The South West Regional Development Agency saves $40,000 by implementing Software Asset Management

January 12, 2009, 10:50 AM — The South West RDA leads the development of a sustainable economy in South West England, investing to unlock the region’s business potential. With a core strategy focused on creating the conditions for productivity–led growth, South West RDA works in partnership with public and private sector organizations.

Within the discipline of Information Communication Technology (ICT), South West RDA (SWRDA) aims to lead by example by using the infrastructure available within the South West region, new technologies and adopting best practice whenever possible.

South West RDA – the need for Software Asset Management

The in–house ICT team at SWRDA was established at the end of 2006. One of the team’s first objectives following a small technical refresh was tackling Software Asset Management (SAM). While the team had been using Microsoft’s Systems Management Server (SMS) to track software within the organization, it soon became clear that they would have to take additional measures to establish greater control over their IT environment to ensure they were managing their software licenses effectively. At this stage, without the necessary skills in house, they approached IT Consultants Softcat for their professional advice on Software Asset Management products and processes.

Previously, software had been allowed to roam with users which meant that whenever a user logged on to a computer that didn’t have the same software that they were used to using, the system would automatically install it for them. This resulted in an increase in the number of software installations across the organization which had to be managed effectively without compromising the user experience.

At the same time SWRDA was undergoing a comprehensive spending review which meant the IT team also needed to keep a close eye on cost.

“Our project had three goals” says Andrew Hammett, ICT Operations Manager, SWRDA. “With the ongoing spending review it was important that we reduce the administrative overhead of managing our deployed software to reduce costs. It was also critical that we achieve full license compliance for all of our software and demonstrate our commitment to SAM. And lastly, we wanted to improve the management of those licenses owned by the Agency.”

Finding the right solution

The South West RDA engaged software licensing, hardware and security solutions provider Softcat to deliver SAM consultancy. Having initially established the Agency’s current situation, in–house skills and project goals, Softcat set about putting processes and technology in place to help them get compliant and ensure better ongoing software management. At this point, Softcat demonstrated the latest SAM solutions from FrontRange, showing how the technology would enable the Agency to realize their project goals more quickly.

“We were impressed with the functionality of the FrontRange SAM Suite solution – it was a good fit and came highly recommended – we therefore didn’t feel the need to conduct an evaluation of other solutions. FrontRange SAM Suite was installed at the end of 2007 in just one day by the IT team at SWRDA.”

Taking control of the network

Once SAM Suite was installed, discovering what was on the network was the first task: “A third of our staff have mobile working capabilities so are not always logged on to the network,” says Andrew. “We therefore let Discovery in SAM Suite run for a short period of time to ensure we were able to detect all of those pieces of equipment.”

The discovery exercise brought to light the fact that the South West RDA had a larger number of installations of software products than was expected: “Prior to using the Centennial Discovery component of SAM suite, we suspected that we had excess installations but we had neither the tools or the management information to show us where and by how much we were over–installed,” says Andrew. “Discovery also uncovered some disparity between versions of software where products had perhaps been upgraded without our knowledge.”

“The solution very quickly allowed us to create a full audit of our infrastructure, make sure we understood the versions of software that were being used throughout and remove any software applications that were over–installed.”

The IT team also redeployed a new software image to all desktops and laptops to enable better control of the software on the computers they support.

“We’ve been able to refine our processes around deploying and updating software which has resulted in a better service to users,” says Andrew. “Not only have Softcat and the procedures set helped us to employ much tougher restrictions on users, we are now able to use Centennial Discovery to provide an additional check of how many software installations or updates have successfully been installed after they’ve been deployed.”

Becoming compliant and staying compliant

Once the South West RDA was certain that they had an accurate understanding of all software on the network they progressed with the reconciliation of licenses. The South West RDA worked with Softcat to complete reconciliation for Microsoft, Adobe and other key software vendors’ licenses first and are now working through the remaining software vendors to make sure they are compliant across every software application they use. “FrontRange SAM Suite acts as a repository for all our software installation data and license proof of entitlements. Should we have a visit from a vendor, we now have the ability to show what software is installed versus what licenses we own – quickly and efficiently,” said Hammett.

“We do a weekly check of the License Manager in SAM Suite and can now access an at–a–glance summary of our license compliance position. We have also established processes to ensure we have a correct license prior to any software install. However, if we find we are a license short we can either make a reduction somewhere in the organization or purchase an additional license for that software. Conversely, our tools and procedures can also highlight instances where we can redeploy software to other users on the network. This enables us to be more proactive and responsive to our users – setting expectations and re–assigning software quickly and efficiently when appropriate.”

Reducing costs

In addition to achieving license compliance and improving general IT planning and management, the South West RDA has also been able to make significant cost reductions.

“Now that we have a complete understanding of our software installations we are able to optimize the use of those resources,” says Andrew. “In addition to being confident that we dramatically reduced our compliance risk, we have also been able to reduce excess installations and save the cost of buying additional licenses, which has saved us approximately $40,000,” said Hammett.

Long term benefits – establishing best practice

FrontRange SAM Suite’s Discovery and License Manager capabilities are fully operational and the South West RDA can now determine their software compliance position at a glance for the majority of their suppliers. In the coming months the South West RDA will be using FrontRange SAM Suite to manage all software licenses for the 60+ applications they use and are additionally evaluating FrontRange SAM Suite for its software metering capability to establish which installed applications are currently under–utilized.

“We try to lead by example,” commented Hammett. “Software Asset Management is a key area that organizations should be on top of but often aren’t. Companies either do not prioritize on SAM or don’t fully understand where to start. As well as ensuring we are compliant we also have the opportunity to establish SAM best practice to help demonstrate to other organizations how they too can better manage the software within their environment.

“We are very pleased with the combination of SAM advice and expertise from Softcat and the SAM technology from FrontRange and would certainly recommend both to anyone looking to gain control of their IT estate and establish and maintain software compliance. SAM Suite very quickly enabled us to understand our software installations and continues to help us to manage our licenses effectively – ensuring we remain compliant at all times while significantly reducing our costs in this area.

“We are now working with Softcat on an ongoing basis, putting policies and processes in place that reflect the best practices outlined in ISO 19770–1,” concluded Hammett.