Consolidate IT Asset Management
Enterprise-wide decisions require a centralized view into enterprise-wide assets.
- Without a centralized view into assets, including a single IT asset management (ITAM) tool, organizations can’t track assets and their movement across locations or where money is being spent to identify areas for cost savings.
- Audits are conducted globally, but if asset management is done locally there is no way to provide the data and information needed to achieve compliance and get through the audit successfully and without penalties.
- Multiple contracts and licenses in different locations lead to duplication of effort and wasted resources.
Our Advice
Critical Insight
- You can’t realize the full benefits of asset management through a decentralized model. Even with good asset management practices in place, without a centralized oversight into those processes, you will fail to realize the benefits of the effort put into managing equipment lifecycles.
- Consolidating asset management doesn’t simply mean moving your data into one ITAM tool. There must be a focus on standardizing and consolidating processes at the same time or the data in the centralized tool will be meaningless.
Impact and Result
- Moving to a single system of record and standardized processes will provide a clear view of hardware and software assets, contracts, and lifecycles across the organization to make more informed decisions.
- Improved visibility can inform software and hardware rationalization and uncover opportunities for redeployment, leading to cost savings and reduced total cost of ownership.
- A single ITAM tool or database ensures accurate and up-to-date inventory and improved capabilities for data integration.
Member Testimonials
After each Info-Tech experience, we ask our members to quantify the real-time savings, monetary impact, and project improvements our research helped them achieve. See our top member experiences for this blueprint and what our clients have to say.
Client
Experience
Impact
$ Saved
Days Saved
City Of Fort Collins
Guided Implementation
9/10
N/A
N/A
Enjoyed speaking with Scott and gaining some insight into IT asset consolidation. Just in the infancy of planning so no predictable value at this t... Read More
Workshop: Consolidate IT Asset Management
Workshops offer an easy way to accelerate your project. If you are unable to do the project yourself, and a Guided Implementation isn't enough, we offer low-cost delivery of our project workshops. We take you through every phase of your project and ensure that you have a roadmap in place to complete your project successfully.
Module 1: Gather Relevant Data
The Purpose
- Interview stakeholders to assess needs and requirements.
- Assess current ITAM practice and major assets in each location.
Key Benefits Achieved
- A comprehensive assessment of ITAM processes and policies as well as major software and hardware assets in each location.
- Identification of needs, requirements, questions, and concerns of key stakeholders in each location to incorporate into the strategy.
Activities
Outputs
Send ITAM Assessment Tool to each location to have them assess their ITAM process, policies, software, and hardware.
- ITAM Assessment Tool
Interview stakeholders in each location to assess needs and requirements.
- ITAM Stakeholder Interview Guide
Module 2: Initiate the Project
The Purpose
- Identify and engage key stakeholders.
- Develop a project charter to guide the initiative and ensure it will meet objectives.
Key Benefits Achieved
- Identification of key stakeholders across the organization with a plan to engage them at every step of the consolidation.
- Defined objectives, metrics, and project charter to guide and evaluate the consolidation.
Activities
Outputs
Identify key stakeholders and develop an engagement plan.
Assemble project team and assign roles and responsibilities.
Define drivers, objectives, anticipated benefits, objectives, and metrics for project.
Complete a project charter to guide the consolidation.
- ITAM Consolidation Project Charter
Review data collected from the Assessment Tool to ensure completeness and add to Scorecard Tool.
- ITAM Assessment Tool
- ITAM Assessment Scorecard Tool
Module 3: Assess Data and Requirements
The Purpose
- Assess needs and requirements for the ITAM program and tool.
- Compare the strength and weakness of ITAM processes and policies in each location.
- Evaluate major software and hardware assets and contracts in each location.
Key Benefits Achieved
- Identification of requirements in each location to ensure the consolidated ITAM program will meet needs and be adopted.
- Identification of best practices and areas of weakness in each location to inform target state.
Activities
Outputs
Review stakeholder interview results to evaluate needs in each location.
- ITAM Stakeholder Interview Guide
Build a requirements list for an ITAM tool.
