For almost any electrical or mechanical device you can buy, there’s some form of appropriate quality assurance scheme – from the British “kite mark” and “CE” stamps for electrical goods through to NCAP ratings for motor vehicle safety. But what about software? And specifically Software Asset Management or License Management applications?
Since these tools have been on the market, the companies that develop them have been free to make whatever marketing and sales claims they see fit without much, if anything, in the way of independent verification.
License Dashboard is no different in that regard. While our staff have gone through the necessary exams and qualifications to gain us the Microsoft Gold Partner for Software Asset Management competency, there hasn’t been a similar test for our technology. Until now.
Recently, License Dashboard’s License Manager solution was the first SAM tool to successfully complete the new KPMG SAM Tools Assessment, an independent verification that our solution is indeed fit for purpose and lives up to the marketing claims we make. The assessment criteria was devised and delivered by KPMG’s SAM team in Cologne, Germany – by all accounts one of the most respected SAM consultancy teams in the world. Their goal was to create a meaningful set of tests that would give customers comfort that the solutions they bought really delivered more than just pretty window dressing and actually addressed the key issues of license management, such as software recognition, license import and accurate reconciliation.
So, over the course of three days of intense testing, License Manager and Discovery were deployed in KPMG’s test environment and pitted against live assets – challenged with accurately identifying the software installed, discerning suites from standalone products and verifying license entitlements etc.
The resulting ‘KPMG SAM Tools Assessment’ badge proves to new and existing customers that our technologies have been thoroughly tested and reviewed by industry experts. The fact that License Dashboard is the first vendor to achieve this accolade is testament to both our willingness to put our tool under scrutiny and also the solutions’ abilities to be deployed and start delivering meaningful results in record times. A great indicator for a strong ROI in the real world.
Not that that is a replacement for customer due diligence. SAM Tools selection can be a difficult task, hence why it is so important to fully identify your organization’s requirements and then thoroughly test a solution’s ability to deliver.
In part two, we’ll discuss how that due diligence should be carried out, depending on the organization’s priorities and how it plans to use a SAM tool moving forward. For now, to read more about the KPMG SAM Tools Assessment program and criteria, visit the KPMG site here [http://www.kpmg.de/WhatWeDo/30537.htm#a30808]
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