The SaaS - PM Interplay - Part 1

The reciprocal relationship between Software-as-a-Service and Project / Program Management

Think of these questions

• Are there any specific challenges for a PM managing SaaS projects?
• Do SaaS PMs require special skills?

and these too...

• How will SaaS Apps / Cloud computing help PMs manage their projects better?
• How will current PM tools be migrated to SaaS compatible tools to help the Project environment?

These are a few questions which form the foundation of the relationship between SaaS and PM and will be critically analysed in this multi-part blog.


The interplay between SaaS and Project Management is an important consideration which will possibly decide on how the market develops and accepts this new concept called SaaS. SaaS is just not a new distribution methodology, as many definitions indicate, but will usher in a whole new change in almost every sphere of computing - be it ideation, development, testing, OR marketing, sales, support and integration.

A PM (project/program manager) has a special role to play in this new market where almost all the inputs required have to be provided by the PM community. From the service-offering training to the marketing teams, to enabling the reseller/vendor/aggregator (aka the partners) to provide the appropriate value-add to the offering and the support these partners provide to the end user.

From participating in various social groups for developing and enhancing the much needed standards for this new technology, to understanding the need and developing the technology further for simplifying the usage of various cloud-services development platforms especially for usage by non-technologists (non- IT community).

From allaying the fears of the adopting community by resolving the security, privacy, lock-in like issues, to giving the "rejectors" a compelling enough reason to accept this essential new step to the next order and in-turn pave the way for more innovation, especially, in the technology confluence space (The Appliance-IT-Internet integration). This will allow Web3.0 (the semantic web) a chance enough to serve the coming generations.

All these, apart from the usual typical PM/PgM capabilities viz.; managing the new technology implementation, risk management, reach to market, etc., will form the special list of PM skills the new market is looking forward too.

Why all these expectations only from a PM, when there are other specialists like product managers, architects, business planners, and the whole battery of other operators?

- because only a PM is an Executor in this group !(this apart from other reasons, that is). It is the responsibility of an executor to help make a new paradigm socially acceptable and politically successful.

A fantastic concept can miserably flop despite of all planning unless a series of successes makes the adopters wake up to the fact that it has arrived and has delivered its goods!


more in my next post...

Please do give your feedback, suggestions, to improve this discussion and the path it takes in the up-coming posts.