Barbara Scott Director, Advisory & Consulting Services

Q. How can I integrate equipment stored in various locations around my company into an asset management program?

A. A central information repository is key to effectively managing your technology assets. First, develop consistent processes with which to gather the data to be fed into the repository so it’s accurate and up-to-date. Address processes, such as how the inventory is received, returned, removed or deployed; who will be responsible for ongoing reconciliation; and how storage costs, depreciation, property taxes, chargeback capabilities and entitlement information are factored. In some cases, it may be necessary to physically audit facilities to identify places where equipment is stored and what software is installed, ensuring that this information is included in the central repository. Tracking upgrades and changes to inventory by developing metrics to measure the performance of the process is also necessary to develop an effective, central repository.

Q. With thumb drives and Blackberries walking out of our offices every day, how do I manage those mobile devices safely and effectively?

A. The most effective policy in regard to thumb drives is one that prohibits use in the business environment. Supporting that policy may require engineering measures that disable the capability on company-owned assets or requiring encryption software. For Blackberry devices or other micro assets with mobile email retrieval capabilities, data encryption combined with secure password access to the device should be mandatory, along with automated data destruction in the event of unauthorized access attempts. Therefore, only devices that can be engineered accordingly should be approved. Anything short of these measures exposes the organization to vulnerability and a potential high-profile security breach.

Q. How do I address the issue of off-boarding employees to ensure the assets they utilize are properly tracked?

A. At a minimum, managers with accountability for off-boarding employees should have access to the information that describes the assets currently assigned to employees for the purpose of collection. Upon collection, managers should request recovery of the assets for reallocation or disposition. However, more effective management practices of off-boarded employees can be achieved by ensuring the integration of policies, processes and data between the human resources system or information, and the asset management information repository.

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