Category: SAM Series

Regret… We’ve all been there and hate this feeling. I want to talk to you about regret and the software licensing assessment or pre-audit. It’s a truly terrible feeling knowing that you could have done something differently, something that could have changed the way things unfolded.  Maybe, its missing a loved one’s birthday or maybe its wishing you had spoken up when you really know you should have said something.  In my case it could be when I said “yes” to hot sauce on my lunch burrito…Just sayin, the software audit experience can be much more painful if you aren’t ready for it.

I feel like there are two types of regret that we commonly experience.  When we regret “DOING” something or alternatively when we regard “NOT DOING” something.  In the Software Asset Management world, I think we often regret the NOT DOING or not taking action earlier.  We find out too late that there was something wrong… Lapsed support, changing licensing rules that affect compliance… general non understanding of product use rights, the list goes on and on and there are some serious potential consequences at play when you “DO NOTHING”. The worst part is that in almost every case,  if we had only known about it we could have taken simple actions to make the issue go away.

Specifically, in the software licensing world, regret usually settles in when a software publisher notifies you that your organization has been selected for a software compliance audit or, a Software Asset Management (SAM) Engagement.  Pro Tip – they are basically the same thing!   The auditors come in,  run their scripts and turn over their ultra conservative Estimated License Position (ELP) which reveals something you didn’t expect.  Perhaps it was a server that accidentally provided indirect access to much of your organization to a software application (which they are all not licensed for).  It could be that the proof of licensing entitlement that you thought was rock solid isn’t being accepted by the auditor.  Maybe you didn’t implement or properly deploy a good software asset management tool or a SAM Managed Service?  Either way it opens the door to a costly settlement and casts clouds of doubt on your competence as a Software Asset Management Professional.  This is never a good place to find yourself.

So, What Can you Do About It?

I could write a novel about how to build a SAM practice….Oh wait we basically did on this blog, but, I’m going to assume you have some things in place.  If you need ground floor guidance or just a thumbs up from a third party of experts who help others deal with or prevent the regret I’ve described,  just drop us a line and we can talk. I strongly recommend a software licensing assessment.

Bring in an friendly outside auditor who understands how the software vendor will act and behave.   Don’t bring in a software re-seller who says they can do it.  They’ll do it for free but,  ask yourself why…there is some truth to the old saying that you get what you pay for.   Is a software vendor funding it?   How much business intelligence are you just giving away? Who profits from selling additional licenses if there is a compliance gap found?

When MetrixData 360 does software vendor assessment on a specific software publisher, we run them as closely as possible to the way the publisher themselves would run it. How do we know that we are running them the same you are wondering, Many of our internal resources are ex-auditors that have experience running hundreds of audits and understand not only the licensing but, also the internal objectives of the software publishers.  MetrixData 360 will ask for the same sorts of data from you (and help you get it if you don’t know where/how to get it).   We will prepare a report for you (like the one on the right) and coach you on how to bridge any licensing gaps. We do this to make sure there are no surprises in a real audit. We recently completed a software licensing assessment for a company targeting OpenText. We uncovered an initial gap that could have resulted in a claim in the tens of millions of dollar range.   Luckily, we identified it and the client was able to take a few simple actions to eliminate the exposure!  Do you think they were glad they engaged in a software licensing assessment?  You bet they were, absolutely no regret there!

Software Licensing Assessment – What Can I Do To Learn More?

We really want to help you.  Software licensing and SAM is our passion and we are always willing and happy to have a discussion with folks!  Just click the button below to book some time to talk and we can just on a call.  There’s no commitment and frankly the SAM community is pretty small and tight knit.  We’re honestly just interested in licensing and SAM discussions.

