Mar 17, 2015

These days, enterprises have more assets than many company leaders realize. Everything from office equipment to technology to the workforce itself can be considered a business asset, and therefore requires management to ensure smooth completion of processes, overall protection and to guarantee that these advantageous resources remain the company’s own.

Types of assets
When looking to roll out a business asset management initiative, organizational leaders must first identify what items and property qualify. Demand Media contributor K.A. Francis noted that there are three types of primary assets: tangible, intangible and intellectual property. Tangible assets, for example, including things like the firm’s physical building, office equipment and any vehicles utilized for business purposes. Intangible assets are a bit harder to define, but can include the the enterprise’s reputation, the industry knowledge of its staff and general name recognition. Lastly, intellectual property are items like the company’s trademarks, patents, logos, inventions and other creative ideas formulated by employees.

Tips for deploying a business asset management plan
Now that the different assets the organization owns have been defined, there are a few ways that administrators can ensure the successful creation and deployment of their business asset management initiative. The first of these efforts is to outline the goals that the company hopes to achieve with its business asset management policy in place, according to Dell KACE contributor Christopher Blake.

He also suggested decision-makers take the longview of things when crafting the business asset management plan, including making room for ongoing adjustments and additions.

“Your business and your IT systems are constantly changing and keeping them aligned is an ongoing effort,” Blake wrote. “An effective asset management plan requires ongoing review to allow you to maximize the value.”

However, when it comes to the initial plan, CIO Update contributor Lori Sechio advised starting small. At first, company leaders should be sure to not take on more than they can handle, and instead focus their efforts on specific sections of the business and move forward from there.

Sechio also recommended including a number of department leaders and employees in the process, including senior managers. The support and feedback of these individuals can prove invaluable to the business asset management policy creation and deployment.

Overall, the right business asset management software is key. The program should be flexible and allow for continuous changes and additions that will come as the firm shifts and grows. The right solution will also be accessible to company leaders and critical employees and will ensure all assets – tangible, intangible and intellectual property – remain under the organization’s control.