Glossary

If you are looking for the wordbook of the cloud, you are at the right place!

API

An Application Programming Interface (API) is a software intermediary that allows two applications to communicate. Cloud API is a type of API that enables the development of applications and services used for the provisioning of cloud software, and platforms. Cloud APIs allows administrators to integrate applications and other workloads into the cloud.

Automated provisioning

Automated (also reffered to as automatic) provisioning means having the ability to deploy information technology or services using predefined automated procedures without requiring human intervention.

Automatic Order Fulfillment

The fulfillment process of an order which requires no manual intervention due to the automation behind it.

Automatic Ordering

Automated order processing is technology and systems put in place to process orders faster by eliminating manual work. With automation, order processing can help reduce human error, improve operational efficiencies, and ultimately speed up the fulfillment and provisioning process

Automatic Provisioning

Refer to automated provisioning

B2B Marketplace

A B2B Marketplace is a digital platform that enables companies to connect with other organizations and conduct business all in one place. It brings together many B2B buyers and sellers on one website so that they can perform transactions.

Back-ordering

Back-ordering is to order for a service that cannot be filled at the current time due to a lack of availability. The service could still be in developmental stage.

Cloud Billing Platform

A cloud billing platform allows organizations to manage invoicing, payments, reconciliation, and other activities related to billing of cloud services. To be the most effective, a cloud billing platform should be able to accommodate multiple pricing models—including recurring, tiered, one-time, etc.—as well as offer the ability to quickly change pricing, customize invoices, automate reconciliation, and more.

Cloud Brokerage Platform

A cloud brokerage platform is a solution that serves as an intermediary between the vendors of cloud-based products—such as infrastructure and SaaS—and end users. To do this, a cloud brokerage platform aggregates cloud-based products, streamlines their deployment and integration, and can offer customization, such as bundles and pricing.

Cloud Commerce Platform

A cloud commerce platform enables vendors you to sell products, solutions, and services digitally – either through a typical online store or other digitally connected devices, such as mobile phones, wearables,etc. It enables users to incorporate new digital channels more quickly and easily while it facilitates dynamic adaptation to the digital transformation of their markets and customers

Cloud Cost Management

Cloud cost management (also known as cloud cost optimization) is the organizational planning that allows an enterprise to understand and manage the costs and needs associated with its cloud technology. In particular, this means finding cost-effective ways to maximize cloud usage and efficiency.

Cloud Distributor

A cloud-distributor buys cloud solutions directly from a vendor and sells them to either resellers or, sometimes, the end-user directly. These cloud based solutions serve as effective means of automating and streamlining day-to-day operations.

Cloud Marketplace Platform

The digital platform that enables IT Sellers to perform all actions related to purchasing or selling cloud services, as well as subscription management, provisioning, billing, etc.

Cloud Provisioning

The steps required to manage access to data and resources, and make them available to users and systems. Also, the process of setting up IT infrastructure/

Cloud Services

A cloud service is any resource that is provided, managed, and used via the cloud (Internet), with the most common cloud services being Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), as well as Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS), and Infrastructure-as-a- Service (IaaS).

Cloud Solution Provider Program (CSP)

Microsoft’s Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) Program is a reseller program that is broken up into Direct CSP Distributors and Indirect CSP Resellers. These CSP partners will sell and support Cloud-based licenses for Office 365, Microsoft 365, and Azure, all on behalf of Microsoft with a margin of profit available to both Distributors and Resellers.

CSP Automation Platform

A CSP solution that addresses key challenges faced by growing Software Vendors and partners. Interworks.cloud is a CSP automation and provisioning platform which provides tools for distributors, as well as support for multi-cloud.

CSP Billing

The process of billing for cloud-based software and infrastructure.

CSP Billing Platform

The platform that can be used by Microsoft CSPs to easily handle complex billing procedures and manage subscriptions, which includes subscription management.

GTM

Stands for Go-To-Market. A go-to-market (GTM) strategy is a plan that details how an organization can engage with customers to convince them to buy their product or service and to gain a competitive advantage.

IaaS

Infastracture as a Service is a cloud computing service where enterprises rent or lease servers for compute and storage in the cloud. Users can run any operating system or applications on the rented servers without the maintenance and operating costs of those servers.

Integration

Cloud integration is a system of tools and technologies that connects various applications, systems, repositories, and IT environments for the real-time exchange of data and processes.

ISP

Independent Service Provider means any business that has not entered an agreement with the original vendor but provides service for their own benefit or for the benefit of others, but not on behalf of or in the name of the original vendor.

ISV

An organization specializing in developing and selling software, designed for mass or niche markets. This is in contrast to in-house software, which is developed by the organization that will use it, or custom software, which is designed or adapted for a single, specific third party. Any company that develops their own solution and sells it to other companies could be referred as an ISV.

IT Helpdesk Solutions

IT helpdesk solutions are software tools that allow organizations to respond to and manage customer support issues. IT helpdesk solutions can be used to support a wide variety of IT devices and software, from laptops, mobile devices, tablets, and peripherals to online backup and data recovery, to connectivity and network troubleshooting, and more.

IT seller

A business entity selling and implementing software products

KPI Dashboard Software

A solution that enables companies to measure, monitor, and visualize the key performance indicators that drive their businesses. Dashboards can make it easier and faster for companies to share data across teams or departments and give everyone a central place to find the information they need.

Managed Services

Managed (IT) Services are when a company outsources certain IT functions to a third-party provider, referred to as a Managed Service Provider or MSP. The MSP assumes an ongoing responsibilities for example, 24-hour monitoring, managing and/or problem resolution for the IT systems within a business.

