This discussion focuses on the two primary steps in demonstrating deployment readiness:
Centralizing software fulfillment
Implementing a license management tool.
Step one: Centralizing software fulfillment
Buying a software agreement is not like buying, for example, a car. It is not one single entity that the customer buys. Rather, with a software agreement, you purchase a license to use a multitude of software packages that you download from the IBM Passport Advantage website (see “License acquisition and entitlement with Passport Advantage” on page 90 and “Software support offerings from IBM” on page 144). To maximize deployment activity, the delivery of software is continuous until the contract expires. The list of customers who are scheduled to receive software changes over time.
The executive business sponsor must centralize the software fulfillment process as early as possible in the deployment life cycle. That way, one party in the company is responsible for downloading all software in the ELA, logging its receipt, distributing it to those who need it, and tracking what is delivered. This can mean that the responsibility for all aspects of deployment are scattered across a wide range of departments, businesses, and processes, which can be a significant inhibitor to rapid deployment success. Therefore, instituting a
centralized software fulfillment service is crucial for compliance reasons, as discussed in “Step two: Implementing a license management tool and processes for use” on page 54 and “License acquisition and entitlement with Passport
Advantage” on page 90. If it is not feasible to initiate this process within your organization, consider contacting your IBM client team to explore the option of using an IBM Business Partner for assistance.
Step two: Implementing a license management tool and
processes for use
Just as it is crucial to institute centralized software fulfillment service in your organization, we found that a specific system of license management is crucial as well. Why? In this age of distributed computing, departmental projects, and company locations that span the globe, it is important to understand where your investments are and how they are being used.
You might have contractual obligations to report on software use or over use; alternately, you might use this information internally to manage costs or charge backs. Implementing a complete process with the appropriate tools allows you to clearly understand your software usage. License management involves
identifying software by its phase-of-use:
The licenses that to be installed
The licenses that are actually installed
The licenses that are actively being used
The number of licenses that are forecasted to be installed
Performing effective license management requires a combination of tools and processes. Many companies tried to accomplish this task on paper, with spreadsheets, or using e-mails. This tracking typically addresses only the first phase of license management, that is, the licenses to be installed. An equally critical stage is tracking what software licenses are actually installed and used because departments are charged for the software distributed to their
community, whether or not it is being used. Good record keeping and license management techniques for your software collection and its use ensures that software is purchased at the required levels. This can also be enlightening as to what value is being derived from the software that is intended to grow business. By having a centralized license management tool, you address the issue of compliance. A software audit, either manual or with an inventory tool, can discover widespread installation of software in the organization. In fact, software is often not removed, consuming valuable disk space, or it is installed and later forgotten. An inventory can be used for budgeting software licensing and maintenance. You might realize that you have paid more than necessary to maintain unused licenses. Finally, factor in your projected deployments if you are using the data for budgeting purposes.
In the discussion of deployment tools in this book1,we discuss tools, including the IBM License Metric Tool, the Tivoli License Manager, and the IBM Enterprise
Software Management Tool. These are innovative web solutions that are designed to help you manage large, complex software license contracts more efficiently and more effectively, and they can be used for license management. You can also use IBM Business Partners or a homegrown process or system to track license utilization. The Enterprise Software Management tool is a secure, online self-service tool that is readily adaptable to a variety of internal business processes. It is fully scalable, so it is flexible enough to keep up with rapid changes in business. With the same entry point for both parties, you and IBM have an up-to-date snapshot of the status of all of your IBM license and other software entitlements.
The key point is that IBM must enforce more strictly the need for you to report software use. The contract specifies that this is your responsibility. Not doing so can lead to a full audit of your environment by IBM or a third-party consultant. For more information about the topic of license management tools, refer to “License acquisition and entitlement with Passport Advantage” on page 90. Case study
Case study
A leading health care provider in the United States partnered with IBM and their software partner to develop an electronic software delivery system. This system ensures that software is available to their users and tracked for accounting purposes. Not only can users request authorization and download software electronically, but the system also produces a scheduled management report to the procurement office. This type of innovation alleviates the burden of managing software media, provides the tracking needed to demonstrate software utilization, and reduces company operations costs.
This customer has a contractual obligation to report software usage (refer to your ELA and Passport Advantage agreement for details). While the IBM Software Group takes a soft approach to enforcing this policy, it is important for the customer to think about the concept of license tracking and management for both limited and unlimited licenses.