I read an interesting article over at ZDNet Asia entitled “Software Asset Management a Growing Business Need.” The article states that “new deployment options and licensing models have complicated how companies manage software and stressed that extra investments and effort put into software asset management will be worth it in the long run.” The article makes a good case for the importance of a software asset management program.
I commented on the article which you can read on the site or below.
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Great article. Agree on all points. We see this all the time with the global clients that we work with. Managing software assets is tricky enough, but the growing complexity of new licensing models and deployment options is making matters that much worse.
As the article points out, companies should designate an owner and establish a formal software asset management program on a global basis (this is important, don't just solve the problem locally). People (ownership and clearly defined roles), processes (established to provide regular and proactive actions to manage software assets and to optimize license spend) and technology (to help manage and automate the business processes) all play a role.
Best in class companies are also moving beyond traditional software asset management to the next generation called Enterprise License Optimization. Whereas software asset management focused on counting what you have purchased and deployed, Enterprise License Optimization moves beyond that to actually optimize the software estate on a global basis. Such tools reconcile what you have with what you are actually using and what you're entitled to use per your license agreements to provide unique insights into situations where you may be over-spending or out of compliance (over-using).
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To learn more about getting started on or enhancing a software asset management and license optimization program, please view our webinar series, starting with How to get started on a SAM program.
