10 SaaS Companies to Watch
By Beth Schultz, Network World
4. Company Name: Exoprise Systems
Headquarters: Waltham, Mass.
What it offers: CloudReady, a SaaS application suite for evaluating the readiness of on-premises systems, orchestrating cloud migrations and providing real-time performance monitoring for cloud-based applications.
Why it’s worth watching: Exoprise is among a number of SaaS providers helping companies make sense of all the stuff they have out in the cloud. The idea is to give IT professionals a way to “seize the benefits of the cloud quickly and confidently,” as Exoprise founder and CEO Jason Lieblich put it at the company’s March launch. ThinkStrategies’ Kaplan says he likes what he sees of the company’s strategy so far: “It’s starting by letting you take an inventory of e-mail usage so you can determine which of a growing array of Web-based or cloud e-mail services might be the best fit for your company. But really it’s setting up to do the same thing for any migration to the cloud.”
How it works: In a five-step process, users first tap into the CloudReady service and download ExoShell, a secure Web service application that lets Exoprise analyze the enterprise infrastructure without need for complex database and Web servers. They then configure, adjust and schedule their assessments. At the appointed time, ExoShell scans the messaging environment, gathering information on cost, reliability and end-user usage that it then securely uploads to CloudReady for analysis. Finally, users can use the customizable analysis results to help determine the right cloud offering for their organizations, Exoprise says.
Where it resides: Rackspace hosted data center.
How much it costs: Per-mailbox pricing for CloudReady Insight, available now, with pricing bands between $10 and $2 per mailbox, depending on the size of the total assessment; free trial available. CloudReady Monitor, in beta, also is available for free trial. (The third piece of the suite, CloudReady Control, is slated for availability later this year.)
Who’s using it: A mix of commercial, government and education institutions have run assessments, ExoPrise says, but has no names to share at this time.
