.

According to Flexera, 61% of companies planned to prioritize Cloud migration in 2021.

Why are cloud applications a key growth driver?

• Applications are accessible remotely and in real time
• Deployment, integration, and maintenance are faster and simpler
• Subscription-based pricing makes costs easier to manage and forecast
• Cloud offers scale to match your business needs

Businesses recognized the potential of SaaS software and the Cloud precisely when they needed to be more agile. Today, SaaS is an indispensable part of digital transformation for organizations of every size.

Cloud and SaaS applications: what are the challenges for companies?

"The gap between companies that use the Cloud and those that don't is widening every day."

Sophie Causeret

Moving to the Cloud introduces several challenges across key areas:

• Deployment

Most companies have on average migrated 20-40% of their apps to the Cloud.

Source: Accenture

• Change management

70% of change management projects fail, mostly because of employee resistance.

Source: McKinsey

• Digital adoption and varied usage levels

58% of workers say their employer uses advanced digital tools but does not provide the training required to get started.

Source: Randstad

• Performance

91% of IT leaders say that the Cloud played an important part in accelerating digital transformation in 2020.

Source: CIF

• Organizational change within IT departments

CIOs are evolving from server maintenance managers to internal service providers.

Although implementing SaaS applications raises real questions, the stakes of digital transformation are too high to ignore. The key is ensuring your project is properly supported so it does not fall short.

How to support users on new SaaS applications

Without adequate support, even well-designed SaaS projects can underperform over time. Every user needs to be guided through the features that matter to their role.

"What the crisis has taught us is that the most basic uses were not mastered by employees."

Sophie Causeret

Anthony Beun outlines several ways Lemon Learning helps organizations improve SaaS application adoption:

• Optimizing training delivery
• Significantly reducing support requests
• Increasing employee engagement through continuous, in-app interaction
• Customizing content by role or team
• Guiding users in real time, directly within the application
• Providing 24/7 access to training and support resources
• Communicating regularly with users via tooltips and in-app messages

This approach enabled one Lemon Learning client in the temporary staffing sector to support 4,500 users on a daily basis with their operational tools.

SaaS application support: 4 customer cases

Lemon Learning has helped clients across industries accelerate digital tool adoption. Here are four examples:

• Supporting the rollout of Customer First for an automotive sector client across 40,000 users worldwide
• Helping a healthcare sector client harmonize new tools for 8,000 users worldwide and establish an ongoing communication system
• Helping 70,000 users from a construction sector company get started on the Ivalua tool
• Supporting the deployment of multiple new tools for a nursery network with 800 users

How to measure the impact of SaaS software deployment

Once your SaaS software is live, measuring its impact is essential to justify the investment and guide ongoing improvements. Where do you start?

Anthony Beun recommends three steps to assess the impact of a new SaaS deployment:

• Define clear performance indicators (KPIs)
• Analyze the data collected from user activity
• Continuously optimize applications based on findings

When support is tailored to user needs, the results are tangible. Lemon Learning customers have reported the following outcomes:

• 50% reduction in support costs
• 75% less face-to-face training required
• 60% to 80% of time saved in creating and updating training content
• Improved compliance with business processes and higher quality data entry

Cloud and SaaS applications are now essential infrastructure for most organizations, but adoption challenges remain real. With the right user support in place, companies can ensure sustainable, measurable use of every application they deploy.

Check out our demo videos to see a digital adoption platform in action.

Or get in touch for more information.