How much control do you really have over your IT assets? Oftentimes, businesses will consider other priorities, like sales, operations, and customer service, before they focus on IT systems and resources. The problem with this is that it creates a significant burden for your business, both in terms of the hidden financial drains and serious security vulnerabilities that undermine your business’ stability.
IT asset management can help you address these risks in a proactive way. Here’s how.
Understanding IT Asset Management
When we discuss IT asset management, what we’re really talking about is the tracking, managing, and optimizing of the entire lifecycle of your technology assets.
It sounds similar to an IT audit, and that’s because it starts out as one. IT asset management includes a comprehensive inventory of all the tech that makes your business tick: hardware (laptops, servers, networking solutions, mobile devices), software (operating systems, applications, and licenses), and contracts (service contracts, warranties, and maintenance agreements). The goal here is to use what your business has at its disposal to make better technology-related decisions over time.
With more knowledge comes more power—the power to maximize value, minimize risk, and reduce operating costs over time.
IT Asset Management Should Be a Non-Negotiable
When it comes to your IT, knowing what makes your business tick is not something that can be pushed to the sidelines.
There are serious unexpected costs associated with issues like license waste (paying for unused software licenses), as well as surprise replacements for faulty mission-critical hardware that can fail over time. Worse yet, there are security issues in the form of vulnerabilities that target unmanaged or retired devices and EOL software on your infrastructure, as well as compliance issues that could lead to fines and other costs.
The best way to address these issues is with IT asset management, and believe it or not, your business can implement it today—with the right expertise to back you up.
How Do You Implement IT Asset Management?
Look, IT asset management is not a responsibility you want to include in “other duties as assigned” in your team’s job descriptions.
You want knowledgeable, trained, and skilled IT professionals handling your company’s asset management. For SMBs looking to do this without hiring a full-time in-house staff, managed services can be a great option that fulfills this need without breaking the bank and adding multiple salaries to payroll. Instead, you get the IT partners you need—ones who can help your business put together long-term roadmaps that support your business goals.
With IT asset management, you can fully understand the technology environment that lets your business thrive. Understanding what goes into your company’s IT infrastructure is paramount to the continued success of your organization, and it will ultimately reduce risk, optimize spending, and ensure reliable operations over time.
Want to learn more about IT asset management? Contact Fusion IT today at (616) 828-5360 to learn how our trusted professionals can change the way your business thinks about technology for the better.