Productivity SaaS for education is changing: a wake-up call for schools
By: Mr. Rex Huang, Director of Enterprise
Application Group at Synology
For
schools that have relied on productivity SaaS solutions for years, it’s a
pivotal moment to reassess long-term needs. With providers like Google ending
free unlimited storage in 2022 and Microsoft’s recent updates to their
education offerings, institutions face significant challenges, including
increased costs and reduced functionality. These developments underscore the
importance of adopting systems that provide stability, scalability, and
control.
After January 2025, Microsoft rolled out significant changes to
its Microsoft 365 Education plans, including retiring the Office 365 A1 Plus
plan, reducing storage pools to 100TB per tenant, and restricting some licenses
to web-only applications without their counterpart desktop versions, including
Word, Excel, or PowerPoint.
These
adjustments may push schools toward higher-cost paid plans or force them to
reallocate resources to maintain functionality, prompting many to reevaluate
their reliance on SaaS solutions. Beyond financial implications, there are also
rising concerns over data privacy and compliance. Educational institutions
manage high loads of sensitive information such as student records, financial
data, and research. This makes them prime targets of cyberattacks, which target
nearly 80% of institutions annually (Netwrix,
2024). Furthermore, compliance with regulations such as FERPA and
GDPR requires secure, private, and auditable data management practices, which
some SaaS solutions may struggle to meet.
Shifting
to an on-premise productivity solution offers educational institutions
increased control over their data, cost predictability, and storage scalability.
Unlike SaaS offerings, prone to subscription price hikes and unpredictable
removals to their service features, on-premise solutions can provide a stable
framework more suited for long-term needs. Locally stored data also ensures
privacy, helping schools meet compliance requirements while protecting
sensitive information.
Some
on-premise productivity solutions like Synology Office Suite enhance
collaboration and communication with tools for secure file storage, granular
sharing permissions, real-time document editing and instant messaging,
supporting both group projects for students and file management among faculty.
For IT
administrators, these solutions simplify management with centralized
dashboards, system health monitoring, and auditing tools for compliance.
Advanced access controls also enable efficient delegation of tasks across IT
teams, ensuring smoother workflows and stronger oversight of digital
infrastructure.
While
changes from major SaaS providers might disrupt operations in the short term,
they also provide an opportunity for educational institutions to reassess the
suitability of their current systems. On-premise productivity solutions provide
a sustainable pathway to address cost concerns, enhance security, and build a
resilient digital foundation for evolving educational needs of educators and
students alike.
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