What is IT Asset Management (ITAM?)

03 February 2021
3 minute read
Best practice

What is IT Asset Management (ITAM?)

03 February 2021
3 minute read

I’m pleased to launch a new series today: White Board Wednesday.

White board Wednesday is me, a white board and learning about all things IT Asset Management (ITAM), every Wednesday!

In this first video, we ask the simple questions: What is IT Asset Management (ITAM)?


What is IT Asset Management (ITAM)?  – Whiteboard Wednesday Episode 1

https://youtu.be/nGIfkBCXExs


Please like, follow, subscribe to Whiteboard Wednesday updates, reach out on social media and say hello, and let me know what else you want explained on the whiteboard, and we’ll get it done!


What is IT Asset Management (ITAM)? Transcript

Abbreviated transcript:

“So the first ever video for Whiteboard Wednesday, so we have to cover the topic of “what is ITAM” anyway? What is “IT Asset Management”?

IT Asset Management means treating your investment in IT, like an asset, this is opposed to running it into the ground, or just turning on the tap and spending the money and not caring what happens to it.

By means of example, let’s imagine that you own a supermarket chain, and you have stores across the country, and you have some trucks in order to deliver your goods out to your stores, and sell to your customers. Now, these trucks might not be the most glamorous thing that you own, they might not even be the most expensive thing you own. But they’re pretty strategic. Because if you have no trucks, you get no goods down to the customers, you have no business.

So it makes common sense for the supermarket business to treat these trucks and their performance like an asset, because no trucks – no business.

By treating it like an asset, you’re going to watch the spend to make sure it’s delivering the value intended and you’re getting best value for that asset. You’re going to address any risks in the delivery and the performance of those trucks to make sure it is serving the business.

And because you’re treating it like an asset, you’re going to be more responsive to what the business actually needs. So say for example, you need to open 10 extra supermarkets, because you’re treating those trucks like an asset, you know exactly what you’ve got, how it’s being used, and you can respond to that business requirement straightaway.

Now, exactly the same is true of IT Asset Management (ITAM), we’re treating our investment in IT like an asset. We’ve got much better visibility of what we’re spending and the value it’s delivering to the business. We can manage the risks associated with buying those IT assets. And because we know exactly what’s going on, how it’s configured, how it’s being used, we can respond to business requirements a lot quicker. That is IT Asset Management in a nutshell. That’s ITAM.”

About Martin Thompson

Martin is the founder of ITAM Forum, a not-for-profit trade body for the advancement of IT Asset Management.

He is also the author of the book "Practical ITAM - The essential guide for IT Asset Managers", a book that describes how to get started and make a difference in the field of IT Asset Management. In addition, Martin developed the PITAM training course and certification.

Connect with Martin on LinkedIn.

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