The Application Service Provider

By Raul Bernardino

Introduction:

“In today’s computing domain, the time is relative. Even the software application that is just recently developed by developers and it is still based on the original architect then that software has the legacy.” Hall, P. A.V. & Fernandez-Ramil, J. (2007, p.133). In other end, there are several applications that are out dated .This software is designed within old technology architecture back in 10 to 20 years ago. This may create huge differences of human needs in comparing to the software legacy. The small changes in the legacy software may be brought new challenges for sets of human capacity and issues companies.

The evolutions of the small and medium businesses (SMBs) have forced the companies to invest more in the new technologies in order to stay competitive. Therefore, companies are willing to “develop and to maintain their own software applications or they are willing to hire from application services providers (ASPs) or third party,” (Linthicum, 2000). All business growing fast and continually change from time to time whereas trigger the new technology may be already outdated.

The ASPs are now doing a partnership with companies in order to develop the application strategies which are in line with the companies’ needs and solution model for the businesses. This is to allow the ASPs to stay competitive in the market such as to compete in the prices, in the qualities, and the services.

The ASPs are projected as an alternative solution for small and larger companies that have lower budget for information and technology infrastructure. The ASP provides single users to have remote access for their enterprises. For instance Microsoft is offering back office products such as Exchange, SQL, and Windows servers for the leasing purposes. The users will be paying according to the uses.

Today cloud computing is also given a certain rooms for ASP to develop and strategize their applications products further more. The ASP has to develop right solution for small, medium, and individual businesses player in the global market. The institutions, the companies, and the organizations that have a time and budget constrain, they can rely on the outsourcing or cloud computing services. The companies can just starting their businesses without have to think the solution in information and technology infrastructure to bring their products and services in to the markets.

The ASP latest products are called enterprise resource planning (ERP).  The ERP is first time employed by Gartner group in 1990. Initially, the ERP system is focused on the back-office automation functions. As the time goes, the ERP II is developed for the web application system which is facilitating more interaction between clients and producers.

The ERP components as follows:

a)     Database transactions

b)    Portal Managements

c)     Customize reports

d)    Business Intelligence

e)     Web services

f)      Work-flow management

g)     Document management

h)    People-soft

i)       Search

j)       Email/messaging/wiki’s

In conclusion: The application service provider now becomes an integrated part of the businesses, especially for those who has time and budge constrain to develop in house software application and information and technology infrastructure. The enterprise resource planning system products have given the customers an alternative of the choices. The ERP system can be run in the different of the hardware technologies and also in different of the networks and it configurations

References:

Desai,B. et all (2002), Market Entry Strategy of Application Service Providers:

Identifying Strategic Differentiation, [Online].  Available from: 

http://www.mendeley.com/research/market-entry-strategies-application-service-providers-identifying-strategic-differentiation-1/#page-1 (Accessed: 28 October 2011).

Application Service Provider (ASP), [Online].  Available from: 

http://searchsoa.techtarget.com/definition/application-service-provider  (Accessed: 28 October 2011).

Enterprise Resource Planning, [Online].  Available from:  

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enterprise_resource_planning (Accessed: 28 October 2011).

Hall, P. A.V. & Fernandez-Ramil, J. (2007) Managing the Software Enterprise:

Software Engineering and Information Systems in Context. London: Thomson Learning.