What Are Software Asset Management Tools?

Published on March 31, 2021 • 3 min read

Software asset management refers to the IT asset management practice of keeping track of your software assets. Your software assets can be any software that your business is using.

IT asset management in general is essential, as you need to keep track of your expenses and how your assets are behaving. Software is no different. Whether you're tracking logins or subscriptions, you need to know that your colleagues have all the assets they need to fulfil their daily duties.

Types Of IT Asset Management

IT asset management is the discipline of logging, maintaining and tracking your IT assets. IT assets are any assets that have connectivity or link to a computer. 

For this reason, you can split your IT assets into hardware and software. These can be tracked in similar ways, but all need to be logged on an up-to-date and transparent IT asset register.

Your IT asset register can also be a subsection of a fixed asset register. This way, you can track your IT assets in tandem with the rest of your business' belongings, and they can contribute to essential procedures.

Building a full fixed asset register that contains your software and hardware mitigates the chance of ghost and zombie assets to start. This will mean that your tax breaks, expenses, and insurance operations are more accurate and more streamlined.

Software Asset Management Tools

IT asset management software allows you to log unique asset profiles and populate these profiles with unique asset information.

This means that you'll be able to use certain tools for hardware asset management as well as software asset management. 

Software asset management tools may be the ability to add login credentials and attachments that provide speedy training for your colleagues.

Overall, the software asset management tools at your disposal will give you the ability to create an accurate audit trail and a clear overview of who has access to your software assets.

You'll also be able to add important reminders and financial information, meaning you'll be able to set reminders for when software renewals are due, regardless of whether this is monthly or annually.

Hardware Asset Management Tools

You can use similar tools for hardware asset management. So, you will be able to use assignee features with hardware to log who is in charge of which assets.

Using an assignee feature is also great for when you're onboarding new staff as it makes it a quick and simple procedure to find which assets are available to give to your colleagues and then log that they've been assigned.

You will also be able to use asset tags to speed up your hardware asset management operations. Asset tags link to unique asset profiles then, every time you scan an asset's tag with your asset tracking app, a few things will happen.

1. The asset's profile opens, ready for edits and updates
2. The last seen location is logged via your phone's GPS data
3. The user who scanned the tag is logged
4. The time of the scan is logged

Therefore, if someone is auditing your hardware assets, you get a transparent audit trail. For example, if an issue is reported, the process is simple: the tag is scanned and the issue is reported with the touch of a button, telling you what the issue is, where the asset is, and who reported the issue.

Using An IT Asset Management Software

These IT asset management software tools allow you to track hardware and software assets in tandem, keeping a clearer and more transparent view of how your assets are behaving, where they are, and who is interacting with them.

While you're using IT asset management software, an automated IT asset register will be created and updated with every addition and every change.

This is then exportable as a pdf or spreadsheet, giving something tangible you can send on to your financial or insurance teams.

Overall, IT asset management gives you more control and visibility over your assets, meaning that you're less likely to misplace assets and purchase duplicates while also saving you a lot of time on your asset tracking operations.

Scaling Your Asset Tracking Systems

The best IT asset management software is highly scalable, meaning you'll be able to expand to different types of assets and share your software with multiple colleagues. 

This means that your asset tracking operations are as clear as possible as, for a start, multiple people are contributing to your asset management efforts, but also as you have all of your assets' information in one safe place.

Using cloud-based software also mitigates a lot of risks, as any edits, on-site or remote, all update in tandem. This means that you get a much clearer overall view of everything, but cloud-based software also means that data loss risks are also massively reduced.

itemit's asset tracking software is sharable and scalable and is currently being used in multiple industries across the globe. The system allows you to track any type of assets, from tools and equipment to software.

To find out more about how itemit's asset tracking software can help your business save time and money, you'll be able to contact the team at team@itemit.com. You can also fill in the form below to start your 14-day free trial.