Managing IT assets effectively is crucial for any organisation aiming to align its IT strategy with its business goals. Our experts, Geoff Worsley and Barry Pilling, share insights on the most frequently asked questions around IT Asset Lifecycle Management (ALM), guiding you on best practices for maximising asset value, ensuring security, and optimising budget allocations.
FAQs
- How does IT Asset Lifecycle Management fit into my overall IT strategy?
- What are the main risks associated with poor IT Asset Lifecycle Management, and how can I address them?
- What are the stages of IT Asset Lifecycle Management?
- How can effective IT Asset Lifecycle Management practices help reduce my overall IT budget?
- How can I ensure that my IT Asset Lifecycle Management practices support compliance and security requirements?
- What Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) should I track for effective IT Asset Lifecycle Management?
- What budgeting considerations should I keep in mind for IT Asset acquisition and maintenance?
- How do I allocate budget for asset disposal and replacement?
Our expert answers
How does IT Asset Lifecycle Management fit into my overall IT strategy?
Quick Answer:
IT Asset Lifecycle Management should be central to your IT strategy to align technology investments with business objectives.
What you need to know:
Effective ALM supports timely upgrades, hardware replacement, and vulnerability identification. This reduces security risks and controls budget growth by preventing extended support costs and enabling the reuse of under-utilised assets. Data-driven insights allow stakeholders across security, operations, procurement, and finance to make confident decisions that maximises asset value and operational efficiency.
2. What are the main risks associated with poor IT Asset Lifecycle Management, and how can I address them?
Quick answer:
Poor IT Asset Lifecycle Management can lead to increased costs and security vulnerabilities.
What you need to know:
Ineffective ALM can result in overspending on software licences, untracked asset purchases, and security exposures from using unsupported software. A robust ALM strategy with lifecycle tracking mitigates these risks by ensuring awareness of software support status, optimising asset procurement, and conducting regular vulnerability assessments.
3. What are the stages of IT Asset Lifecycle Management?
Quick answer:
The traditional stages include planning, acquisition, deployment, maintenance, and disposal.
What you need to know:
While the traditional “Cradle to Grave” analogy still applies, modern ALM now includes stages like “Build and Test,” which occurs before deployment. As SaaS and Shadow IT continue to grow, updating lifecycle management processes to capture all asset entry points is essential.
4. How can effective IT Asset Lifecycle Management practices help reduce my overall IT budget?
Quick answer:
IT Asset Lifecycle Management reduces costs by optimising asset usage and extending asset lifecycles.
What you need to know:
Proper management of software and hardware lifecycles minimises costs through upgrades to supported versions, extended hardware life, and recycling under-utilised assets. Reliable data and processes improve asset visibility, allowing you to reclaim unused assets and prevent unnecessary spending, which supports a more optimised IT budget.
5. How can I ensure that my IT Asset Lifecycle Management practices support compliance and security requirements?
Quick answer:
Integrate compliance checks and regulatory standards into your ITAM practices.
What you need to know:
Adherence to regulatory standards and software compliance is crucial, particularly for end-of-support software and secure disposal. Monitoring software lifecycles and hardware management aligns ALM with both security needs and compliance requirements.
6. What Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) should I track for effective IT Asset Lifecycle Management?
Quick answer:
Track KPIs like cost savings, data accuracy, risk remediation, and asset usage efficiency.
What you need to know:
KPIs help measure ALM success and ensure alignment with business objectives. Important KPIs include:
- Benefits tracker: Tracks cost savings and cost avoidance linked to ITAM.
- Data accuracy: Target 95–99% accuracy with monthly checks.
- Risk remediation: Focus on reducing high-impact risks through ITAM.
- Asset usage efficiency: Measure the percentage of assets in use to avoid stockpiling.
7. What budgeting considerations should I keep in mind for IT Asset acquisition and maintenance?
Quick answer:
Use historical data, track renewals, and consider multi-year deals for predictable pricing.
What you need to know:
Review historical data for recurring expenses like maintenance and licence renewals to set accurate baselines. Use financial records to link transactions to specific assets and explore multi-year deals to secure cost savings. Decide if costs will be managed centrally or recharged to business units and collaborate with these units for accurate budgeting.
8. How do I allocate budget for asset disposal and replacement?
Quick answer:
Plan disposal and replacement costs ahead, including options to resell unused licences.
What you need to know:
Collaborate with IT, security, and finance teams to roadmap needs and project expenses for the next 3–5 years. Consider options like reselling perpetual licences where permitted to offset costs. Through planning ahead, you can ensure sufficient budget allocation for both disposal and replacement activities.
Conclusion
Effective IT Asset Lifecycle Management isn’t just about keeping track of hardware and software; it’s about making strategic choices that align IT assets with business objectives, optimise budgets, and enhance security. By understanding the lifecycle of each asset and planning proactively, organisations can minimise costs and maximise operational efficiency.
Have more questions?
If you’d like more guidance on ITAM or need assistance with your IT budget, reach out to our experts for personalised advice!
