Partner Article

What is IT Asset Management?

Any business must look after its assets, such as its physical buildings and equipment, financial investments, intellectual property or, yes, IT.

IT impacts on just about everything businesses do these days – from day-to-day functions, accounts and performance analysis and beyond. Given its prominence and importance then it must be treated as an asset and protected, developed, replaced and generally managed, just as you would do your building.

So, IT asset management is all about recognising that your IT is important, and should be treated as an asset and actually managed properly. But what does that actually entail?

Security: Consider the ways you manage your physical assets and apply the logic behind that process to your digital and IT assets too. High among your thoughts should be security. Make sure your IT is protected by strong, regularly updated passwords, that you have robust security software and that the software you have is up-to-date with the latest patches and security fixes. Think offline too with your hardware. Mobile devices should have software fitted to ensure they can be remotely wiped while expensive equipment should be locked away and not be left as an easy target for thieves.

Waste: You want all of your assets to be performing efficiently and that’s no different with IT. Assess whether or not your hardware is wasting energy – there are devices that can help with this – and look to eliminate the cost and waste of poorly performing software, which can sit in the background, eat power and make your system sluggish.

Licensed: Good software doesn’t come cheaply so it’s worth checking that expensive packages are being used effectively. Call on a company such as 1E and get its experts to run a program that can let you look at what software you currently have and how and where it is being used. Having this vital information at your fingertips will allow you to take strategic decisions on licenses and software and potentially save money in the process.

Investment: New developments in IT mean that you’re never far away from needing to invest in your next asset – whether that be software or hardware. Part of the management process is not just about looking at what you’ve currently got but also considering the future and what you might need. Always be on the lookout for the latest products and services and assess whether or not they will be of use to you. Look at what your competitors do and be honest about the shelf life of all of your current products. Don’t wait until software or hardware becomes obsolete to replace it – plan ahead to ensure you have the budget available to replace and upgrade your IT assets.

Analysis: Data is your friend, especially when it comes to managing your IT assets. Information on performance should be kept and analysed regularly. Judgements on the need to upgrade or replace assets should be based on facts.

BYOD: With increasing numbers of people going along with the ‘Bring Your Own Device’ trend it’s important to consider that you may not have to simply manage the IT assets you physically own. BYOD can be an important and healthy part of a tech-savvy company’s makeup – but make sure you know and understand all of the devices being used for your business and are managing how they are used.

IT asset management boils down to analysing the performance of your software and hardware, ensuring that you are secure and efficient and that you can spot and take advantage of new opportunities.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Matt Rawlings .