In-depth interviews were with CIOs and decision makers from 160 organisations with 500 employees or more, in Africa, Middle East and Eastern Europe
An Oracle-sponsored (http://www.oracle.com) IDC study into 
Software as a Service (SaaS) adoption highlighted that along with cost savings, process efficiencies and productivity were the key benefits to businesses implementing the cloud technology.
In-depth interviews were with CIOs and decision makers from 160 organisations with 500 employees or more, in Africa, Middle East and Eastern Europe. The study outlined how Oracle SaaS customers overcame concerns and inhibitions with regard to cloud adoption.
Access to better technology (58%) and faster deployment of additional IT resources (53%) were the top two drivers for SaaS adoption. Delivering more projects without recruiting additional headcount (51%) and standardization (50%) were the third and fourth key drivers. Other key reasons for adopting SaaS included access to better quality of IT skills (49%) and access to the latest software and techniques (48%).
The research showed that many companies in the region have a “SaaS also” attitude, meaning that when they need new or replacement applications for capability, capacity and functionality, they look at SaaS-solutions at the same time as looking at other on-premise software.
The investigation found that more than 60% of all companies across major verticals have adopted or are in the process of implementing cloud solutions.
69% of respondents felt that cloud offered significant tangible benefits, 55% believed that it offered value, but cost and availability of bandwidth inhibited adoption locally.
The study illustrated that 48% of companies are currently using SaaS technology with another 31 % planning to use in the next one or two years. 22% currently used Platform as a Service (PaaS) with a further 36 % planning on using it in the next 12 to 24 months.
Some concerns were raised through the study, particularly around security. While connectivity was highlighted as a key concern, for some organisations connectivity issues were solved with the use of SaaS. Organisations that did adopt SaaS invested in network optimisation and additional security solutions to ensure overall SaaS quality.
The study also focused on particular sectors including the banking industry. The results showed that 59% of all banks surveyed believed that cloud offered significant tangible benefits, with 52% of those surveyed currently using SaaS within their organisations.
64% of the banks expect the number of SaaS users within the organisation to increase over the next year and 38% of the banks have a “SaaS first” approach. Access to better technology & IT skills were the primary drivers for SaaS and workforce productivity was stated as being a major benefit experienced by 87% of the banks.
Dana Murugan, Senior Marketing Director for Oracle commented: “Modern cloud applications from Oracle help customers reimagine business, practices, and experiences. The best-of-breed Software as a Service (SaaS) applications in Oracle Cloud are integrated with social, mobile, and analytic capabilities to help deliver the experiences customers expect, the talent to succeed, and the performance the market demands.
“The results of the survey indicate that SaaS adoption is continuing to rise in [country] and we look forward to supporting our customers with the latest technology that will enable them to achieve business objectives.”