I’ve worked in software asset management with hundreds of SAM teams and helped organizations set up successful SAM practices for almost 25 years. One thing seems to hold true. Almost all software asset managers are either Star Trek or Star Wars fans. I can appreciate Star Wars but, I’m a Trek geek at heart. Having said that, I am not here to fight the holy war of Star Trek vs Star Wars. I’ll leave that up to you. I like my Star Trek old school so I’m focused on the original series. Yeah all you kids with your new-fangled Star Trek reboots best stay off of my lawn! That being said, I can’t help but draw parallels between the world of software asset management and Gene Roddenberry’s iconic universe and the voyages of the Star ship Enterprise. So, lets boldly go where no man has gone before and look at my vision of software Asset management through the Star Trek lens.

Tools and Equipment

The USS Enterprise

Beautiful to look at and the home of her crew as they travel the universe in search of adventure on a voyage of exploration. This iconic vessel is your company and you need to defend it against audit and bad software contracts. It may not do Warp 9 but its home and it’s what we all are serving and protecting with our Software Asset Management Practices/ITAM/ITIL.

The Faithful Tricorder

I love the tricorder. It’s the ultimate Swiss army knife of a tool and still futuristic even today. It never fails, the away team beams down and likely the first tool they whip out is the trusty tricorder. Why you ask? It gives them the important data they need in order to make informed decisions. Is it a Class M planet? Is there an indigenous population? Are there specific minerals? To me, it’s like your SAM tools. You need to quickly scan your environment (and you only have limited time to install tools) and get to the data that’s important to you so you can make SAM/ITIL decisions. We really like Certero Asset Studio for Enterprise SAM. It can be installed in a matter of hours and it even helps SAM integrate with IT Service Management (ITSM).

Star Fleet Academy

When a young person joins Star Fleet they usually start their career spending some time at Starfleet Academy. Here they learn what it takes to become an effective Star Fleet officer and gain the knowledge they need to survive in dangerous situations. As a SAM practitioner knowledge is power. An understanding of a variety of software licensing models is necessary in order to keep the auditors at bay and your organization safe from the threat of non-compliance. MetrixData 360 has created a series of e-Learning modules that help you to better understand Microsoft licensing. If you are looking to get a handle on Microsoft Licensing, unleash the power and optimization potential locked up in Active Directory today.

People and Aliens

Spock

Cool, supremely intelligent and eminently logical. A green blooded scientist and a diplomat who calmly brings the, dare I say it, LOGICAL, data driven solution to the SAM/ITIL team. If you’re a SAM Manager this is likely to be the character that you kind of resemble on the team. You enjoy looking at the puzzle that is Software Asset Management and are able to tease out the patterns using deployment tools and licensing statements to find creative solutions. Live long and prosper!

The Red Shirt

Ah, the infamous disposable red shirt. Always eager to join the away team with Kirk and friends and unlikely to return to the ship without a blast mark (or worse) on their chest. We all know this person. When dealing with SAM, sometimes things just don’t go your way. Despite all your best efforts, you need a sacrificial lamb. While I would never advocate this, sometimes you just need to blame someone and a savvy SAM Manager knows who that person is.

Scotty

Montgomery Scott the Chief Engineer and the only person who may love the USS Enterprise more than Captain Kirk. He complains about the urgent requests that come from the bridge crew as they ask for the seemingly impossible. At the last moment, Scotty always finds a technical solution that gives the team what they need to be successful. Stuck down in engineering away from the rest of the core crew Scotty reminds me of your server team or perhaps the DBA team. Tell me if this sounds familiar…. “You need root access in order to get your Certero AssetStudio to run properly.” You need to speak with the stressed out DBA/Server Administrators who are terrified that running a full agent based scan will slow or bring down their priceless environment. You persist, they are able to give you what you need and just like Scotty, you are able to save the day with a full and meaningful picture of the software assets deployed on your entire network.

