Although managing IT assets might not seem like a priority in your business, IT asset management (ITAM) is invaluable for companies.
Put simply, it’s the best way to manage your assets effectively and improve your organization’s bottom line.
In order to function optimally, IT departments must prioritize compliance and minimize waste while managing the lifecycle and acquisition of software, mobile assets, and hardware.
ITAM enables effective lifecycle management of a business’ software, hardware, and mobile assets by balancing spending and usage and implementing a set of industry best practices.
Read on to discover four benefits of IT asset management and how you can put them into practice.
1. Controlling Your IT Environment
ITAM is the set of proven practices to manage your IT environment on a component and service level.
To implement these practices, start by mapping out the most critical areas of your business. Work with your IT department to find out what software is used on a day-to-day basis.
Some examples of the most used software IT assets are usually programs like Oracle, Adobe, SAP, and Microsoft. To remain compliant and save on costs, look at your business’ largest outlays first.
Then, do the same with your hardware. Necessary day-to-day hardware will usually be laptops and desktops. Look at if you have enough hardware assets to meet your business’ demand and ensure your stock is controlled – you could do this via periodic audits and network monitoring.
2. Deploying Software Assets Effectively
All your business’ corporate software needs to be installed from an authorized, central source – this source is called a Definitive Media Library (DML).
Using a DML ensures that the software has the appropriate license and that the correct version is installed. Using a DML also creates an audit trail of the deployment process when the software is installed for the end-user.
Using a DML for software installation is the best way to reduce the risk of human error and confusion.
3. Managing Your Hardware Assets Effectively
Although laptop and desktop hardware assets have already been mentioned, other hardware assets should also be managed with ITAM.
Other hardware assets include servers, voice hardware (phones and PBXs), printers and scanners, network hardware (switches, patch panels, routers, and hubs), keyboards, monitors, mice, and removable media.
To implement ITAM, assess the day-to-day, critical hardware assets and build up an inventory – this will enable you to replace them quickly. This inventory is called a Definitive Hardware Store (DHS).
4. Reduce Your Costs
It’s not uncommon for businesses to have discrepancies between their actual and reported IT assets. Implementing ITAM gives you a better picture of what assets you have, which makes planning for the future easier.
When you take stock of your most critical business services, you’ll gain a more accurate picture of your production environment – which will help you highlight underutilized assets and minimize waste.
Implementing ITAM is also the best way to arm yourself with information – which will come in handy when it’s time to negotiate with software vendors.