Revealing the Vicious Circle of Disengaged User Acceptance: A SaaS Provider's Perspective

User acceptance tests (UAT) are an integral part of many different software engineering methodologies. In this paper, we examine the influence of UATs on the relationship between users and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) applications, which are continuously delivered rather than rolled out during a one-off signoff process. Based on an exploratory qualitative field study at a multinational SaaS provider in Denmark, we show that UATs often address the wrong problem in that positive user acceptance may actually indicate a negative user experience. Hence, SaaS providers should be careful not to rest on what we term disengaged user acceptance. Instead, we outline an approach that purposefully queries users for ambivalent emotions that evoke constructive criticism, in order to facilitate a discourse that favors the continuous innovation of a SaaS system. We discuss theoretical and practical implications of our approach for the study of user engagement in testing SaaS applications

THE ROLE OF SAAS SERVICE QUALITY FOR CONTINUED SAAS USE: EMPIRICAL INSIGHTS FROM SAAS USING FIRMS

Despite its success in the software industry, Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) still struggles with fulfilling customer expectations regarding service quality. To contain customer churn rates to low levels, SaaS providers have to address their service quality weak spots and find out which factors are crucial for continued SaaS usage. Drawing on previous service quality literature, we develop a Zone-of-Tolerance (ZOT)-based SaaS-QUAL scale and validate it in a model of IS continuance based on two empirical surveys of SaaS using firms. By doing this, we examine the importance of SaaS service quality factors for shaping customer satisfaction and SaaS continuance intentions. Furthermore, we provide insights into what service factors effectively meet or miss SaaS customer expectations. As a practical contribution, we develop and apply a SaaS-QUAL scale that can be used as a diagnostic tool by SaaS providers and users alike. For researchers, we enrich existing research models on IS continuance by integrating a more fine-grained conceptualization of service quality confirmation that provides stronger explanatory power than in previous models

User research in product development in business to business software as a service

Customers are more empowered to make purchasing decisions than ever before, and customer experience has become a critical decision factor. Business to business (B2B) software as a service (SaaS) companies are changing their strategies and ways of working to become more customer-centric and stay competitive. To understand users, their needs, motivations and the problems that they are facing, companies do user research and involve users in product development. This thesis explores how B2B SaaS organizations utilize user research when developing products. It aims to answer some of the most fundamental questions: which user research methods companies use, how they involve internal stakeholders in user research and how they select the users and motivate them to take part in product development. A qualitative multiple case study approach was used in this thesis to answer the research questions. The literature review aims to provide a broad overview of the topic. Six B2B SaaS companies and two service design companies were interviewed to learn about user research in B2B SaaS field. The results of the thesis show that less customer-centric organizations do ad-hoc user research. More customer-centric companies incorporate user research into the development process. Both approaches are valuable for developing a product that fits customer needs but incorporated user involvement is necessary for achieving a better outcome. Customer-centric organizations include various stakeholders in user research to increase the transparency of findings and create empathy towards users. Furthermore, qualitative user research is essential for customer-centric product development. Regarding the users, while they are motivated to take part in product development, it was discovered that in the B2B field the process of approaching users can be challenging. This thesis compares how different B2B SaaS companies do user research. It reveals the best practices, challenges and opportunities of user involvement. This information can be useful for organizations that aim to become customer-centric. The findings contribute to the literature by providing insights into successful examples and the challenges of user involvement in product development in B2B SaaS organizations

ANALYZING THE SYSTEM FEATURES, USABILITY, AND PERFORMANCE OF A CONTAINERIZED APPLICATION ON CLOUD COMPUTING SYSTEMS

This study analyzed the system features, usability, and performance of three serverless cloud computing platforms: Google Cloud’s Cloud Run, Amazon Web Service’s App Runner, and Microsoft Azure’s Container Apps. The analysis was conducted on a containerized mobile application designed to track real-time bus locations for San Antonio public buses on specific routes and provide estimated arrival times for selected bus stops. The study evaluated various system-related features, including service configuration, pricing, and memory & CPU capacity, along with performance metrics such as container latency, Distance Matrix API response time, and CPU utilization for each service. Easy-to-use usability was also evaluated by assessing the quality of documentation, a learning curve for be- ginner users, and a scale-to-zero factor. The results of the analysis revealed that Google’s Cloud Run demonstrated better performance and usability when com- pared to AWS’s App Runner and Microsoft Azure’s Container Apps. Cloud Run exhibited lower latency and faster response time for distance matrix queries. These findings provide valuable insights for selecting an appropriate serverless cloud ser- vice for similar containerized web applications

