When your organization is focused on productivity, IT Asset Management becomes an important piece of your overall company success. Inextricably linked to this is your Licensing, which is more than just paperwork. Licensing impacts compliance, costs, performance and risk.
Often companies ignore investments into the right kind of licensing leading to poor asset management which in turn results in penalties, inefficiencies and the more serious threat – security loopholes. Gaps in our IT asset security exposes your date to high risk at any time.
At Microcare, we have earned the trust of our clients as a reliable licensing solutions provider and integrator for businesses. This blog explores the importance of licenses; how smarter licenses are solving challenges for companies today and the business impact of smart IT Asset Management.
Understanding IT Asset Management
IT Asset Management is the process of tracking, managing and optimizing software / hardware assets throughout their lifecycle. At the heart is Software Licensing. Companies can opt for various licensing types depending on their requirement such as perpetual, subscription, concurrent, volume-bases, OEM.
Some companies like Microcare offer end-to-end licensing services that include identification and sourcing, reminders and after sales support. It will help to keep in mind to choose a service provider who understands the intricacies and importance of licensing, the ideal subscription match for your company’s requirements and are able to offer you competitive pricing based on their domain knowledge and access to a strong network of reliable software licence providers.
Navigating the Hurdles – The Challenges of Managing Software Licenses Over-licensing: unnecessary costs
Over-licensing: Unnecessary Costs
Many organizations do not fit software licenses to their need. This happens as an extra precautionary approach to be over-compliant or poor tracking of actual usage leading to financial overspending and not optimizing software budgets and lowering the ROI
Under-licensing: Legal Risks and Audits
On the other hand, under-licensing can also pose a challenge. When organizations use software and cracked versions without proper licensing , they are alway vulnerable for audits from regulatory bodies and if found non-compliant can face fines and reputational damage.
Untracked Software Usage
In some cases, without proper tracking and IT asset management, some employees may be using software, apps or platforms without approval of the IT department. Unauthorized tools bypass licensing procedures and create cybersecurity vulnerabilities. Moreover it hampers a clear inventory of IT assets of the company which in the long run can lead to inefficiency.
Vendor Lock-in and Complex Renewal Cycles
Sometimes, organizations do not carry out a due-diligence on vendor licensing agreement, limiting their flexibility to adapt, upsale or migrate to newer and more cost-effective solutions. These vendor lock-ins are often linked to complex renewal contracts. Knowing how to navigate these terms or planning an exit strategy from such agreements sometimes becomes a challenge.
Difficulty in Tracking Usage Rights, License Expiration, and User Count
Keeping tabs on who’s using what, where, and how is one of the most underestimated challenges in software asset management. Many businesses struggle to monitor the number of active users, expiration dates, version control, and usage rights across multiple locations and departments.
Why Modern Enterprises Need Smarter Licensing
Today’s enterprises need their software and hardware to be well-oiled and running at all times. A single glitch can incur heavy losses, reputational breach and a spanner in the business which can affect the ROI. Smarter Licensing makes way for centralized tools and dashboards to track license inventory.
Regular license audits, reconciling usage vs. ownership, picking optimised and flexible licensing models, cost saving, ensuring compliance documentation to prepare for vendor audits go a long way in helping modern enterprises function at their optimum capacity. It is always good to remember that a seamless IT infrastructure with licensing and compliances in place go a long way in contributing to
Simplifying Licensing with Microcare
At Microcare we offer on-stop Licensing solutions so that you can focus on your core business activities avoiding the hassles of conflicting licensing policies or gaps in your software and hardware security.
Our expert team evaluates your needs, identifies gaps and offers optimized licensing models that fit your business requirements. With us, you have the advantage of a single, trusted partner for all your licensing requirements, – from sourcing, deployment, renewals and compliance. You can leverage our 30 year experience in turnkey IT solutions and System Integration expertise for smarter procurement and licensing solutions. With Microsoft’s end-to-end licensing expertise you gain visibility and control over your enterprise assets and enable faster digital transformation, avoiding glitches and delays with agile software deployment.
Conclusion
To sum up, smart licensing is not only about IT hygiene. With robust licensing solutions in place your organizations gains a strategic advantage making business smooth, easier with lesser conflicts, in addition to cost savings with professional licensing solutions. Choose your licensing solutions provider who can function as an aggregator, with domain knowledge and access to service providers who will advise, guide and enable your licensing requirements.
Looking to get your IT assets under control? We’ve got the right solution!