CA has burst onto the software-as-a-service (SaaS) scene with the announcement of three on-demand products.

At its user event in Las Vegas this week, CA unveiled on-demand versions of its Clarity Project and Portfolio Manager (PPM); Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) Manager and Instant Recovery tools, all available immediately.

“We are committed to being a leader in on-demand business management, which is why we have formed a SaaS business unit,” CA chief executive John Swainson told delegates.

Jules Ehrlich, general manager at CA’s On Demand division, said the key benefits of SaaS are simple and quick deployment, a compelling financial model, and discrete upgrades.

“The pay-as-you-go model is ideal in the current climate, where firms do not have the capital expenditure. You buy nothing with SaaS, there are no procurement or purchase orders. It is just there and operating within a day,” he said.

Clarity PPM On Demand has been available to customers since April this year, but had not been formally announced until the show this week. Early feedback has been
positive, said Ehrlich.

“We are winning some deals only because of SaaS,” he said.

The Chicago Department of Health is an early adopter of Clarity PPM On Demand. Chief finance officer Carlo Govia said governments are typically slow adopters of technology and do not like financing large-scale IT projects.

“SaaS works well as we can move the cost to an expense so it is easier to get it signed off,” he said. “Clarity helps us with our grant management process. We will be able to forecast how we use our resources more effectively so we can deliver more services in public health.”

Pricing for Clarity PPM On Demand is from $18 (£12) per user, depending on the number of users and length of contract. “This could go up to $100 per user; the longer you sign up, the better deal you get,” Ehrlich said. “For GRC Manager On Demand it’s $500 per user. With Clarity, firms can have anywhere between 50 and 50,000 users."