Microsoft CSP Billing Automation

The automated solution that enables Microsoft CSPs to effectively bill for their software services

MRR

Monthly recurring revenue (MRR) is a calculation of revenue generation by month. Many Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) companies view this as the most important metric because it conveys an up-to-date measurement of the company’s health from an income standpoint.

MSP

Managed Service Providers (MSP) deliver services, such as network, application, infrastructure and security, via ongoing and regular support and active administration on customers’ premises, in their MSP’s data center (hosting), or in a third-party data center remotely manages a customer’s IT infrastructure and/or end-user systems, typically on a proactive basis.

MSP Solutions

MSP solutions are the applications, hardware, and services sold by managed service providers. Often, MSPs will bundle solutions together to create unique offerings to differentiate their businesses and provide greater value to customers.

Multi-currency

Multi-currency system refers to the software that enables trading in multiple currencies, which facilitates buying and selling internationally. In today’s global marketplace, companies have a need to do business in foreign and multiple currencies.

Multi-language

The platform content and menu is available in more than one languages

Multi-tenancy

Multi-tenancy is a type of architecture where one single instance of software and its infrastructure supports multiple customers (tenants)

Multi-Tier

Multi-tier splits data access across more than one server. Having all the resources spread into different servers boosts deployment performance.

Non-automatically Provisioned Service

Non automatically provisioned services are those that are not deployed by using pre-deﬁned procedures that are carried out electronically and without requiring human intervention.

PaaS

Platform as a service (PaaS) is a complete development and deployment environment in the cloud, with resources that enable you to deliver everything from simple cloud-based apps to sophisticated, cloud-enabled enterprise applications. You purchase the resources you need from a cloud service provider on a pay-as-you-go basis and access them over a secure Internet connection.

Partner Management

Partner management encompasses all of the technology tools and business processes that an organization needs to manage its indirect sales through third parties. It is synonymous with or similar to reseller management. These processes include reseller sales enablement, such as training on different solutions, software provisioning, billing, as well as ongoing license management, customer onboarding, and customer support.

Partner Network

A partner network is the group of resellers that a SaaS vendor or other type of digital provider recruits to sell its services. A provider will usually offer resources such as marketing materials, training, certifications, and other incentives to its partner network to enable them to sell more effectively.

Platform Edition

Current available editions of interworks.cloud platform: Diamond, Platinum. Coming soon: Standard Edition

Product Bundles

Product Bundles allow you to group existing simple, variable, and subscription products — and sell them together.

Product Catalog

Product catalog is the list of software products available from a specific IT seller (e.g. from a distributor to their resellers)

Product SKU

Stands for Stock Keeping Unit. In the software world, it is often used to discuss the specific offerings a Vendor makes available for sale, each resulting in a specific set of entitlements that grant the user specific rights to use the application.

Productivity

All the services that come together to give users the best suite of services, tools, and applications to be productive, for example Office365.

Recurring Billing

Recurring billing is a periodic payment made on an ongoing basis for a product or service. Also known as subscription billing, recurring billing has emerged to be the preferred billing method for cloud-based software and services.

Remote IT Support

Remote IT support is a set of tools that allow customer support representatives to connect to a customers computer remotely from their consoles through the Internet and troubleshoot issues directly on the remote system. Remote IT support often results in faster resolution times and higher customer satisfaction rates. It can also lower costs by eliminating the need for large call centers or onsite support.

Reseller Management

Reseller management encompasses all of the technology tools and business processes that an organization needs to manage its indirect sales through third parties. These processes include sales enablement such as training on different solutions software provisioning, billing, as well as ongoing license management, customer onboarding, and customer support.

Reseller Platform

A reseller platform is a solution that enables businesses to streamline the management of their resellers.

SaaS

Software as a service: A way of delivering applications over the Internet—as a service, that allows users to access the service from any device with an internet connection and a web browser. In this web-based model, software vendors host and maintain the servers, databases, and the code that makes up an application.

Software Distribution Platform

A software distribution platform is a solution that enables software vendors and resellers to distribute SaaS to customers. It is synonymous with reseller platform.

Software Ecosystem

Refer to the set of businesses, stakeholders, and their interrelationships in a common software product or service market. Software ecosystems can be made up of developers, resellers, customers, software, services, and more.

Subscription Billing Platform

A subscription billing platform is a type of cloud billing solution that is deployed to manage recurring billing for software solutions. There are a wide range of subscription billing platforms that provide a variety of features.

Subscription Management Platform

A subscription management platform enables managing customers’ subscriptions and ensuring that their experience with a product or service is satisfactory. Allows handling of the full cycle of the subscription (signing up – cancellation)

Ticketing System

A ticketing system collects and manages all customer support interactions from different platforms, including phone, live chat, email, and social media. This management system enables IT support agents to route various types of tickets to the correct person, resource, or department to obtain the fastest resolution. A ticketing system allows IT support to be organized, focused, efficient, and effective.

User Management

User management is the method for creating, removing, managing and maintaining a system’s user store. Any solution designed to serve multiple users must have some type of a user management system, be it a proprietary tool built into the product or a tie into an existing system such as Active Directory/LDAP, or another identity provider.

VAR

(IT )Value-Added Reseller (VAR) is a business that adds features and/or services to hardware and then resells it to enterprises as an integrated solution that is delivered turnkey to the enterprise. An IT VAR usually bundles software with the supplied hardware.

Vendor Catalog

It is a repository of a particular vendor’s services that the reseller or end customer uses to prepare an order.

xSP

xSP – Any Service Provider – refers to any type of service that is provisioned, accessed and managed over the Internet. A broad term, xSP includes vendors that exclusively provide services via the Internet, regardless of physical location, backend infrastructure or other technological components.

Glossary

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