Cloud-computing strategies for sustainable ICT utilization : a decision-making framework for non-expert Smart Building managers

Virtualization of processing power, storage, and networking applications via cloud-computing allows Smart Buildings to operate heavy demand computing resources off-premises. While this approach reduces in-house costs and energy use, recent case-studies have highlighted complexities in decision-making processes associated with implementing the concept of cloud-computing. This complexity is due to the rapid evolution of these technologies without standardization of approach by those organizations offering cloud-computing provision as a commercial concern. This study defines the term Smart Building as an ICT environment where a degree of system integration is accomplished. Non-expert managers are highlighted as key users of the outcomes from this project given the diverse nature of Smart Buildings’ operational objectives. This research evaluates different ICT management methods to effectively support decisions made by non-expert clients to deploy different models of cloud-computing services in their Smart Buildings ICT environments. The objective of this study is to reduce the need for costly 3rd party ICT consultancy providers, so non-experts can focus more on their Smart Buildings’ core competencies rather than the complex, expensive, and energy consuming processes of ICT management. The gap identified by this research represents vulnerability for non-expert managers to make effective decisions regarding cloud-computing cost estimation, deployment assessment, associated power consumption, and management flexibility in their Smart Buildings ICT environments. The project analyses cloud-computing decision-making concepts with reference to different Smart Building ICT attributes. In particular, it focuses on a structured programme of data collection which is achieved through semi-structured interviews, cost simulations and risk-analysis surveys. The main output is a theoretical management framework for non-expert decision-makers across variously-operated Smart Buildings. Furthermore, a decision-support tool is designed to enable non-expert managers to identify the extent of virtualization potential by evaluating different implementation options. This is presented to correlate with contract limitations, security challenges, system integration levels, sustainability, and long-term costs. These requirements are explored in contrast to cloud demand changes observed across specified periods. Dependencies were identified to greatly vary depending on numerous organizational aspects such as performance, size, and workload. The study argues that constructing long-term, sustainable, and cost-efficient strategies for any cloud deployment, depends on the thorough identification of required services off and on-premises. It points out that most of today’s heavy-burdened Smart Buildings are outsourcing these services to costly independent suppliers, which causes unnecessary management complexities, additional cost, and system incompatibility. The main conclusions argue that cloud-computing cost can differ depending on the Smart Building attributes and ICT requirements, and although in most cases cloud services are more convenient and cost effective at the early stages of the deployment and migration process, it can become costly in the future if not planned carefully using cost estimation service patterns. The results of the study can be exploited to enhance core competencies within Smart Buildings in order to maximize growth and attract new business opportunities

Critical factors in information system implementation success : A case study of how to increase the usage of a SaaS based HR system