Use the Scorecard Tool to compare ITAM processes, policies, software, and hardware across locations.
- ITAM Assessment Scorecard Tool
Identify best practices and areas of weakness.
Module 4: Design Consolidated ITAM Program
The Purpose
- Use information gathered through assessments to review existing ITAM processes and policies, extend or consolidate where applicable, or design new processes.
- Design the staffing of the ITAM office.
- Assess tool requirements to create an ITAM tool shortlist.
Key Benefits Achieved
- Identification of ITAM processes and policies to extend, consolidate, review, or define.
- An SOP and policy templates to document ITAM processes.
- ITAM job description templates and defined roles and responsibilities to staff the ITAM office.
- An ITAM tool shortlist based on requirements.
Activities
Outputs
Identify ITAM processes and policies to extend, review and revise, or create, and assign responsibility.
Define and document ITAM policies and procedures in SOP.
- ITAM SOP
- ITAM Policies
Develop ITAM staffing roles and responsibilities.
- ITAM Job Descriptions
Develop an ITAM tool shortlist and RFP.
- ITAM Vendor Shortlist Tool
- ITAM Consolidation RFP Template
Module 5: Plan the Transition and Communications
The Purpose
- Develop a consolidation plan with prioritized initiatives to reach the target state.
- Develop a communications plan to get stakeholders on board with the change.
Key Benefits Achieved
- Clearly defined and prioritized initiatives and timeline to achieve the consolidation.
- Detailed communications plan to communicate the change and gather feedback from all stakeholders.
Activities
Outputs
Build a plan to achieve the consolidation.
- ITAM Consolidation Plan
Identify initiatives needed to reach target state and prioritize them in a roadmap.
Decide whether to hire professional services to assist with the consolidation.
- RFP for Professional Services (if applicable)
Develop a communications plan.
- ITAM Consolidation Project Communications Plan
Develop a plan for project evaluation, next steps, and continual improvement.
About Info-Tech
Info-Tech Research Group is the world’s fastest-growing information technology research and advisory company, proudly serving over 30,000 IT professionals.
We produce unbiased and highly relevant research to help CIOs and IT leaders make strategic, timely, and well-informed decisions. We partner closely with IT teams to provide everything they need, from actionable tools to analyst guidance, ensuring they deliver measurable results for their organizations.
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Guided Implementation 1: Assess current ITAM programs and data
- Call 1: Identify key stakeholders to engage, then assemble project team to complete the consolidation.
- Call 2: Define drivers, objectives, and metrics for the project and develop a project charter to guide the consolidation.
- Call 3: Conduct a comprehensive assessment of current ITAM processes and policies as well as major software and hardware assets in each location that will be involved in the consolidation.
Guided Implementation 2: Plan consolidated ITAM
- Call 1: Evaluate needs of stakeholders in each location and build a requirements list for a new ITAM tool.
- Call 2: Compare ITAM processes, policies, software, and hardware across locations.
- Call 3: Design ITAM program: define and document ITAM processes and policies in an SOP, develop an ITAM tool shortlist and RFP, and define staffing roles and responsibilities.
Guided Implementation 3: Develop transition plan
- Call 1: Build a plan to achieve the consolidation, including prioritized initiatives with assigned responsibility.
- Call 2: Develop an RFP to hire a consultant to assist during and after the consolidation, if needed.
- Call 3: Develop a plan for targeted and timely communications to all stakeholders involved in the consolidation.
Contributors
- Michael Dean, Director, User Support Services, Des Moines University
- Simon Leuty, Co-founder, Livingstone Tech
- Clare Walsh, PR consultant, Adesso Tech, Inc.
- Alex Monaghan, Director, Presales EMEA, Product Support Solutions
- Ben Brand, SAM Practice Manager, Insight
- Michael Swanson, President, ISAM
- Bruce Aboudara, SVP, Marketing & Business Development, Scalable Software
- Will Degener, Senior Solutions Consultant, Scalable Software
- Three anonymous contributors
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