Background
Electus* are a large organization based in the UK, managing an IT estate of around 4,000 devices. When our engagement began they were experiencing numerous management challenges: contractors using their corporate equipment, a heavily entrenched deployment of SAP and an implementation of ITIL that seemed to offer more reasons to maintain the status-quo or do nothing, rather than seek to promote technological progress and better IT management. There was a clear need for a relevant and effective SAM process framework!
They also had a SAM suite in place which they felt wasn’t working for them anymore and they were considering replacing it with a competing technology.
A roadmap to effective SAM process
ITAA offer a SAM Process Maturity Review and best-in-class process maps to promote SAM/ITAM best practice from a process perspective. However, a degree of customization is required to take these tools and achieve a SAM solution that is tailored to your organization.
During the course of this 45-day engagement we conducted a SAM Process Maturity Review, the findings from which provided us with a roadmap to deliver:
- An ITAM Policy Document
- An ITAM Operations Plan
- 15 Customized Process Maps
- 15 Customized Process Walk-throughs
- A Customized RACI Chart
- A Customized SAM Process Eco-System
Having established a robust framework, the SAM team could now look beyond ELP generation as their primary goal. By following the new SAM processes, they could measure the performance of the IT estate and take action in real-time, rather than waiting for an ELP to react to.
SAM processes implementation and results
Over the following 18 months Electus embraced and implemented the new ITAM policies and SAM processes. Using the Process maps and RACI chart the Head of SAM was able to demonstrate to senior management how best-in-class IT should be managed. Having made a convincing case, the Head of SAM was given ownership of the software request process, release and configuration. The positive effect of these changes was clearly visible and the success of the program was recognized with a further promotion.
Electus also decided to keep their existing SAM suite. This was a good decision. Unless your SAM solution is at a high or evolved level of maturity it is unlikely that swapping out the SAM suite will solve your organization’s problems. The technical reach of your existing technology should be exhausted before you consider such a course of action. In the majority of cases, it is what your SAM team are (or are not) doing with the technology that shapes the results you are getting.
Summary
SAM/ITAM will always present technical demands due to the nature of the assets it is seeking to manage, but the whole IT picture is only brought into focus when we consider what staff are doing with the tools that are put at their disposal. Investing in robust SAM process maps and ensuring they are understood and adopted by the relevant stakeholders is as important as having the right technology in place.
Can ITAA’s SAM expert help your organization? Please contact us to find out more.
*Protecting our clients’ confidence is of utmost importance at ITAA. While our success stories are based on true projects, we have used fictitious names and removed or changed other identifiable details.
