What Is ITAM?

ITAM is an acronym for IT Asset Management. According to the International Organization of ITAM Asset Managers the ITAM process is a set of business practices that incorporates IT assets across the business units within an organization. It joins the financial, inventory, contractual, and risk management responsibilities to manage the overall life cycle of these assets, including tactical and strategic decision making.

All that being said, you still may wonder, what is ITAM? And, what Is ITAM’s purpose in a business or organization?

To an IT director at a business or organization, “What is ITAM?” would be a pretty funny question. ITAM is the necessary practice to optimize the purchase and life cycle of software and hardware assets. It also covers any ITAM solutions that have been put in place, such as software management asset tools.

When operating smoothly, ITAM best practice provides businesses and organizations with extensive support for their financial goals, prevents cyberattacks, and helps them manage their software and hardware budgets. In the world of technology, where everything changes rapidly, maintaining ITAM best practices is becoming more and more challenging.

Technology is what keeps businesses running today. Networked printers and scanners, servers, smartphones can be found in every work environment, large and small. And now, with the number of employees working remotely, these systems are more vulnerable to risks than ever before.

In the past, if you asked, what is ITAM?, you’d be shown a manual ITAM process dependent on spreadsheets. But as IT departments began to purchase more software and more licenses, a minor error in a spreadsheet could result in a security breach that could take the company down. The manual method of ITAM solutions was no longer an option.

So most large companies purchased automated software asset management tools to monitor their environments and report problems in real-time. Unfortunately, these tools were often misconfigured, and often, ITAM teams were ill-trained on how to manage them.

When a company or organization is not prioritizing for protections and not sure if their data sources, reports, and​ data management repository are correct, the next audit could result in huge fines. And the next breach could force them to pay a ransom.

This is why the life of an IT manager or ITAM lead is not an enviable one. So, when you ask, “What is ITAM” you’re talking about something that’s the cause of much stress and anxiety.

The ITAM Process

According to technology research and consulting company Gartner, IT asset management and the ITAM process, when successfully executed, results in 30% cost savings during the first year and at least 5% cost savings in each of the subsequent five years. It also reduces the risk of an entity incurring crippling license audit penalties.

All this points to the real need for companies and organizations to implement a robust ITAM process. But many roadblocks can stand in the way of implementing effective ITAM, including budget restraints and staffing issues.

Moving On From What Is ITAM To What Are ITAM Best Practices?

ITAM best practices are a critical element in successful ITAM. ITAM best practices are essential when a team depends upon automated tools for accurate reporting.

Beyond following ISO 19770 standards and Microsoft SAM, for example, there is nothing more valuable than having the right person with the right training in the right position.

However, technology moves fast, and along with it – risks. It is common for teams to lack the know-how to identify when a tool is working correctly and when it’s not.

That’s where my ITAM process, the Pragmatic ITAM Method, is a lifesaver.

ITAM Solutions – The Pragmatic ITAM Method

Now that you have the answer to “What is ITAM,” let’s talk about ITAM solutions.

As an IT director or ITAM lead, you know how critical it is for your company or organization to implement ITAM solutions and execute them with ITAM best practice. It’s not so much which tool you choose but how your team implements, configures and manages the tool. In other words, is your ITAM solution doing its job?

Pragmatic ITAM is an approach that’s proven to reduce security risks and audit penalties in large organizations in a unique way. It enables you and your team to prioritize for protections and be on top of your data sources, reports, and data management repository – so you can sleep better at night. Here’s how it works:

During a short-term engagement (usually about nine months) I analyze the tools you have and determine if they’re working correctly. Next, I strategize and design the ITAM solution that fits your needs using your existing tools. You do not have to buy more software!

Finally, I implement the solution shoulder-to-shoulder with your team. I coach them through the ITAM process and teach them ITAM best practices, so they are thoroughly equipped to take over when I leave. In one budget cycle! All this leads to the 30% cost savings mentioned by Gartner above.

Want to know more about Pragmatic ITAM? Let’s talk!