A Step by Step Guide to Efficient Government Asset Tracking

Efficient government asset tracking is increasingly important as agencies tackle budgetary constraints and increased oversight on public spending. Fixed asset tracking for the government typically means implementing a control system to monitor vehicles, facilities, IT and other equipment used to carry out operations.

Government administrators for sectors like health, education and social care face multiple challenges without a proper system to manage their fixed assets. This includes a high rate of equipment failure and misplacement which can negatively impact budgets and operations. The solution — A cloud based asset tracking software that can help improve efficiency and control costs.

Here are some important ways government agencies can improve operational efficiency through implementing the right tracking software:

Regulatory compliance: Manual asset management can be a slow and tedious process which is prone to human error. Tracking inventory within a centralized software enables access to real time, up-to-date information. This way government agencies can maintain a trail of service history for audit verification and regulatory compliance.

Operational efficiency: A primary goal for government agencies is to maximize ROI while keeping in line with budgets. With the help of an automated government tracking system, administration can easily control asset movement and monitor utilization to optimize resources.

Improved accountability: Public sector agencies are constantly under a high level of scrutiny. This is why it is important for them to maintain transparency throughout daily operations across offices. A tracking system enables government offices to maintain user trails to account for daily actions. This makes it easier to investigate cases of missing equipment and asset misuse.

Streamlined location management: The majority of government offices operate under an organizational hierarchy which means that there are multiple locations that need to be supervised. By investing in the right tracking software, government agencies can effectively monitor assets at various locations. This ensures a proper channel of authorization with minimized room for misplacements.

How to implement government asset tracking software?

Government agencies are responsible for providing essential services to the community. In order to maintain quality standards, it is critical that government offices invest in the right management tools. A cloud based tracking system enables the public sector to efficiently monitor asset operations across different locations.

To achieve optimal results with a tracking software, it is important to assess specific needs and design a tracking policy according to the requirements .

Here is a step by step guide to set up government asset tracking:

1. Analyze the organization’s structure and needs

As mentioned above, the first step is to review the organizational needs. This includes the main workflows and assets.For instance, if your organization is within the public health sector, you need a t system that can manage equipment maintenance protocols and medical inventory.

Next, identify the resources you want to track. You can start by tagging and monitoring the top priority assets in the beginning. For example, for your government healthcare centre you can start off with high grade equipment that needs to be serviced at regular intervals. Or track consumable inventory items with expiration limits so you can replenish the stock on time.

2. Lay down asset tracking goals

Defining clear goals and objectives make a business strategy more likely to succeed. Similarly, in the case of an asset management policy, government agencies should lay down specific targets they want to achieve. At the organizational level, two simple examples of government asset tracking goals can include:

Justification of funds: Being able to prove financial visibility for the level of community service provided
Optimization of resources: Fully utilize the resources allocated for different workflows.

These goals encompass a number of workflows that can be efficiently carried out with the help of a tracking system. To further narrow down the scope, broad objectives can be broken down into measurable metrics like reduced downtime, timely asset disposal and secure access control to minimize instances of asset loss.

3. Devise an asset management action plan

In order to achieve tracking goals and objectives, government agencies should prepare a concise asset management action plan. Such plans mainly include a roadmap for organizations to achieve their long term objectives. Let’s take a look at four simple action plan items for an effective government asset tracking strategy:

Complete asset inventory: Before you start to track performance, carry out a basic asset inventory of all items you want to monitor. This will act as a baseline and help you devise maintenance plans with expected life cycle durations.
Estimate asset life cycle costs: For every asset you want to track, write down an estimate of costs to be incurred throughout its life cycle. This will enable you to streamline financial records as per the public funds available.
Determine service levels: According to the asset utilization at your office, set down service levels required to minimize downtime. Preplanned schedules help setting up preventive maintenance for operational efficiency.
Execute a funding strategy: As a government agency you should always have a long term financial plan for all asset workflows. Being able to sustain a management plan makes it more likely to succeed with desired outcomes.

4. Review and track progress

An asset management plan is a work in progress. Therefore the key to meet your targets is to consistently review and analyse the progress. For this purpose, government agencies can set up periodic performance review sessions to discuss future improvements.

Holding frequent progress meetings enables asset managers to individually pinpoint areas which require attention. For instance, an in depth analysis of equipment downtime reveals which assets are responding well to the current maintenance practices and which items need further attention. Such practices act as a starting point for amendments to the current asset management plan.

5. Incorporate feedback from stakeholders

The actions undertaken by a government agency have the tendency to impact internal and external stakeholders. For this reason, government officials should consider feedback from all parties involved. While it is easy to extract feedback from internal stakeholders; external stakeholder engagement requires some extra effort.

For useful stakeholder feedback, clearly define what aspects of management you want them to give their reviews on. In the case of a public school, it might be helpful to ask whether the labs were properly maintained and appropriate equipment available for lectures. Here the external stakeholders are the parent and study community whereas the internal stakeholders is the school management. Insightful feedback from stakeholders helps establish a transparent decision making process which is a big advantage for government agencies.

About EZOfficeinvetory

EZOfficeInventory is a leading asset tracking software. It allows you to track, maintain, and report on inventory from anywhere, at any time. We offer a free 15-day trial – no credit card required!