Having a hardware asset management solution in place is essential, however, “Most organizations do not have a formal ITAM program but recognize the need to implement one in support of their digital business objectives.” Pamela Wheelwright, Senior Director Analyst, Gartner.
A reliable hardware asset management program can help you achieve success with:
- Increasing worker productivity
- Forecasting future needs and spend
- Reducing waste and security risks
- Having visibility into current hardware asset landscape
- Improving compliance and audit times
Here are the top 3 requirements for hardware asset management success:
#1: Tracking Automation
If you’re still relying on spreadsheets, manual processes, and slow data capture tools for tracking your assets, you’re ensuring your HAM solution will fail. Relying on outdated solutions may get the data into your system but not accurately, and without accurate data, all you have is numbers with no meaning. You can’t use this information to make decisions that could lead to increased savings or security and you’re in the dark for being able to forecast future needs and spend.
AssetTrack® makes automated data capture a reality with its smart automation tools, including basic camera scanning, enterprise-grade barcode and RFID readers and advanced API’s that ensure only accurate data goes into your database.
In one request, asset managers can deploy:
- Enterprise-grade RFID readers that speed stockroom, data center inventories by orders of magnitude.
- Smartphone scanning for field users to capture updates without carting around devices.
- Offline, USB-connected scanning for laptops to track assets without needing a person to manage and to enable tracking in secure environments that don’t allow cameras or wireless technologies.
The AssetTrack® interface is designed for speed and productivity with a user-friendly, optimized UI that includes error correction, pattern recognition, audible feedback, and bulk processes for a streamlined user experience that will help drive adoption.
#2: Process Control
Automation is key for fostering end-user adoption of your hardware asset management solution, but if you can’t control the process for how that data is collected, you’re no better off than before. In fact, automation without process control will make your database less reliable.
“The first rule of any technology used in a business is that automation applied to an efficient operation will magnify the efficiency. The second is that automation applied to an inefficient operation will magnify the inefficiency.” Bill Gates
Setting up your hardware asset management process lays the foundation for you to introduce concepts like Lean, 6sigma, and agile to ID flaws in your process and make immediate adjustments, then measure the impact of your changes.
A consistent process can ensure:
- Data is validated as it’s collected
- Duplicates are caught before they’re recorded
- Identification of discrepancies needing investigation
- Tasks get created for follow up
- Metrics and chain of custody are recorded for analysis
With an AssetTrack® process in place, you can expect time-based analytics that do all of this, plus delivers:
- Complete control over what gets entered into the database
- Proactive alerts, so errors don’t become database issues
- Identification of process breakdowns
- Accurate performance measurement
These time-based analytics help lay the groundwork for tracking SLA compliance, user productivity, asset utilization, and forecasting.
#3: Data and Analytics
Once you have tracking automation and process control set up, you’re finally getting good data. Having good data is a crucial step towards success, but unless you can analyze and understand what the data is telling you, your hardware asset management program still isn’t going to be truly valuable.
Analyzing and understanding your data can help reduce stock levels without impacting availability, hold service vendors accountable and predict future needs and spend using past data.
There are three levels of analytics you want from your hardware asset management solution:
- Productivity
Understand how your assets move through the lifecycle over time, with the ability to dissect and break down the data by location, model, vendor, department and more.
- Operating Expenses
See where you can reduce service contract costs, staffing levels, taxes and maintenance cost, and eliminate unnecessary infrastructure improving your ROI.
- Capital Expense
When you understand asset utilization you can reduce capital investment, improve return on assets, and lower your overall footprint.
AssetTrack® is the industry leading barcode and RFID scanning software and the #1 app for ServiceNow and delivers on all of these requirements and more. The result is a hardware asset mangement solution that is complete, current and accurate throughout the entire hardware lifecycle.
Your solution is ready out-of-box with no additional dev work needed and AMI experts are ready to help at any stage.
