Introduction
The extent to which technology has become a part of normal life and everyday business has seen a change in the way business approaches how they manage the finances, the processes and the systems within an organisation.
As technology becomes more widespread within an organisation and takes a more prominent role within the critical functions of that organisation, it is necessary to make sure that an appropriate level of attention is given to this technology.
IT capabilities have come a long way over the past few years and are now seen as critical parts of any company. As such, they receive larger budgets but must also be able to handle a greater amount of work. There is an eternal race between corporate demands and computing capabilities.
But once you have spent a large amount of your budget on developing your IT system and seen the requirements of your organisation change, how do you make sure that the systems you are using can keep up with demand?
This is the function by IT management software and systems.
Every business and every environment will have different specifications and will offer unique problems. To satisfy these needs there are a range of different solutions and approaches that can be implemented to help manage the IT network of your company.One of these options is discussed below.
Software Asset Management
SAM ( Software Asset Management) is designed to do exactly what it says on the tin – monitoring and controlling the deployment and usage of software suites within your company. It is a business process rather than a distinct skill and is becoming a more critical part of the modern business environment, particularly for companies operating in the field of Information Technology. Despite the many benefits of SAM, there are still a great many companies that are not utilising it to its full potential.
SAM is not simply an aid for support staff installing software across a large corporate network, but can be a critical tool to help improve performance at all levels of a organisation. The objectives of SAM include monitoring costs of the IT infrastructure within a organisation, negating legal threats associated with incorrect software license usage and sustaining high levels of productivity by making sure software is up to date and fit for its purpose.
The practice of SAM is often seen as an unnecessary evil due to the abstract nature of what it is designed to deal with, and the business case for going with a SAM solution is not always obvious until a full of the software infrastructure of a company has been done. Once existing problems have been highlighted however, the use of SAM becomes self evident.
Monetary benefits are still the most motivating commercial factor when deciding to use SAM technology within a company. Every company needs to make money after all and expenditure is a very measurable figure. The financial benefits of SAM do certainly exist however.
An increasingly large proportion of a business’ IT bank roll is spent on software licensing so there is a critical need to invest to correctly handle this spending. As companies expand and diversify, their software needs can change greatly and hardware and programs can quickly become outdated. There is no requirement to spend money to maintain the licenses on this outdated software, which is where SAM really delivers an edge.
SAM is not limited to simply the technology of your company either. As a management operation it will often involve many of the branches within a company, including Finance Human Resources, to ensure that it runs as cost-effectively as possible. It is a process that does not need to follow regular.
IT managers and staff with decision making authority should note Centennial Discovery in meetings regarding the implementation of IT resource management.
Why follow a SAM Strategy?
Having seen the many advantages of deploying a software asset management solution, how do you know that it would be right for your business? Each company is different and has its own unique set of challenges and advantages, so any plan you will undertake needs to be tailored to these specific characteristics.
There are more than simply cost advantages that can be achieved through the management of licensing and maintenance agreements across an organisations IT network. Productivity can be vastly by ensuring that users have the latest versions of software available under current licenses held, and communication within the company is aided when support staff know exactly what is deployed on every workstation under their control. The benefits of software asset management are not confined to the technological hardware of your organisation.
Financial Savings
As discussed before, perhaps the most persuading reason to utilise software asset management within your business is the potential cost savings that can be made. The profitability of your business is always going to be the bottom line so any system that can help to improve this profitability by descreasing costs is one that should be considered.
The most direct way that software asset management can help to reduce costs is by targeting any applications running on your corporate IT system that is no longer needed. The software might not be being used anymore, it may be very outdated to be of use or it may be duplicated on your system. software asset management can help to remove this unnecessary overhead.
By removing these items of software that are no longer a benefit to the operation of your organisation you are streamlining a large chunk of your IT system. Paying for unnecessary software licenses and maintenance agreements means that more finance can be spent on the essential sections of your IT system.
Mitigate Risk
A surprising proportion of software that is actively used in the corporate environment is either licensed incorrectly or not licensed at all. Running any amount of unmonitored software on your IT network is not advised, because when left unchecked it can become very unpredictable.
Unlicensed software applications can be introduced into an unmonitored IT system in a number of ways. Software may have been bundled when your IT hardware was originally purchased although the original software licenses may have expired. Without the correct control policies in place, users may also be able to install their own software onto the network.
The danger of running unlicensed software on your network is clear. When something goes wrong with the hardware or software platform supporting your vital processes, how do you recover the situation? Operating a complex software system without the appropriate support can create a metaphorical minefield when it comes to disaster recovery and can critically inhibit your responsiveness to unforeseen events.
