Your SAM Goals for 2019

[Bryan Blackburn]

With 2019 now in full swing, it’s important to take a look at some of the key trends and goals that software asset managers are using to make this year one of the best yet. From single-platform operations to automated processes, gaining control of your IT and software assets doesn’t have to be so difficult. Here’s a look at five goals for 2019, including:

1. Manage SAM where you manage IT
2. Collaborate across departments
3. Find the right-fit, right-size SAM solution
4. Trustworthy data
5. Automate manual processes

Goal 1: Manage software where you manage the rest of IT

Our goal is to eliminate the need for companies to use multiple software to perform various functions as brittle integrations, lack of communication, and constant data transfers can be troublesome for organizations trying to maintain an effective and efficient IT landscape.

Within a single platform, you can now manage your entire IT operations—from hardware to service requests to software—all in one place. This trend is starting to be recognized in the market.  Computerworld listed ServiceNow as one of the key themes in IT asset management in 2019, and we are thrilled! Our customer ITAM teams now have the ability to connect other disciplines like IT Service Management and IT Business Management and IT Operations Management. 

Computerworld agreed that ServiceNow being selected by Forbes as the #1 Most Innovative Company in 2018 made sense, considering our take on overall business operations. As our organization continues to grow, we are excited to provide our customers with a single point of access for their entire organizational operations.

Goal 2: Collaborate across departments

Cross-departmental collaboration showcases a healthy internal culture but also ensures that the entire organization is in alignment with overall business objectives. At ServiceNow, we deliver digital workflows that create great experiences and unlock productivity.

In terms of Software Asset Management, limited cross-departmental collaboration can create headaches for asset managers wanting to gain a better understanding of how software is used across the organization to manage more effectively.  Multiple data sources (often in Excel) can present challenges.

We see many of our customers having to manually track assets across the software lifecycle.  From procurement to retirement, the asset manager is tasked with tracking moving targets.  Assets are entering the system and leaving the system each and every day.  Starting at the beginning, we can track assets using ServiceNow Discovery and using the power of SAM Professional, track those assets across their lifecycle to maximize their value and return asset managers to the business of optimization 

Working in conjunction with Discovery, IT Service Management, and IT Business Management applications, ServiceNow Software Asset Management makes it easier for departments to communicate and receive the software needed to perform critical business functions. When IT has a single platform to discover assets, manage service requests, and reclaim and redistribute software licenses, they can work more efficiently with every department to maintain a healthy (and compliant) IT environment in areas such as software request management, purchasing, configuration management, deployment, and information security.

Goal 3: Find the right-fit, right-size SAM solution

The first step in choosing a software asset management solution requires asset managers to define the depth of information needed to be uncovered in the organization. Typically, asset managers need to consider the need for:

• Discovery tools to locate and identify hardware and software, manage it, and secure it
• A robust catalog to build a normalized inventory
• Remediation options to reclaim purchased licenses and redistribute accordingly
• Reporting options to understand software usage, cost breakdowns, and compliance trends
• SaaS capabilities for companies with hybrid deployments

Once your needs have been identified, you can begin exploring various SAM solutions that fit the complexity and depth of your organization. Consider whether a specific SAM solution is deployed through agent or agentless servers, as each offers unique benefits regarding usage and ease of deployment. Meet with potential vendors to discuss business goals and clearly express what you expect from vendors and how their culture aligns with your own.

Goal 4: Trustworthy data

The ISO ITAM standard (ISO/IEC 19770) provides best-practice guidelines for ITAM and SAM practitioners for needed insight into processes to reduce costs, support productivity, and maintain a successful overall IT strategy. ISO standards suggest that strategic software asset management is the combination of people, process, and technology. The ITAM ISO standard benefits your SAM strategy by:

• Identifying, understanding and validating the software and hardware you currently have
• Controlling costs to avoid waste and only pay for what your users actually need
• Identifying risks and compliance issues

The core goal of trustworthy data is knowing what you have so you can manage it. Referring back to previous goals we mentioned—having a single point of access where departments can collaborate—aids in the process of having trustworthy data to effectively manage your IT assets which include software.

Goal 5: Automate manual processes

Being able to automate the traditional manual processes of software asset management strengthens your IT organization’s ability to increase the effectiveness of your SAM program. Automated digital workflows put customers in a position to get to value faster through cost-reduction, resource allocation, and process simplification. Your team will experience improved productivity, have more time to spend on innovation, and can respond to compliance issues and management demands faster and more efficiently.

Many of our customers are spending much of their time manually gathering, consolidating, and making heads or tails of software license positions. Automated processes not only speed up IT operations, but will reduce errors, and enable organizations to stay compliant in near real-time with the numerous vendors used throughout the company.

For example, ServiceNow Software Asset Management automates processes like:

• Entitlement import: improves time to value by automating the process of importing procurement data into the system
• Content Library updates: to keep up with signature changes from a crowd-sourced content library
• License reclamation: based on parameters that you define so you can re-harvest software licenses and reallocate them
• Normalization suggestions: to ensure your assets are named, tracked and managed effectively

Make 2019 your best year for software asset management by aiming to achieve these 5 goals.

For a complete list of ServiceNow SAM features, please visit our website at www.servicenow.com/sam