Managed Services / Software License Management

A Powerful Service with a Powerful Guarantee

Veriam's Software License Management service is simply the most robust SLM offering in the ITAM industry today.  Backed by our Software License Compliance GuaranteeSM, Veriam's SLM service allows you to rest assured that your software licensing will remain in compliance, or we will waive our fees to pay your fine and license shortfall1.

Our SLM service is extremely comprehensive and features the following key components:

Value Analysis
Software Risk Analysis
Managed Software List (MSL)
MarCom
Software License Baselining
ITAM Process Review and Customization
Advanced Shipping Notice (ASN) Processing
Software Request Portal
Autodiscovery
Data Catchpoints and Audit
Software Harvesting and Reuse with Financial Tracking
Compliance and ROI Reporting
Detailed License TrackingSystem Monitoring and Analysis
Software Licence Compliance Guarantee

Details of each of these components are provided below.

Value Analysis

We will work with your organization to identify where we can achieve the most ROI through improved software license management within your enterprise.  We will analyze your software usage, related software processes, ITAM processes, and more to develop a ranked list of ROI opportunities.

Software Risk Analysis

We will work with your procurement team, ITAM team and others to analyzed and understand your compliance risk.

Managed Software List

Based upon the outcomes of the Value Analysis and Software Risk Analysis, we will develop the Managed Software List (MSL) that will comprise the initial target list of applications for the SLM program.  The MSL represents those applications that represent the highest value and consequently, the highest ROI opportunites and the greatest license risk, and the MSL will be the initial focus for license tracking and reuse.  By not pursuing every application in the enterprise initially, the project risk is greatly reduced and ROI is achieved much earler.  Once the MSL is established and the system is operational, a Change Advisory Board (CAB) is established to manage the MSL, adding and subtracting applications when necessary.

MarCom

Professional marketing and communications is a fundamental component of Veriam's SLM program and it is one of the keys to a successful implementation.  Through targeted MarCom at all levels of the organization, specific groups are educated on the importance and goals of the program, and they are kept abreast of progress as the program is implemented.  After run-state is achieved, MarCom is used to maintain high levels of process adherence and to maximize software reuse throughout the organization.

Software License Baselining

After the MSL has been identified, Veriam will work with your procurement, contracting and IT organizations to develop baseline software license counts that will be used to initialize the number of "owned licenses" for each application.

Process Review and Customization

Every organizational process that might have an effect on licensed software is carefully analyzed by the Veriam process team.  Where necessary, data catchpoints are created and the process is modified to ensure that the SLM platform captures any change to the license compliance picture or to the license distribution.  Every attempt is made to minimize the impact on current operations by seamlessly integrating the data catchpoints with the current operational processes.

Advance Shipping Notice (ASN) Processing - Automatic Updating of License Procurement Data

A leading cause of out-of-date license data is that time is seldom taken to accurately enter licensing data into the SLM system.  Veriam mitigates this risk by working with each software vendor to obtain regular ASNs for each license purchase and return.  The ASNs are automatically captured by Veriam's SLM platform, and Veriam personnel manually review the results of each ASN to ensure that it is both completely and accurately processed.  Clients will be delighted to learn that the countless hours of reconciling software title nomenclature are a thing of the past, as this function is also performed by Veriam.

Software Request Portal

Veriam's Software Request Portal streamlines the software request and authorization process through a web-based system that automatically creates software requests, forwards those requests to designated approvers, and manages the results.  Our Software Request Portal can also integrate with software delivery management applications such as Altiris and SMS for a seamless solution from request to automated installation.  With this powerful combination, clients can easily reduce the request and installation time from days to just minutes.

Autodiscovery

Autodiscovery is a key component of any ITAM or SLM solution.  Veriam can leverage your current autodiscovery investment, or we can utilize our own technology to monitor your assets and software.  Autodiscovery is used within our SLM platform to continually verify that the licensing on each asset conforms with the current-state picture as defined in the license database. Deviations from the designated current-state may have a variety of outcomes depending upon the identified issue and the client's preferences.  These outcomes may range from deviation alerts to automatic internal charges for software installed outside the defined process for software acquisition (there's nothing like a financial charge to stop unwanted behavior).

