Complexity metric for device integration within business SaaS

Device integration is a key element of any business system deployment model, with data being both consumed and updated via a myriad of devices, both manually and automatically. Previous work by the authors has highlighted how the complexity of a business and the IT systems required to support it are a key consideration in the take-up of the SaaS model as a feasible business solution, and can be measured using a metric to calculate a complexity index for business. In this paper we look at device integration within the previous created model and how this impacts on the business complexity of a SaaS business solution. Basically we extend our complexity metric to include such external device integration thus providing a more accurate complexity index of business processes. This is relevant to the authors' proposed framework for modelling complex business systems as SaaS.