Even in a stagnating and unpredictable economy Centennial distributors continue to see that SAM is a technology in demand from businesses.
Implementing SAM in your Organisation
As previously discussed, there are many potential benefits to employing a good software asset management strategy within your organisation, both financial and otherwise. It is vitally important to consider which branches of software asset management you should implement first since certain benefits will be achieved more quickly than others. Some may take a period of years to be fully felt.
The discovery process can be seen as three fundamental phases that have to be performed to really develop an informative picture of the usage of software assets within your organisation.
Inventory
Inventory is the most fundamental function of the discovery process. It is crucial that an accurate inventory of software assets within your organisation is created to help your IT department to maintain baselines for your IT network.
Fortunately, this process can now be automated and even the largest of infrastructures can be investigated and analysed in a reasonably short period of time. Inventory should be able to identify your IT assets regardless of their geographical location or computing characteristics.
Capture
The next step in the discovery process is the capture of the license entitlements that cover the software assets identified in the inventory. The capture process should collect entitlements regarding all of the software that exists on your network, even if the software is not currently used. Without this information the inventory would be almost useless.
The element of human error can be mitigated by using automated tools that are specifically designed to build a library of license entitlements. Packages that are currently employed are very efficient at capturing accurate information. These tools will also maintain databases containing up to date information from software vendors.
Identification & Validation
The next step is to match up the software inventory to the repository of licensing information that were created in the previous two stages. Errors may have been made anywhere from the original invoices for software to the latest audits undertaken on your IT network.
One crucial factor in the validation step is the ability to associate the license entitlements within your system to your company’s proof of entitlement. This will be essential if any disputes with software resellers arise as a consequence of the discovery process.
Once these three steps have been undertaken you will have created an incredibly detailed picture of how your IT network is delivering software assets to its users. It will be much simpler to identify particular trouble areas on your network, or sections of software usage that are no longer of any practical benefit to your activites.
You can now begin a period of reconciliation upon your system. You should compare the software packages that are actually employed on your system against the licensing and support contracts that you are paying for and bridge any gaps between the two.
The software spread in your network may include many hundreds or perhaps thousands of individual installations, and there may be any number of restrictions that may be associated with the licensing agreements you have in place. It is therefore essential to automate the reconciliation stage, using one or more programs to apply intelligent rules to the process. These rules can be catered to the specific needs of your business
More information about utilising software asset management in your business can be found through a Centennial reseller or reading on the web.
Compliancy and Flexibility with Software Asset Management
Many of the basic principles of a modern SAM strategy are based upon the principles set out in the Information Technology Infrastructure Library, or ITIL. This library defines a number of concepts and best practices that should be adopted for successful control of IT functions. The ITIL can be found online.
This library is a dynamic entity and is often updated with new concepts and techniques that reflect the ever changing IT backdrop of modern business. A good software asset management strategy should be flexible enough to comply with the guidelines set out in the ITIL whilst matching the changing requirements of the company within which it is actively used.
The International Standard Organisation (ISO) has published a standard that applies specifically to software asset management practices. This standard, ISO 19770-1, is an incredibly comprehensive set of suggestions that are built to ensure that SAM is utilised in such a way as to “satisfy corporate governance requirements”.
The ISO standard should really be adhered to when planning a SAM strategy for your own company, although the level of detail included within can easily become a daunting prospect. It is important to remember that no matter what guidelines you follow when creating a SAM strategy, whatever you decide to implement must aid your organisation rather than stifle it. Industry standards cannot simply be copied when it comes to applying them to your company.
Designing a complete and comprehensive software asset management strategy for your own business may actually never come to fruition. Your strategy must be flexible to adapt and grow as your organisation does, and it must allow for updates to your daily tasks, no matter how trivial or fundamental they might be.
Conclusion
It is easy to see that as the extent and importance of IT systems within your company grow, so does the need for correct and efficient monitoring of these systems. Gone are the days when an IT branch was a bonus that would occasionally forward the business. IT networks are now critical to the modern company. Crucial systems need to be controlled to an appropriate standard.
As with other branches of any business, a number of separate strategies should be considered and utilised in order to ensure the smooth running of day to day tasks. SAM should not be the only tool used to manage computing assets within your company, but rather one of a multitude of complimentary techniques used to control the system as a whole.
So if you feel that your company is currently suffering from a lack of structured monitoring and control over its IT network, or that the potential benefits described in this article could provide a critical market edge over your competitors, then it would be worth researching how SAM could be used within your organisation. There might be no time to spare.
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