Success in the SaaS/Cloud ecosystem requires a new approach to every aspect of software manufacturing. There is no excess margin in the SaaS model to cover organizational inefficiencies. Support can no longer be seen as a separate function; it necessarily must be a core aspect of the relationship product.
In the traditional perpetual-license model of selling software, the manufacturer takes the majority of their profit up front from the sale of the licenses. In the Software As A Service subscription model, that large up-front influx of revenue and profit goes away, replaced by a more predictable monthly membership arrangement. SaaS profit is realized incrementally instead of all at once.…