Choosing a cloud solution for automating a company's business communications by AHP (Analytical Hierarchy Process)

Abstract

The global pandemic situation has shown how important it is to have a tool for making informed decisions quickly. The need for distancing caused by the virus has put the business in front of a non-trivial task in most cases – the organization of remote work for employees in the shortest possible time. The choice of a comprehensive solution to ensure the continuity of business communications, taking into account various preferences expressed in the subjective assessment of various criteria, becomes relevant for small and medium-sized companies. At the same time, very few scientific studies are devoted to the problem of reasonable multi-criteria choice of complex cloud solutions for informatization of business communications, automation of remote work of employees of virtual offices. The aim of the study is to choose a software solution for organizing a virtual workspace and business communications for small and medium-sized companies. A brief overview of the software market that allows you to organize a virtual desktop and basic business communications for the company's employees is carried out. The article defines the requirements for the main functional capabilities that are necessary for the organization of remote work of the company's employees and selects alternatives to cloud solutions for their comparison. The main criteria for choosing a comprehensive cloud solution, the most important from the point of view of organizing the remote work of employees of small and medium-sized businesses, are considered. The method of Saati T. L. was used to rank alternatives by preference, taking into account the priority of the selection criteria. Within the framework of this scientific study, it has been determined that the most suitable integrated cloud solution for automating business communications and organizing virtual space in small and medium-sized companies, given the current market conditions, is the Bitrix 24 information system. the choice of the optimal solution was considered: Bitrix 24, Google Workspace, Microsoft Office 365, OnlyOffice. The method of analysis of hierarchies was used as a research method, since it allows for a certain amount of subjectivity in judgments. At the same time, the criteria for choosing from alternatives were such factors as: service for working with documents and virtual file storage; Email; instant messaging system, video calls, video conferencing; planning system (calendars); user-friendly interface; ease of administration, technical support; availability of a mobile version.