There is a lot of buzz these days about the benefits of cloud computing, and while you may already be using the cloud for things like back-ups within your business, you may also still be reliant on old client-server systems for a lot of your more important business tasks.

A good example of this is HR software. There are all kinds of HR software suites on the market that help organise the HR processes and data you need. However, the ones that offer the most advantages are those that operate online as ‘software as a service’ or ‘SaaS‘ products. These are systems you subscribe to and log into your own area on, like xcdhr.com, rather than those you install on your HR teams’ machines.

Here are just three of the reasons why:

Keeping Data Safe, Secure and Compliant with Minimal Effort from You

Most businesses need fairly detailed databases to keep track of HR records, from payroll and personal data to annual leave days and appraisal records. This data is absolutely vital to the business both from an operational and compliance perspective, so keeping it safe on the cloud where it is also protected by extra layers of security from your SaaS provider is a far better option than storing it on local servers and tapping into it using client-server systems.

If there is a disaster in your building that takes out your local machines, all data on your HR system will be stored in real time on the cloud, so you will have lost none of it – even less than if you do daily off-site or cloud back-ups. You also won’t have to worry about your HR team being able to get back to work on new machines – all they need is their web logon so they can access the system from any device without installing anything.

Easier for Your IT Team

Another benefit of SaaS for specialist business software like HR systems is that it makes life easier for your IT people. They don’t have to worry about installing a product on the machines for new starters, or setting up profiles for everybody who needs them. They don’t have to roll out patches or upgrades when the system needs them, as this will all be done at the suppliers’ end. They don’t even need to worry about supporting users, as SaaS products will have their own tech support.

Easier Licensing

The SaaS option is also easier from a financial perspective. Rather than having to manage software licenses, you can simply add new subscriptions or cancel existing ones when your team changes size. If you are bringing in a temp for a month to handle a busy period, you can set them up with a monthly subscription to the SaaS tool rather than needing to invest in a new permanent license as you might for a traditional software installation.

There are plenty of reasons why SaaS is the way forward for business systems, but these are three of the best!