The increasing migration of apps, platforms and infrastructure into large data centre and cloud environments, and the transformation of traditional on-premise offerings into Software as a Service (SaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS)
or Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) solutions is forcing companies to re-evaluate the individual areas of ITAM and related integrated processes. Each solution requires a closer look at responsibilities and accountabilities as well.
TIP #17 - November 2019: How is the ongoing migration to the cloud forcing companies to re-evaluate the individual areas of ITAM?
Why should there be a re-assessment?
Classical ITAM (or Software Asset Management) focuses on the correct use of assets according legal agreements and thereafter on cost optimisation. Within cloud infrastructures, however, the focus is on Cloud Consumption Management & Optimisation. Various "as a services" are managed by the cloud service provider, which in this context provides cloud portals and API’s as the basis for data. Only what is tracked by the service provider is invoiced and therefore relevant for companies.
In addition, the increasing complexity of managing assets due to different scalable cloud or on-demand services that have become more common, also results in the need of keeping an employee headcount (internal or external). Besides that, there is a need to set or keep boundaries when instant expansion of assets is allowed by platforms like Microsoft Azure or Amazon AWS and are billed on a per-use basis.
In brief: The ITAM's focus in cloud resources is on recording, optimising (rightsizing) and managing the use of these resources with the aim for cost savings.
Cloud Management & Optimisation
Cloud Management & Optimisation is performed through usage evaluation and in accordance with operational needs. By integrating portals of relevant cloud providers, such as Amazon AWS or Microsoft Azure, tools are able to identify unused entities, underused entities, temporarily used entities or even illegally used entities, preventing you from unauthorised access to applications and critical business-data as well. Cloud Optimisation leads to practical recommendations on which entities can be adjusted in size or format and which entities need to be reconsidered or even be cancelled.