Today’s slim-line IT management teams need to be aware of the benefits that will accrue from adopting a strategy of pro-active software asset optimization. Further, the concepts outlined here are as valid for cloud services and mobile apps, as for conventional on-premise packages. Step 1: Asset Inventory Executing a full hardware and software inventory collection … Continue reading Software Asset Optimization: Fast Track to Benefits
Software Asset Management Managing the licensing and maintenance of an organization’s software is a thankless and usually lonely task. Who would want to be sandwiched between the user community that wants instant access to any app it thinks it needs, software vendors out to maximize revenues, and the CFO’s focus on year-on-year cost reduction? With … Continue reading Applying BPM methods in Software Asset Governance
The Software Asset Optimization Challenge Application software licensing and maintenance costs are a significant component of an IT budget, but few organizations take an adequately structured and informed approach to minimizing the expense. In our experience this is because the challenge spans multiple departments, each of which has its own priorities. For a procurement department … Continue reading Who takes ownership of Software Asset Optimization?
Software Asset Optimization: a matter of balance IT Provisioning is a bit like running a restaurant. IT users come and go, often unpredictably, with varying ICT needs. Employing the skills and tools necessary to respond to this a la carte demand for IT resource is expensive. If everyone was simply given the same set of … Continue reading IT Asset Optimization, too much like hard work?
Change and License Management increase the RoI of IT Asset Management For a long time, the slowly maturing market for IT asset management focussed on the breadth and accuracy of the asset data collected. This was a significant challenge in itself, with lack of standardization in how assets were defined and represented; even today we … Continue reading IT Asset Management gets more pro-active
2012 kicked off with an encouraging 1000PC expansion of our Software Asset Management technology in a European heavy engineering customer. Beyond the value of the deal, and really of greater significance, is an illustration of the evolutionary approach many organizations take to Software Asset Management. Elements of Software Asset Management A fully evolved SAM function … Continue reading Software Asset Management: evolution v revolution
IT asset management: too broad a term? With each new inquiry that comes to us via Google (usually…), our first challenge is always to get the inquirer to tell us what they are really looking for. Some are happy to open up and give us the background to their search, and explain their business needs … Continue reading Selecting ITAM / SAM tools: not a simple task
By chance I read an article today in an engineering design journal (long story….) summarising changes to the licensing of Autodesk software. I’ve been to their Web site and there’s nothing highlighted that the casual visitor would notice, so I’m going to quote verbatim from what I read today in Professional Engineering. They quote from Stephen Hooper, … Continue reading Huge changes coming to Autodesk licensing
Software License Compliance – a risk not worth taking? In a recent press release on the Business Software Alliance’s Web site, the BSA’s UK-based Michala Wardell reminds anyone listening that not paying attention to compliance can results in penal costs that far outstrip the nominal cost of the software in question. The offending Scotland based organization … Continue reading License Compliance not going away as significant risk issue
IT Asset Management – foundation for action Vector’s quarterly strategy review was held in our Montreal office over the second half of last week and Saturday, and at a lodge hotel out in the country on Sunday until we had to head for the airport. As usual, we considered short term needs, medium term objectives, … Continue reading ITAM – basis for effective and pro-active control