Identify IT asset tracking roadblocks
Organizations spend millions trying to keep their staff equipped with technical devices necessary for running daily operations. A substantial part of this expenditure is allocated to component replacement and maintenance. But why?
When companies fail to monitor equipment usage and whereabouts, they end up mishandling assets. In addition to this, small tools get misplaced whenever businesses scale up or employees switch roles. This negligence eventually leads to overhead costs incurred from procurement or license fees.
The main reason behind these drawbacks is the absence of a robust tracking system. In order to tackle asset mismanagement, you’ll first have to get past these challenges:
- Costly and complex tracking solutions: Most firms don’t know what to look for in an asset tracking solution. Which features do you need? Do you go with on-premise or cloud based? Fleshing out your asset workflows and your asset management goals is the right place to start. Next, determine how automation can help your company. Know your needs!
- Inaccurate asset data: Manual systems have a high margin for error and end up damaging data quality. This is especially costly when recording data for IT assets like software programs to monitor utilization. This prevents companies from estimating an accurate rate of return on investment for deployed resources. As a result, companies have a hard time justifying asset and license upgrades.
- Inadequate security: When it comes to IT assets, tight security measures are a top priority since electronically stored data is vulnerable to security breaches. Restricting unauthorized access and controlling data visibility is of utmost importance. This helps organizations lower risks associated with security breaches and misuse of sensitive information.
Implement an IT asset tracking solution
To overcome IT asset management roadblocks, most institutions opt for a cloud-based solution. With the ability to automate all business tasks, a software solution improves work efficiency so you get more done. Let’s discuss the key aspects of the IT asset tracking solution.
1. Lifecycle management
In simple terms, tracking the utilization of an asset from the moment of procurement to its disposal is termed as lifecycle management. Similarly, when a company adds an IT device to its accounts, the software starts recording its usage history. This enables depreciation calculation so you can decide when to dispose of tangible devices like laptops and printers. Doing so is extremely critical because it helps maximize the useful lifespan of goods. Alternatively, if you have the estimated useful life of both hardware and software, you can save up on extra maintenance for warranties and licenses.
2. Auto-discovery
Auto-discovery enables users to automatically identify all IT devices registered on a network, making it the most efficient feature of reliable asset tracking. Every item owned by the organization is added to the system records upon a single scan. These scans can be scheduled whenever new stock is added or maintenance is underway.
Moreover, the auto-discovery of IT assets successfully eliminates the need for manual data entry. This saves up labor resources and results in an accurate database. Being continuous in nature, auto-discovery lets you gather real-time data so you can document changes as they happen.
3. Inventory management
With tight budgets, businesses cannot afford to accumulate duplicate stock items. Also, note that most IT assets are expensive and need formal documentation and budgeting. To avoid inventory overspills, a tracking solution enables you to run automated inventory modules for IT assets including:
- Stock thresholds: for hardware like USBs, hard disks and even printers, users can feed in a minimum amount needed to run daily functions. Whenever this limit is exhausted, purchase receipts are automatically created.
- Availability calendar: Easily view status updates for all IT devices in the inventory. An accurate availability database helps avoid double-bookings and stockouts for assets.
- Check-ins and checkout: Receive instant updates against user IDs for every item being utilized for daily tasks. This practice is known as an asset checkout. Similarly, for assets being returned after the designated job, the IT asset tracking solution records a check-in. Regular check-ins and checkouts help lower risks associated with asset misplacement.
4. License and warranty tracking
For ease of use, IT assets can be categorized into hardware and software devices. To ensure proper usage of both, it is important to maintain valid warranties and licenses. Hardware assets usually come with a warranty that guarantees repair by the manufacturer for a specific time period. Moreover, users might even pay extra for longer warranties, making it even more important to track them.
With software taking care of this, technicians are automatically notified whether an item is under warranty or not.
License tracking applies to all software assets owned by an organization. To continue authorized usage, firms require license renewals immediately after expiry. For this, use the software to track software license upgrades.
5. User management
With multiple IT assets in use every day, it gets complicated to control user access. Sensitive data in the wrong hands can end up damaging company reputation. This makes user management a principle aspect of IT asset tracking.
Devise security measures to control access based on location, item, users or even groups. For instance, define certain devices to be only accessible to managers while others are permissible for the whole team. Such practices help you run custody reviews and improve overall transparency.
Don’t wait for your competitors to crush you before you decide to shift to software
To take business efficiency to the next level, you need to opt for a cloud-based IT asset tracking solution. You absolutely cannot delay migration to IT asset management.
IT asset tracking offers a variety of features that automate functions to help you make the most of your resources. For specialized focus, track assets to deliver real-time information about utilization across locations and users. This will enable you to run lifecycle and inventory management, automate asset discovery, and control user access for all IT devices.
A streamlined tracking routine provides a flexible platform to store all your company data. Help create watertight communication and collaboration channels and update everyone regarding asset activities. Lastly, a big plus point for the IT asset tracking solution is that it comes with mobile apps as well. Use the built-in scanners while you’re on the move to track assets anywhere, any time!
About EZOfficeInventory
EZOfficeInventory is the leading IT asset tracking system. It enables you to manage IT assets across locations, run audits, and scan using a third-party scanner or our mobile app.