Data Catchpoints and Audit, Audit, and MORE Audit

Any ITAM or SLM solution is only as accurate as the data that goes in it.  One of the most problematic aspects of a system is facilitating the entry and maintenance of the data as the organization executes it daily purchasing and IT activities.  Veriam keeps data accurate and current by tailoring data catchpoint screens and injecting those screens in each process that may affect the state of an asset or the license distribution picture.  Further, in accordance with our belief that only processes that are actively monitored are executed consistently, Veriam builds strong audit reporting around each data catchpoint.  The audit reporting is monitored by our staff to ensure that each data catchpoint is being executed and that data being collected is being processed correctly by the system.

Software Harvesting and Reuse

Software harvesting and reuse is a powerful ROI weapon that can often pay for the entire ITAM / SLM program.  Veriam's software license management solution leverages an extremely robust harvest and reuse function that will maximize software reuse throughout the enterprise.   Through the process analysis, Veriam will identify each opportunity where unused and underutilized software licenses can be harvested.  MarCom will be used to ensure that the organization is properly educated and that the program's success is disseminated to encourage even more participation.  Finally, a series of behavior drivers are implemented to keep participation at maximum levels.

One of the most advanced features of our reuse platform is Veriam's ability to implement a software exchange between cost centers.  A significant barrier to software reuse has always been software hoarding by managers within cost centers who fear that donating software for general reuse will result in a financial loss if they have to repurchase the software in the future. However, using Veriam's SLM solution, cost centers who donate software for reuse elsewhere in the organization can receive financial credit when that software is utilized by a different cost center.  This capability has proven to exceed even the most optimistic goals for establishing a value-producing software reuse program.

Compliance and ROI Reporting

Regular reporting is paramount to keeping clients abreast of the status of the ITAM / SLMSoftware License Compliance dashboard image program.  Veriam's managed service produces a variety of dashboards and reports for individuals and target groups to monitor the program's success and to demonstrate where the ITAM / SLM program should be improved.  Live dashboards, such as the Software License Compliance dashboard shown to the right, can be customized for each system user so that the high-level status of key indicators such as system status, compliance status, reuse balance, etc. can be watched in real-time.  Detailed reports include license balances for each application, current ROI versus projected ROI, asset status, asset breakdowns, and many, many more.

Specific License Tracking with Individual License History Reporting Yields Unmatched Audit Reporting

A unique characteristic of Veriam's license tracking is the fact that under Veriam's program, discrete licenses are tracked individually to specific assets.  Veriam believes that tracking licenses in total and constantly trying to balance the total number of licenses in total and constantly trying to balance the total number of licenses seen on the network with the known number of owned licenes is cumbersome, counter productive and leads to failures.  Candidly, if this approach worked, license fines would be a thing of the past, except for intentional violations.

Veriam tracks each license individually, as it enters the organizations and as it transfers from one asset to another.  There are many benefits to this approach.  First, by maintaining a detailed picture of where each individual license is deployed, Veriam can quickly identify when rogue licenses appear on the network or when deployed licenses are no longer seen on the network. You will know not only that your licensing is out of compliance, you will know specifically which systems are operating unlicensed software!  Secondly, individual license tracking produces unparalleled audit reports.  Rather than trying to produce report totals and then justifying these balances to auditors, detailed reports can be produced showing software licenses moving individually through the organization from purchase to deployment, to reuse, to disposal.  Also, without specific license tracking, it is impossible to provide real-time compliance status, such as the dashboard above, because of the accuracy levels required to give such a view in a volatile environment.

System Monitoring and Analysis

A cornerstone of Veriam's service is the level of monitoring and analysis performed by Veriam staff on behalf of our clients.  Each day, Veriam staff reviews the program status of each client and analyzes both the system activity and the overall state of the program against the target goals.  Anomalies and exceptions are reviewed and corrected, and actions are regularly taken to improve the system.  Also, regular review sessions are held with each client to discuss client functions such as catchpoint and process execution.  The result is an ITAM / SLM program that allows clients to focus on their core business, while feeling confident that their licenses are in compliance.

Compliance Guarantee

Naturally, with so many moving parts, any software license management program is subject to hiccups, and many CIOs loose sleep worrying about problems going unnoticed and resulting in a large fine and loss of reputation.  As a managed service, Veriam takes our role in our clients' compliance programs seriously, and we are happy to share that risk with them.  As a client of Veriam's Platinum Guaranteed SLM program, if you should ever fail an audit and have to pay fines and software license fees, Veriam will waive our fees for up to a year to help you recover your expenditure1, regardless of the size of your monthly bill.  Can your ITAM vendor say the same?

 

1Terms and Conditions Apply – click here for details.

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