Captain Kirk

The brave Captain of the Starship Enterprise. He’s considered a brilliant tactician (although a lot of the credit should really to go to Spock) who cares deeply about his ship and his crew. Quick witted and able to acknowledge his mistakes, Kirk leads from the front. He balances military action with diplomatic solutions and scientific research. He’s probably not unlike your CIO. Your CIO juggles reports from the SAM/ITIL team with the fiscal realities of the business unit. The CIO always tries to do what is best for your Star Ship Enterprise and cares about their staff. They realize that having a robust SAM practice is of the utmost importance. They protect and nurture the SAM/ITIL team from both internal and external elements who don’t understand or appreciate their work. In the case of an audit or a Software Contract renewal, the SAM/ITIL team may be the final and best line of defense.

Tribbles

I’m sure you all remember the cute and cuddly tribbles! Ohura brought one on board and they bred like crazy and soon the ship was overflowing with them. They remind me of Microsoft Visio, Microsoft Project, and Adobe Acrobat. Small ticket items that get inside your networks and then sneakily breed on the network. Often you only find out when you’ve been hit with an audit. Luckily with our SAM Compass managed service we can provide you with regular ELP’s to ensure there are no surprises!

Pavel Chekov

The weapons officer who has mastered the defensive and offensive capabilities of the USS Enterprise. He waits for the command to unleash the power of his phasers and photon torpedoes at whatever threatens the safety of his ship when diplomacy has failed. Sometimes in a negotiation with a software publisher, it can be advantageous to play a bit of good cop, bad cop. This tactic can add some value in a Software Contract Negotiation or audit and we have seen it utilized in a number of circumstances. You do however, need to know when diplomacy has failed and to push back and say enough is enough. Charge up your weapons systems and hit them when their shields are down! Here at MetrixData 360 we help you understand when you need to go on the offensive and where/when you can push back.

Hikaru Sulu

The USS Enterprise’s navigator and pilot. His steady hand keeps her safe from harm as he punches it to Warp 8! In the SAM World the navigator is often the person who has the institutional memory around SAM/ITAM and software contracts. This person has seen it all and knows where are the bodies are buried and can tap into resources from other teams. You might say they can navigate their way around your organization. Yeah it’s a bit of a groaner, I know but, these people are indispensable once you find them. They often know the history of why an old Microsoft contract was set up the way it was or how a prior negotiation resulted in a company specific amendment to your contract. Keep these people close as you never know when you need to pick their brains.

Leonard “Bones” McCoy

The Chief Medical Officer on the Enterprise. He’s good friends with Kirk and Spock but, compared to the calm, logical Spock, he is more likely to be the voice of emotion to Kirk and crew. A brilliant doctor, he nonetheless wants to follow his gut reaction in a crisis. Kirk usually takes council from both Spock and McCoy before finding a middle ground. Sometimes, as passionately as we try to convey SAM/ITIL concerns and strategy, it lacks a certain level of emotion. Embrace SAM team members and their passion for Software Asset Management. Harness that passion for the common good!

Nyota Uhura

The communications officer of the USS Enterprise. Lieutenant Uhura is well versed in many languages and maintains communication between the Enterprise, other vessels, Starfleet and pretty much handles all things relating to external communication. She reminds us of of how important it is to maintain communication during an audit and not to go radio silent. Software Auditors are trained to see a client who doesn’t respond to emails, phone calls or requests as a red flag that the audit is going off the rails and that perhaps you have something to hide regarding software license compliance. SAM Teams should also use their communications systems to celebrate their victories. Make sure people in your organization know that your team is making a difference!

The Villains

Star Trek offers us such classic villains as the Klingons and the Romulans. These alien races have very distinct societies and motivations behind their actions. They usually are not aggressive in a way that is out of character with their species. Usually on some level, you can understand where they are coming from. Obviously in the SAM world the villains are any software publisher that is or potentially could be auditing your organization. You may not agree with their motivations but you can usually see what they are trying to do from a tactical perspective. When these villainous auditors rear their heads, your organization will be glad they have you and have invested in SAM. This is where you will need to use your SAM Tools, software education and all the members of your team to gain a win. You may even need to call in some extra help to make sure you emerge victorious. MetrixData 360 is here to help your team with Audit Defense and with SAM Managed Services. Just drop us a line for a free consultation.

