This article was written by Dominic Brugno, Intern.
In today’s fast-paced business and IT environment, seamless and efficient asset management are crucial for maintaining operational efficiency and ensuring the security of valuable company resources. As organizations grow and reliance on technology increases, the need for robust asset tagging, tracking, and management systems becomes increasingly important. Traditional methods of asset management can be cumbersome and prone to errors, commonly leading to lost assets, compromised devices, and inefficient device management.
Fortunately, the introduction of digital-based automated asset tracking solutions has revolutionized the way businesses manage their assets. These seamless digital solutions offer real-time tracking and improved accuracy compared to traditional asset tracking methods.
By leveraging these advanced solutions, businesses can:
- Achieve greater visibility and control over their assets;
- Reduce overhead management costs and time; and
- Enhance overall productivity.
These tools provide inexpensive and easy-to-implement solutions for maintaining IT devices and assets across all organizations.
Common Misconceptions About Asset Tracking
Despite the clear benefits, there are several misconceptions about modern asset tracking that can deter businesses from adopting these solutions.
One common myth is that asset tracking is only necessary for large, highly regulated enterprises. In reality, small and medium-sized businesses can reap significant benefits from implementing these systems.
Another misconception is that these systems are too expensive and complex to implement. However, many new solutions are designed to be cost-effective and user-friendly, making them accessible to businesses of all sizes. In the long term, these solutions can save businesses thousands of dollars a year in reduced overhead costs and saved time.
Some believe that asset tracking systems are too time-consuming to set up and maintain. On the contrary, modern solutions often come with intuitive interfaces and robust customer support. Some modern solutions may also come with AI-integrated assistance and automation to speed up the asset management process.
Cybersecurity Implications of Proper Asset Tracking
Proper asset tracking is not just about knowing where your assets are; it also plays a crucial role in cybersecurity. By maintaining an accurate inventory of all IT and business assets, organizations can better manage vulnerabilities and ensure that all devices are up to date with the latest security patches and updates. This proactive approach helps prevent unauthorized access and potential data breaches. This approach may also help reduce cyber liability insurance premiums along with saving businesses thousands in potential damages for compromised or lost assets that are not properly tracked.
Asset tracking systems can also provide detailed logs and audit trails, which are essential for identifying and responding to security incidents, locating lost assets, and ensuring that systems are not compromised.
Additional Tracking Capabilities
Beyond tagging and tracking physical assets, digital-based asset management solutions offer extensive tracking capabilities for various types of assets and information. These tools can track additional IT and cybersecurity-related fields such as:
- Software licenses and expiry alerts
- Warranty information
- Operating system end-of-life (EoL) dates
- Antivirus / anti-malware status and version number
- Asset usage patterns
- Asset physical location
- Asset employee assignment
- Service history
These tools can also monitor active compliance with industry standards and regulations, such as NIST and CIS benchmarks, which help businesses maintain a secure and compliant IT environment.
Integration with IT Software
Digital-based asset management tools are also designed to seamlessly integrate with a wide range of other software solutions commonly used in business IT environments, including help desk systems, change ticketing systems, existing inventory management platforms, and enterprise resource planning (ERP) software. By connecting with, for example, help desk systems, businesses can streamline the process of tracking and resolving IT issues for all assets. Linking these tools with ERP systems can provide a comprehensive view of asset-related financial data, such as purchase costs and depreciation, facilitating better financial planning and reporting for businesses.
Implementation on Virtual and Physical Servers
Setting up these asset management solutions can be tailored to fit the specific needs of a business, whether running on a virtual or physical server. Virtual and physical instances are available for almost all tools on the market, allowing for flexibility in deployment preference. Most digital tools also have their own hosting services, which allow customers to avoid the costs and maintenance of hosting the service themselves.
Top Digital Solutions on the Market
When it comes to efficient asset management, several robust digital-based solutions are available to meet the diverse needs of businesses. The following are some of the top IT management systems:
Conclusion
Digital-based asset management solutions offer significant advantages over traditional tracking methods. By implementing these tools, businesses can achieve greater efficiency, security, and accuracy in managing their assets. Each solution provides unique benefits and implementation processes, allowing organizations to choose solutions that best fit their specific needs. Embracing these advanced technologies will not only streamline asset management but also contribute to overall operational success and reduce costs in the long-term.
For further assistance or to discuss how these solutions can be tailored to your specific needs, please feel free to reach out to our team at FoxPointe Solutions.