Software asset management standards and best practice take-up remains low
27 September 2011
By David Graham
Interest in standards and best-practice frameworks to support software asset management (SAM) is increasing, but uptake of SAM-specific standards and frameworks is low.
IT asset managers are struggling to understand how IT Asset Management (ITAM) processes will be affected by ITIL best practice framework, ISO Software Asset Management (SAM) standards and developing standards. Their goal is to ensure that the optimal blend of industry standards and practices is being implemented, and to defend more robustly against compliance audits.
As Software Asset Management (SAM) increases in popularity, organisations are looking for guidance on SAM best practice, and methodologies for assessing the effectiveness of processes and policies.
The development of the ISO 19770 series of SAM standards has focused attention on the contribution that such standards and best-practice frameworks (such as ITIL) can make to organisations implementing and improving SAM.
To achieve a better understanding of the way in which standards and best-practice frameworks are being applied to improve SAM initiatives, Gartner conducted a survey at SAM briefings across EMEA between March and June 2011.
The majority of respondents (63%) appear to be applying standards and frameworks to their SAM capability, although this majority is by no means overwhelming. A significant percentage (31%) believe that no standards or frameworks are needed to support their SAM activity. In addition, 32% have adopted ITIL V3 SACM (which forms part of Service Transition) which is primarily concerned with the management of service assets rather than hardware or software assets.
Surprisingly, only four respondents indicated the use of multiple standards and frameworks to support SAM. Of those who have adopted ITIL Service Asset and Configuration Management (SACM), one had also adopted ITIL SAM V2, and of three respondents using ISO 19770-1, three have adopted ITIL SAM (V2 or V3); of those, one also used COBIT to support SAM.
It is surprising that more ITIL-aligned organisations are not using both SACM and SAM of one version or another. Discussion with clients indicates that those who leverage multiple standards gain a variety of complementary insights and do not necessarily encounter conflicts or duplication of effort if the application of the standards and frameworks is well managed.
Where standards such as ISO 9000 or methodologies such COBIT and ITIL are used throughout the organisation, many synergies can be identified and leveraged.