I hope you enjoyed this lighthearted look at SAM Teams through a Star Trek Lens. Live Long and Prosper!

We hope this video has prepared you for the most common issues you will face with Software Asset Management. More information about successful SAM strategies and potential pitfalls can be found in our learning center. If you have more questions about maintaining your software environment or to inquire about our SAM services, please reach out to us and one of our customer success reps will respond within 24 hours.

Well, it’s hard to believe but, 2021 is winding down. Myself and the team here at MetrixData 360 thought it would be helpful to peer into the software licensing crystal ball to give some insight to the trends we expect to see in the world of Software Licensing and Software Asset Management (SAM) as we move into 2022. Some of what I have listed is vendor specific and some of the Software Asset Management trends are more general as relates to the Software Audit and SAM space. One thing is clear, organizations from small, to the largest enterprise and public sector, are coming to the realization that having a good handle on software licensing positions and implementing Software Asset Management processes can drive down costs considerably and help mitigate potential exposure.

The Merciless Onslaught of The Software Audit

One of the trends we are expecting to see as we move into 2022 is increased software audit activity from software vendors. Watch for software vendors that have traditionally not been active in auditing starting to develop and push forward with software license audits. Increased competition from smaller vendors and lack of innovation in newer versions of most software being released is driving a value gap which manifests itself in businesses being slower to upgrade. These factors are creating a perfect storm of declining revenues vs wall street expectations. The fact that most software companies are publicly traded means that they need to figure out how they can close the growing revenue gap. Watch for the traditional Mega Software Licensing Vendors such as Microsoft, Oracle and IBM to continue their audit activity and considering the revenue stream that their Software license audit practices are producing year over year, don’t be surprised to see increased activity from the likes of VMware, RedHat, Autodesk, Symantec, Quest and others in 2022.

C.A.M. The advent of – Cloud Asset Management

Increasing complexity around cloud offerings and determining exactly what is required vs premium features means overcharging is running rampant. We are going to see a shift from traditional software licensing schemes by vendors to consumption based models. The importance of being able to monitor in real time when cloud based applications and services are being consumed will become paramount in controlling costs. A great example of this is Microsoft’s Office 365. Even though someone is only licensed for access to a basic set of features, some premium features will also be made available at the click of a mouse. If a user is accessing those premium features, your organization is responsible for licensing them as such. Real time reporting that can tell you exactly what employees are accessing and which features are active will move the needle from traditional software asset management towards the new wild west in software licensing which will be cloud asset management.

How secure is your data in the cloud?

This isn’t a new trend but, one that will continue to see increasing scrutiny in the coming year ahead. Understanding geographically where your data is stored and what rights foreign governments have to force cloud providers to allow access to cloud data is paramount in keeping your company’s data private. It’s also important to consider what contractual rights the cloud provider themselves hold regarding accessing customer’s data in their cloud. Even if the infrastructure belongs to the likes of Amazon or Microsoft, strict limitations need to be negotiated into contracts that clearly define your organization’s right to privacy. It is not out of the realm of possibility that vendors could gain potential competitive advantage by knowing what software you are running, how your organization is using it. Watch for more encryption services and offerings to come into the market in 2022 as well as increased maturity of best practices in creating policies to protect the privacy of your cloud environment.

Upgrade or else…

As I mentioned earlier, slowing upgrade cycles is putting downward pressure on software vendor’s revenue. Many businesses just don’t see value in new releases of software and are therefore sitting tight for extended periods of time with the software licenses they already own the perpetual rights for. Watch for new releases of software from mega vendors such as Oracle and Microsoft to offer premium features and integration with other software that will only be available with the latest versions going forward. Microsoft has already announced this when in 2020 if you are not running a current supported version of Office you will not be able to access the Office 365 cloud. Understanding the roadmaps that software companies have laid out and how new releases might affect access to other vendors software that have previously enjoyed a symbiotic relationship will be key into making sure that your organization isn’t being walked onto a ledge that takes the decision to upgrade out of your hands.

