It's Almost 2007 - Do You Know Where Your IT Assets Are?
 Anne Sych

With the enormous increase in technology, companies large and
small are accumulating more and more IT equipment.  Keeping track
of PCs, laptops, PDAs, printers, network equipment, software (the
list goes on) can be a challenge.  Assets move locations, get
reassigned to other people, get replaced, etc.  Management wants
reports about asset allocation, usage and service history.
Accounting personnel need accurate data for calculating
depreciation.

Knowing what assets you have, where they are located, when they
were purchased, if they are still in use, etc. is critical to any
organization.

According to Gartner, Inc., a Stamford, CT-based research firm,
IT asset management rank as one of the top five priorities for
CIO"(tm)s in 2006.  Furthermore, The Gartner report revealed that
the majority of organizations do not have efficient ways of
keeping track of their IT assets*.  In addition to managing the
huge amount of spending that companies place in their IT
equipment purchases are the looming costs associated with system
downtime (and related rebound customer service issues), potential
overpayment on leasing, and software compliance issues.

Asset Management Software is a helpful tool to keep track of your
company"(tm)s assets.   Asset management systems allow you to
keep track of your assets in one centralized place. A
well-equipped system should include the following features:

* Ability to sort assets by type, classification
(sub-classification), location, and status.
* Asset description details including related images,
attachments, notes & tag numbers.
* A complete transaction history to keep track of assets as they
are moved around, status levels changed or re-assignment to
different end users.
* Ability to relate assets to other assets and to define
relationships between assets.
* Well-built reporting & strong search functionality.
Another helpful tool is a PC inventory module, which will allow
you to retrieve information from all of the PC's in your entire
network.  The software scans your network not only for hardware,
but also software which aids in the management of software
compliance issues.

Asset management systems can stand alone, and are available as a
companion to many help desk software systems.  When united with a
help desk, you gain the ability to tie an asset to an incident
which allows you to evaluate the life history of the asset, and
flag any recurring problems.

So, as you consider future goals for your technology department,
be sure to give strong consideration to the added value of an
application designed to help protect your valuable IT
investments.  In the end, implementing a strong asset management
system will most likely prove to have been a very wise use of
your budget dollars.




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Written by: Anne Sych, Marketing Manager for Novo Solutions, Inc.
Novo Solutions, Inc. is an Independent Software Vendor (ISV)
in Virginia Beach, Virginia specializing in Customer Support
Software. Free trial versions of the Novo Help Desk Software,
Knowledge Base Software and suite of web-based Customer Support
Solutions are available.  Contact: sales@novosolutions.com for
more information. http://www.novosolutions.com/