Hudled Blog

Top 10 Features to Look for in a SaaS Management Platform

Discover the top 10 features of a SaaS management platform that optimize software investments, enhance security, ensure compliance, and streamline workflows.

Author Image
Alex Millar, CPA
Published
October 9, 2023
Top 10 Features to Look for in a SaaS Management Platform

As businesses increasingly rely on software as a service (SaaS) solutions, managing these applications becomes crucial for efficiency and cost-effectiveness. SaaS management platforms provide essential tools to oversee and optimize your organization's software investments, helping you stay ahead in the digital landscape.

1. Application Discovery

Application discovery is the process of identifying and cataloging all SaaS applications in use within an organization. This feature is crucial as it helps businesses understand their software landscape, providing insights into how different tools are utilized and their associated costs. By having a comprehensive overview of all SaaS applications, organizations can optimize their software stack, eliminate redundancies, and better manage their overall SaaS spending.

2. Application Usage Insights

Understanding how employees use SaaS applications is essential for optimizing software investments. Usage insights provide valuable information on application engagement, helping organizations identify underutilized tools or uncover areas where additional training is needed. By leveraging this data, businesses can drive employee app adoption and engagement, ensuring maximum return on their software investments.

3. User Management

User management is vital for maintaining control over access and permissions across all SaaS applications in an organization. Streamlining user management not only simplifies administrative tasks but also enhances security by ensuring that employees have the appropriate access levels to various software tools. Efficient employee onboarding and offboarding processes are crucial in this regard, as they help minimize the risk of unauthorized access and maintain compliance with data protection regulations.

4. Cost Optimization

Application cost optimization involves identifying opportunities for cost savings and reducing SaaS spend by analyzing your organization's software portfolio. This can involve renegotiating contracts with popular vendors like Salesforce, consolidating licenses, or eliminating underutilized applications. By optimizing costs, businesses can allocate resources more efficiently and maximize the value derived from their software investments.

5. License Renewals and Contract Management

Efficient license renewals and contract management are essential for managing SaaS applications in an organization. Streamlining these processes can help businesses avoid unnecessary costs and reduce the risk of non-compliance. Having a centralized view of all SaaS contracts enables organizations to monitor renewal dates and contract terms, making it easier to negotiate better deals and optimize software investments. You should also ensure that your SaaS management platform has benchmarking capabilities, to automatically determine if you're overspending.

6. Vendor Management

Maintaining good relationships with SaaS vendors is crucial for ensuring ongoing support, receiving timely updates, and negotiating favorable contract terms. Vendor management features in SaaS management platforms can help organizations streamline communication with vendors, track performance metrics, and manage vendor bidding and negotiations effectively.

7. Ensure Compliance

Managing regulatory and industry compliance requirements is a critical aspect of SaaS application management. Organizations must ensure that their software solutions adhere to data protection regulations, industry standards, and internal policies to avoid penalties and maintain customer trust.

8. SaaS Stack Security

Protecting your organization's data and mitigating security risks are paramount when managing a SaaS stack. Ensuring that all software solutions are secure and compliant with industry standards and regulations is critical to avoid data breaches and maintain customer trust.

9. Real-time Insights and Reports

Having access to real-time data is crucial for making informed decisions about your organization's SaaS stack. Real-time insights and reports help businesses identify trends, monitor software usage, and optimize their software investments. By leveraging this data, organizations can make quick adjustments to their SaaS management strategies, improving efficiency and overall performance.

10. Cross-Application Integration and Ease of Use

Seamless integration between SaaS applications is essential for streamlining workflows and enhancing productivity. By providing a unified user experience, organizations can simplify the process of managing multiple software solutions and ensure that employees can easily access and use the necessary tools.

Getting started with SaaS management

We have explored the top 10 features to look for in a SaaS management platform, including application discovery, usage insights, user management, cost optimization, contract management, vendor management, compliance assurance, security, real-time reporting, and seamless integration. If you are looking to optimize your SaaS spend, explore Hudled today and discover how it can empower your organization.

Written By

Alex Millar, CPA

CEO & Cofounder of Hudled. A platform for finance teams in growing companies to track and optimise their software stack

Subscribe to our blog

Receive the latest intel on the best-practice in SaaS management to keep your software stack under control

* indicates required

Subscribe to our blog

Receive the latest intel on the best-practice in SaaS management to keep your software stack under control
Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.

Subscribe to our blog

Receive the latest intel on the best-practice in SaaS management to keep your software stack under control

* indicates required