While the importance of technology has increased in our daily lives, it has also increased with the number of different industries and their external and internal processes. There is a lot of positive evidence of modern technology solutions, for example, to help human resources management, and more companies end up digitizing and updating their HR tools. When procuring information system solutions, companies are increasingly choosing a system from companies that offer their products with agile and cost-effective solutions based on cloud services instead of systems using traditional local installation. The purpose of the study is to find out what are the critical success factors in the implementation of an information system or in the successful introduction of a system to a new employee in the case of a personnel system based on the SaaS model. A successful implementation project is viewed from the perspective of a system service provider and with continuous or increasing usage as the measure of success. Another motivation for the study is to find out what factors influence the end user’s desire to increase or begin to avoid using the system. The study consists of an integrative literature review, in which theory and previous research are used to find out what factors are involved in a successful information system implementation process, and an empirical interview section. The theory focuses on the system implementation process, usability, and user experience in SaaS-based information systems, as well as their challenges from an end-user perspective. Based on the literature review, the critical success factors in successful implementation are the information system as a ready-to-use procurement, the information system implementation process, the implementation from the organisation's point of view, and the implementation from the end-user’s perspective. Based on these factors specified in the literature review analysis, the idea of potential critical factors for successful information system implementation was translated into practice in focused end-user interviews in the study, and thus clarified how these were realised in the success of the case-client company implementation process. The study shows that although no direct previous research on the successful implementation of SaaS systems can be found, the theory of critical success factors in traditional system implementations can be applied from the actual implementation phase and its planning onwards. Companies that make acquisitions of ready-to-use systems easily forget that, despite their apparent ease of implementation, they are essentially ordinary systems, where the most critical step to success in implementation, is where end-users are informed and oriented about it. The results of the study also suggest that increasing communication with end-users is associated with successful deployment, as is receiving feedback from end-users on continuing to actively use it, as end-users want to both understand and influence the tools they use in their work.Samalla kun teknologian merkitys on lisääntynyt päivittäisessä elämässämme, se on lisääntynyt myös kasvavalla skaalalla eri toimialoja ja niiden ulkoisia ja sisäisiä prosesseja. Nykyteknologian ratkaisuista esimerkiksi henkilöstöhallinnon apuna löytyy runsaasti positiivista näyttöä, ja moni yritys päätyykin digitalisoimaan ja päivittämään juuri HR-työkalujaan. Tietojärjestelmäratkaisuja hankkiessaan yritykset valitsevat yhä useammin perinteisen lokaalin asennuksen sijaan järjestelmän yrityksiltä, jotka tarjoavat tuotteitaan pilvipalveluihin perustuvin ketterin ja kustannustehokkain ratkaisuin. Tutkielman tarkoituksena on selvittää, mitä ovat kriittiset menestystekijät tietojärjestelmän käyttöönotossa tai uudelle työntekijälle esittelyssä silloin, kun kyseessä on SaaS-malliin perustuva henkilöstöjärjestelmä. Onnistunutta käyttöönottoprojektia tarkastellaan järjestelmäpalvelun tarjoajan näkökulmasta ja siten, että onnistumisen mittarina pidetään tasaisena jatkuvaa tai lisääntyvää käyttöä. Tutkimuksen toisena motivaationa on selvittää, mitkä tekijät vaikuttavat loppukäyttäjän haluun lisätä tai alkaa välttää järjestelmän käyttöään. Tutkimus koostuu integroivasta kirjallisuuskatsauksesta, jossa teorian ja aiemman tutkimuksen avulla selvitetään millaisia vaikuttimia onnistuneeseen tietojärjestelmän käyttöönottoprosessiin sisältyy, sekä empiirisestä haastatteluosiosta. Teoria painottuu käyttöönottoprosessiin, käytettävyyteen ja käyttökokemukseen SaaS-pohjaisissa tietojärjestelmissä, sekä niiden haasteisiin loppukäyttäjän näkökulmasta. Kirjallisuustutkimuksen perusteella on määritelty kriittisiksi menestystekijöiksi käyttöönotossa näkökulmat, joiksi nousivat tietojärjestelmä käyttövalmiina hankintana, tietojärjestelmän käyttöönottoprosessi, käyttöönotto organisaation näkökulmasta, sekä käyttöönotto loppukäyttäjien näkökulmasta. Kirjallisuuskatsauksessa eriteltyjen tekijöiden pohjalta syntynyt malli potentiaalisista kriittisistä tekijöistä käyttöönoton onnistumiselle siirrettiin tutkimuksessa käytäntöön loppukäyttäjien haastatteluissa, ja näin selvittämällä miten nämä case-asiakasyrityksen käyttöönottoprosessin onnistumisessa toteutuivat. Tutkimustulokset osoittavat, että vaikka suoraa aiempaa tutkimusta SaaS-järjestelmien käyttöönotosta ei löydykään, voidaan perinteisten järjestelmäkäyttöönottojen onnistumisen kriittisille menestystekijöille tehtyä teoriaa soveltaa varsinaisesta käyttöönottovaiheesta ja sen suunnittelusta eteenpäin. Heti valmiita järjestelmähankintoja tekevät yritykset helposti unohtavat, että näennäisestä helppoudesta huolimatta kyseessä on kuitenkin pohjimmiltaan tavallinen järjestelmähankinta, jossa onnistumisen kannalta kriittisin vaihe on se, missä järjestelmän käyttöönotosta tiedotetaan ja orientoidaan loppukäyttäjiä. Tutkimuksen tuloksista voidaan päätellä myös, että kommunikaation lisääminen loppukäyttäjien suuntaan on sidoksissa onnistuneen käyttöönoton kanssa, ja loppukäyttäjiltä kerättävän palautteen vastaanottaminen sen aktiivisen käytön jatkamisen kanssa, koska loppukäyttäjät haluavat sekä ymmärtää käyttämiään työkaluja, että voida vaikuttaa niiden käyttöön työssään