The rise of the cloud and SaaS in IT asset management
Perhaps the biggest transformation: a fundamental shift from on-premises, tangible solutions to cloud computing and software.
With this shift, IT assets evolved from being something traditionally thought of as “in the data center” to software-based assets. Cloud storage, monitoring tools, endpoints and more — these quickly became areas that needed to be considered in every company’s asset management strategy.
Assets have become more than hardware; they’ve evolved to include Software as a Service (SaaS) and Platform as a Service (PaaS) partners, too. Now, organizations are paying these partners a perpetual licensing fee instead of owning the software outright, and companies need to make compliance with the terms of these contracts a top priority. Otherwise, they risk large true-up fees. To do this, it’s critical for IT professionals to understand their entitlements and usage down to the license.
When it comes to the cloud, there’s scalability and flexibility; however, many organizations are discovering it comes with its own additional costs. In fact, spend on cloud monitoring solutions is predicated to hit $2,880 million by 2025, a testament to the fact that cloud usage is increasing — but so are costs.
BYOD: A curveball for asset management strategies
Another challenge for IT asset managers: Bring Your Own Devices (BYOD) policies.
In an era where workers are increasingly turning to their own smartphones and laptops for work - and a remote workforce is quickly becoming the new normal - IT asset managers are hurrying to understand what it all means from an inventory, security and expense perspective. How do you grant permissions to remote, personal devices without creating a security nightmare?
A recent article in CIO on asset management and BYOD notes that, “Thanks to mobile device management solutions, it’s relatively cost effective to secure and monitor all devices. IT must protect corporate data regardless of who owns the device. Don’t prevent users from working just because you don’t own the device. Allow them a secure option to work.”
A broader focus on security and compliance
Cloud. Endpoints. BYOD. Software. Multiple SaaS providers. Where does security and compliance live in this tangled web? Security continues to be a top priority for organizations of all sizes. Global data and privacy regulations, such as the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), adds another layer of complexity.
Today’s asset management teams must meet even more stringent compliance standards and adapt to remote management at a granular level, without taking away device or data access from those who need it.
Keeping up with this changing world
This can be a challenging time to be in our industry. There have been so many changes in how we work and the tools we use to do so. Plus, with emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML), it can sometimes feel like things are moving too fast for asset managers to keep up.
The key to keeping up with this changing world is to change right along with it. Clinging to the old way of doing things will only lead to wasted funds, frustrating software audits and subpar employee experiences.
Now, with stagnant (or declining) budgets, it might feel like changing with the times is easier said than done. But it doesn’t necessarily mean expensive tools or hiring a new team. Changing with the times means shifting your focus to where it needs to be.
That could mean exploring the feasibility of a BYOD policy and desktop virtualization instead of investing in hardware. It could mean dedicating less resources to inventory management and more to software asset management. Every company is different, but everyone has the choice to modernize … or be left behind.