How To Undertake An Effective IT Inventory Audit

Every year or so, you may be required to undertake an IT inventory audit. An audit such as this allows you to see which IT assets you have in stock. It also helps you to identify whether you have any ghost assets along with computers and other equipment that need repairing. 

The issue with an IT inventory audit, as with any type of audit, is that it can be a lot of work. If you still manually count everything and enter it into a book or a spreadsheet, time may take its toll. Audits such as this can take far too long and be more complicated than they necessarily should be. The good news is that you can make life so much easier if you use an IT asset register. 

When you use a register such as this, the process of auditing can be much more effective. Let’s take a look at why and how this is the case.

Setting up an asset register such as this is very easy. All that you need to do is make a digital profile of your IT assets. Go from office to office, site to site, etc. adding each computer, modem, monitor, laptop, tablet, printer, etc. to the register. You can do this by attaching an RFID tag or a QR code to each asset. Once it’s attached, a tag or code can quickly be scanned and a profile will automatically be created. Yes, making an IT asset register really is that simple.

Some people choose to name a computer, such as “Computer 1, office 2”. As every asset needs a name so it can be identified, it makes sense to add one. While some people stop there, others add more information than this. For example, they could add the following details:

Every asset’s:

• Colour, make, and model
• Date of purchase and cost at purchase
• Location
• Insurance details and warranty information
• Policy and procedure details 
• Which software and applications you use
• Your IT infrastructure information 
• Links to instruction manuals or PDF manuals
• Photographs for very quick identification
• Maintenance information and schedules
• And any other relevant information

You can simply add as many details to each digital profile as you wish. Alternatively, you can leave the profiles blank. However, when you add insurance and warranty information you’re making life easier for your future self. Let’s imagine that one of your computers breaks down and it’s beyond repair. Having the warranty and insurance details to hand means that you can gain access to it very quickly. As you can see, it makes sense to add as much information as possible.

An asset register isn’t just a very useful tool, it can make auditing so much easier. As soon as you have added information to the register, you suddenly have a lot of information to hand. This information can include: 

• Your applications and data use
• Your policies and procedures
• Details of your software
• Your stock register 
• The valuation of your stock
• And so much more 

When you have and track all of your IT assets via your asset register, you can see how they behave, when they are used, what you have in stock, and the value of your stock. As soon as you begin to use your asset register you will start to create a lot of data. Depending on the tracking software you choose, you may be able to export the data. If you do, you could potentially have a lot of information to hand. As a result, your audit could be more accurate, and that is never a bad thing. The next paragraph explains why your audits could be more accurate.

When you use an IT asset register to help you undertake an effective IT inventory audit, it automatically becomes more accurate. This is because data will be created instantly, showing your stock register, every asset’s valuation, and so much more. You could even see which policies have been adhered to and which procedures haven’t. 

When you have an accurate audit, you can show the relevant governing bodies that you’re acting as instructed. You can show that you’re operating within essential guidelines and your business is a viable, profitable, and ethical one. It would be very difficult to do this if you simply listed your assets in a book or on a spreadsheet. This is why it makes sense for you to use a digital register. It’s better for those essential audits and your business as a whole. 

Would you like to speak with an IT asset register expert about your inventory audit? Contact us today. You can reach us now at: team@itemit.com.

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