Everybody is aware of the challenge of maintaining an accurate inventory of large distributed IT networks. But, the extent by which estimates can be out takes most managers by surprise.

With hardware and software coming and going all the time, maintaining central control proves difficult. But the implications for all aspects of IT management and in particular for costs are sometimes misunderstood.

Analyst research suggests that IT inventories in large organizations can be out by as much as 20% – a figure which tallies with our direct experience of hundreds of companies. But if estimates of the amount of hardware and software are out by a factor of 20%, then so too are costs.

The reality is that most organisations are paying for licences, leases and support in respect of software and hardware that is under used, over licensed, or redundant.  Although previously hidden and traditionally overlooked in IT inventories and budgets, these areas can deliver annual savings of up to 20% of IT expenditure.

But it does not stop there. Inaccurate IT inventory information often results in over spending in terms of infrastructure and desktop refresh programs, as well as a host of other IT initiatives, such as virtualization, or software migration.

Providing managers with more detailed and accurate information regarding the networks they have to manage and support is vital to delivering more IT for less. In this era of budget cuts, where traditional cost cutting puts projects and service levels at risk, exploiting these less painful and more surgical cuts is a must.

Our audit, inventory and monitoring suite, called iQSonar enable organizations to discover, scan and track all PCs, software and devices in real time,pinpointing; licencing, utilization, compliance and other issues.

On the basis of this new and up to date information managers can; cut costs , maximize security, ensure compliance and otherwise more effectively manage their IT.