Government Technology

When the IT function managed a centralised mainframe type facility, the management of software licenses were reasonable straight forward. The number of products and publishers were a lot less than they are today. The licensing models were more standard and quite often the software was self governing. The management of software licenses could be managed offline as there were typically less than a hundred elements to manage. The cost associated with these licenses was usually held centrally, so the full cost was known to the business and managed. The cost of software licenses as line items on a budget were significant and as such the responsibility to manage compliance was held by a senior manager. It is also useful to remember that the purchase of any software was a major event with the type of governance you would expect with a large expenditure. The same is true for the physical computer assets. They were typically mainframes and dumb terminals.  

That was the 1980s and before. Since then the whole vista of IT has changed. The centralised IT model was replaced by a distributed model and with the introduction of mid-range, Windows hardware and software, the control and responsibility shifted into smaller LOBs or departmental IT functions.  The paradigm shift created a huge amount of ‘hidden’ cost in the business which lives on today in non-IT budgets. In isolation, the values looked acceptable, but joined together they probably are not. The view from businesses was that this was a price worth paying for the flexibility that the distributed model gave them, releasing the shackles of the central IT function in their ivory tower.

Why do organisations struggle with this complex challenge?
The explosion of new software products and publishers, coupled with the growth of new businesses that can afford to have their own IT function has created a degree of unmanageability through small isolated transactions accumulating into a complex business issue. The same is true for hardware assets. The replacement of the dumb terminal with the highly functional PC has brought previously un-experienced challenges in the management of these assets, both hardware and software.  

The main challenge is how you approach the management and responsibilities associated with a large volume of software, suppliers, hardware assets and the complex ever changing licensing models that are associated with some publishers.

Without the right tools to help you it is almost impossible to manage.

Why is AssetStudio™ and SAM the right answer?
Just as the need for the ITIL arose in the early 1990s, to bring ‘best of breed’ frameworks and processes to help organisations manage their IT functions through frameworks and standardisation, the need for SAM was realised and introduced as part of ITIL in 2003. In its simplest terms, SAM is a business process that provides a framework to ensure your software license assets are managed safely. If implemented correctly, the benefits are significant. It will ensure you know what software you have installed and what software licences have been purchased. The variance between software installed and software licenses legally procured is the answer to many compliance questions. It also shows you how your assets are being utilised, enabling pro-active action to ensure assets are delivering maximum value.  This sounds like a very straight forward and even simple, unfortunately, SAM is very complex and the complexities of software licensing are understood by only a few.

Why should organisations take action?
While it may be obvious why you need to manage your hardware assets, it may not be as obvious why software licenses are just, if not more important. Organisations have an obligation to ensure that their business assets are secure, legal and compliant. Most software publishers who actually own the software have a zero-tolerance attitude to misuse of licenses procured. The consequences of not managing software licenses can be numerous including: 
a) Waste of organisations valuable resources both in terms of cash and assets utilisation. This can include unexpected costs which may or may not be accommodated with budgets. 
b) Non-compliance brings with it serious legal responsibility to the Directors of the organisation.
c) Negative images which damages reputation, brand all of which will affect your customer’s perception of you.

Why it makes sense to address the problem? 
By addressing the challenges, organisations can validate their understanding and ensure that they are in control and driving maximum benefits from software licenses assets.  The key word here is ‘validate’ as many organisations do not realise that they are not in control. The peace of mind this gives with regards to ensuring your organisations resources are used correctly and protection of the brand.

Certero provides AssetStudio™, a new comprehensive IT Asset Management product that really does help organisations addresses the challenges above.