“The computer industry is the only industry that is more Fashion-driven than women’s fashion.” – Larry Ellison, Oracle (2008)
I want you to consider the following facts when you read today’s post:
- The average age of Chief Procurement Officers today is 46 years old.
- The average age of a procurement professional is mid-forties (45 years old).
- The average age of Chief Information Officers today is 53 years old.
- The median age of employees in prominent technology companies is between 27 and 39 years old.
Ellison 2008
When Larry Ellison commented about technology as a fashion, it was in his address to financial analysts on September 25th, 2008, in which he asked, “What The Hell Is Cloud Computing?” A follow-up Forbes article reported that Ellison said much of the talk surrounding the emergence of the cloud was gibberish.” In short, according to Ellison, we were already in the cloud in 2008. What does the current talk about moving to the cloud really mean – we are already there.
When Ellison remarked about the cloud in 2008, today’s CPOs were 29, procurement professionals were 28, CIOs were 37, and tech workers’ average age was between 10 and 22.
Question: How many of you remember when Ellison commented that we have technically always been in the cloud? What was the end result of Ellison’s comments? How did it impact your organization’s procurement strategy?
Nadella 2025
Here is the closing to my January 16th, 2025 Procurement Insights post titled “Why did Satya Nadella say that SaaS is dead, and what does it mean for ERP platforms?“
Conclusion
Nadella’s “SaaS is dead” declaration symbolizes the evolution of software delivery toward more intelligent, flexible, and adaptive systems. For ERP platforms, this marks a shift from static, monolithic software to dynamic, AI-powered ecosystems that integrate seamlessly with diverse business needs. The future of ERP lies in leveraging these trends to deliver greater value, efficiency, and adaptability.
MY FINAL THOUGHTS
Everything outlined above seems reasonable, except for one problem, the following opening contextual statements are incorrect:
- AI-Driven Innovation: Nadella’s statement reflects the growing role of AI in shaping software delivery and consumption. Traditional SaaS, which often focuses on static, predefined workflows, is being supplemented by AI models that adapt and learn dynamically.
- Cloud-Native and Edge Computing: Modern applications are moving beyond centralized SaaS delivery to cloud-native and edge architectures, enabling real-time processing closer to users.
- Composable and Modular Systems: SaaS is evolving toward modular, composable architectures where businesses can integrate services rather than rely on monolithic applications.
The AI technology that achieves the above has been around and successfully developed and implemented for almost 30 years. The following is an excerpt from a post I wrote many years ago, and about which I will talk in greater detail in an upcoming post:
In my fall 2004 analyses of a study on the use of web-based applications, I made the following observation:
It is my position that a true centralization of procurement objectives requires a decentralized architecture based on the real-world operating attributes of all transactional stakeholders starting at the local or regional level. In other words, your organization gains control of its spend environment by relinquishing centralized functional control in favor of operational efficiencies originating on the front lines. This is the cornerstone of agent-based modeling.
Is SaaS Really Dead in 2025?
I will discuss a recent demo session with Ivalua, a SaaS ProcureTech solution provider, in an upcoming post.
“Yes, Ivalua is a SaaS company, but it offers more configurability and customization than traditional SaaS procurement platforms like Coupa or SAP Ariba.”
Based on the above, I saw nothing like a “life-support” system. I saw an innovative thinking and doing company grounded in 25 years of stable, hard-earned experience and expertise that leverages technology in any era—past, present, and future- to deliver optimal results.
So, is SaaS really dead, or is it just another “technology fashion statement?”
For me, Nadella’s statement is more about “relabeling a fashion” that already exists and has done so for many decades. So, no, SaaS is not dead!
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Procurement Insights
Is Nadella’s claim that SaaS is dead more about fashion than technology?
Posted on February 19, 2025
0
“The computer industry is the only industry that is more Fashion-driven than women’s fashion.” – Larry Ellison, Oracle (2008)
I want you to consider the following facts when you read today’s post:
Ellison 2008
When Larry Ellison commented about technology as a fashion, it was in his address to financial analysts on September 25th, 2008, in which he asked, “What The Hell Is Cloud Computing?” A follow-up Forbes article reported that Ellison said much of the talk surrounding the emergence of the cloud was gibberish.” In short, according to Ellison, we were already in the cloud in 2008. What does the current talk about moving to the cloud really mean – we are already there.
When Ellison remarked about the cloud in 2008, today’s CPOs were 29, procurement professionals were 28, CIOs were 37, and tech workers’ average age was between 10 and 22.
Question: How many of you remember when Ellison commented that we have technically always been in the cloud? What was the end result of Ellison’s comments? How did it impact your organization’s procurement strategy?
Nadella 2025
Here is the closing to my January 16th, 2025 Procurement Insights post titled “Why did Satya Nadella say that SaaS is dead, and what does it mean for ERP platforms?“
Conclusion
Nadella’s “SaaS is dead” declaration symbolizes the evolution of software delivery toward more intelligent, flexible, and adaptive systems. For ERP platforms, this marks a shift from static, monolithic software to dynamic, AI-powered ecosystems that integrate seamlessly with diverse business needs. The future of ERP lies in leveraging these trends to deliver greater value, efficiency, and adaptability.
MY FINAL THOUGHTS
Everything outlined above seems reasonable, except for one problem, the following opening contextual statements are incorrect:
The AI technology that achieves the above has been around and successfully developed and implemented for almost 30 years. The following is an excerpt from a post I wrote many years ago, and about which I will talk in greater detail in an upcoming post:
In my fall 2004 analyses of a study on the use of web-based applications, I made the following observation:
It is my position that a true centralization of procurement objectives requires a decentralized architecture based on the real-world operating attributes of all transactional stakeholders starting at the local or regional level. In other words, your organization gains control of its spend environment by relinquishing centralized functional control in favor of operational efficiencies originating on the front lines. This is the cornerstone of agent-based modeling.
Is SaaS Really Dead in 2025?
I will discuss a recent demo session with Ivalua, a SaaS ProcureTech solution provider, in an upcoming post.
“Yes, Ivalua is a SaaS company, but it offers more configurability and customization than traditional SaaS procurement platforms like Coupa or SAP Ariba.”
Based on the above, I saw nothing like a “life-support” system. I saw an innovative thinking and doing company grounded in 25 years of stable, hard-earned experience and expertise that leverages technology in any era—past, present, and future- to deliver optimal results.
So, is SaaS really dead, or is it just another “technology fashion statement?”
For me, Nadella’s statement is more about “relabeling a fashion” that already exists and has done so for many decades. So, no, SaaS is not dead!
30
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