The perils of indirect access.

We fully expect that another pain in the side of around Software licensing in 2022 will be indirect access. SAP has been making headlines around the globe as they pursue large enterprise clients for licensing and compliance fees and penalties related to indirect access. As much as indirect access is an issue when discussing SAP, the occurrence of accidental access is a trend that shouldn’t be ignored. We see many organizations that are hosting applications on servers that give users unrestricted access to deploy that application or many applications. It’s so important that every company understands, if users on their network have access to applications, the organization will be held responsible for licensing all users that have access. It does not matter if the application is being launched or not. The fact that users “could” access or deploy an application from a server has become a huge compliance risk. Make it one of your resolutions for the new year to check internally and ensure that users who don’t require access to server based applications do not have the ability to access them. Use firewalls or create policies to ensure that your organization is not at risk of compromising compliance rules through either indirect access or accidental access in 2022.

Bring Your Own Device

(BYOD) licensing, policies and process.

As the business world continues to evolve and control costs by having employees bring their own devices into the company’s environment, new challenges will present themselves in 2022. One of the trends that we are observing in the BYOD space is companies struggling with how to keep software that installed by a user for personal use off their networks. Most software companies do not distinguish rules between running applications off a personal device and a company managed device in their software licensing rules and use rights. If you are being audited and that software shows up in network scans, it can leave your organization open to compliance issues and steep financial implications. Avoid giving software vendors any leverage in software compliance audits by strengthening policies around BYOD. Creating containers that are installed on these managed devices to ensure that software licenses purchased by users outside your network are not able to move freely into your corporate infrastructure.

The advent of Software Asset Management (SAM) as a service.

We are all familiar with managed services. Using outside companies to provide hardware infrastructure, network monitoring services, or professional services to save money has become common place. One of the biggest trends to watch for in software licensing this coming year will be services to assist organizations with their software asset management in real time. For some years now, software vendors have been bringing tools to market claiming that discovery and inventory capabilities of their software asset management tools will save huge money. The reality of this claim is that a software inventory tool is only one pillar of what is required to really ensure compliance and drive savings from spiraling software investments.

Software asset management as a service will add two additional and absolutely required pillars to the picture. These components are people with expertise and the process on which the entire SAM concept needs to include if it is to be successful. Having experts who understand that there are many ways that a software application can be deployed and its use optimized within your environment is logic that no software inventory tool on the market can integrate. Being able to visualize and create meaningful reporting that adds value to your business is key and there really aren’t that many true experts in the workforce. Expert resources offered by SAM as a managed service adds additional benefits to vendors who license their products by Processor Value Unit (PVU). I have spoken to numerous experts in the field of IBM and Oracle licensing who back up the claim that there isn’t a tool on the market today that does a good job of inventorying software licensing that is based on PVU calculations. Setting up the processes to ensure success is the final key pillar of software asset management as a service. It goes far beyond simply making sure licenses are counted, purchased or reclaimed on an ongoing basis. It ensures that the reporting that comes from software asset management tools can be arranged in a way that business leaders can easily visualize licensing data and get real recommendations based on use, what rights your business has to use the software and how that information all fits together with technology roadmaps and upgrade cycles. Look for software asset management as a service to be a big deal as we move forward into 2022.

MetrixData 360 is known for being pioneers in the SAM space and we have developed our own Software Asset Management as a service offering called SAM Compass.  It takes data from whatever tool your organization is using for inventory, couples it with licensing expertise and our proven best practice processes. SAM Compass Software asset management as a service is the result of knowledge gained assisting organizations through software contract renewals, software audits and developing strategy to assist with the adoption of new software technologies. SAM compass will be the silver bullet that we have all been looking for as we seek savings and compliance that will finally unearth the 25-40% savings that have been promised by SAM tools. The best part about Software asset management as a service is that we see this as being a service that will fund itself with the savings organizations experience when they adopt it.