Every organization, regardless of its size, must keep track of its assets. This is not just vital for complying with laws and regulations. Businesses that keep track of their assets can plan more efficiently, avoid all sorts of problems, and save tons of money in the long run. 

In the past, keeping track of assets had to be done manually. This only made the process harder and mistakes often occurred as a result. Gone are those days when businesses had to go through all kinds of registers and attempt to keep track of everything. 

Nowadays, we have access to various management apps that help improve the efficiency of an organization. One amazing software that makes this possible is ITAM or IT Asset Management software.

Understanding IT Asset Management

According to the International Association of ITAMs, this term encompasses the following:

“Set of business practices that incorporates IT assets across the business units within the organization”.

Simply put, IT asset management is a computer system, software that tracks the assets of an organization. With the data that this software collects, stores, and reports on, organizations can make smarter and more informed decisions. 

If you select the right ITAM tools for your organization based on its needs and the budget, it can help you greatly in utilizing your assets, managing them, and keeping track of them. Furthermore, an ITAM will ensure compliance with all regulatory requirements and save you tons of money.

The different categories of ITAM software today

Even though this article explores only the top 5 choices, you’ll find that there are tons of solutions for managing your organization’s assets. Choosing one is not a decision that you should take lightly. You should base your decision on the rating of the available tools, as well as your budget and the needs of your organization. 

To make this decision, you first need to differentiate between the different types of ITAM software. Here are the options:

  • Financial AMS: Used to track, record, and report on the financial assets in an organization (securities, investment funds, loans, and more).
  • Physical AMS: Used to track and manage all physical assets in an organization (the computers and equipment, tables, lights, cabinets, office tools, and more).
  • Infrastructure AMS: Used to track, record, and report on physical infrastructure assets (power generators, roads, utilities, equipment for transport purposes, and more).
  • Software AMS: Used to manage everything from the purchase to the license renewal and upgrades to the usage of software applications.

Top 5 choices for ITAM software in 2022

There might be different categories for ITAM software, but one tool does not necessarily fall into just one of these. You’ll find that the software tools in the list below offer a lot to their users, which is why they are the most used and best rated today.

1. Best overall: Zluri

Zluri is a SaaS management software tool that’s enjoyed tons of popularity in the last couple of years. This solution meets all the criteria that an organization can have. It’s affordable, offers a plethora of options, and has an amazing range of capabilities. Zluri’s ITAM tools overview can show you why similar solutions are not on par with this particular software. 

If your organization picks Zluri, you’ll get the upper hand over the assets within it. It tracks SaaS usage, automates dull and repetitive tasks, and saves valuable time for everyone. 

One great thing about Zluri is that it is applicable in most businesses. It is used by small organizations to companies with thousands of employees. If your organization is small and has less than 50 people employed in it, this tool comes at no cost whatsoever!

Some of the features that make Zluri the best tool overall include:

  • The largest app library with over 120,000 applications
  • Tracks all of your SaaS spending which leads to great cost optimization
  • Automated vendor management systems to manage your SaaS stack
  • Easy detection of, unsafe, underused, or unused apps
  • Automated employee onboarding processes
  • Integration with 36-hour TAT and over 320 popular apps
  • Free trial version available

2. Simplest to use: FreshService

Offering slightly fewer capabilities compared to our first choice, FreshService is a very simple and effective ITAM software. The higher plans come with numerous features that allow users to streamline everyday workflows. If you don’t know how to use this tool, FreshService’s best practice guide will help you get started. 

Some of the asset management tools that come in this software are:

  • In-depth reporting
  • Lifecycle management
  • Tracking
  • Inventory management tools
  • Incident management handling
  • Project management
  • Software license management

3. Best for fast action: ServiceNow

If we compare this software with the previous option, we should immediately note that Service Now is much harder to set up. Even so, this is a very powerful ITAM program used mostly by large businesses because of the many capabilities it offers.

We say that this tool is best for fast action because it notifies the users of every glitch with machines and devices in real-time. Service Now monitors the performance and conditions of IT systems and different kinds of software, notifies and reports the users in real-time, and helps you resolve issues fast and efficiently. 

In 2022, ServiceNow is ranked as the world’s most admired company.

This tool could easily be considered a software AMS with limited capabilities in terms of the other categories. If your organization relies strongly on software and IT tools, it is great for troubleshooting and resolving issues before they become bigger problems.

Unfortunately, the prices for this software aren’t advertised openly, but considering that this tool is mostly used by businesses that employ thousands, it’s safe to say that it is one of the more expensive tools on our list.

Some of the best features of Service Now include:

  • Asset governance control i.e. asset policy enforcement and distribution
  • Asset lifecycle management
  • Reporting on incidents and change requests
  • Audit management of assets
  • Contract management such as automation of renewals and approvals
  • Stockroom inventory reporting and management for consumables and hardware

4. Very affordable: Atera

Atera has a free trial of 30 days, which is a long time to explore its capabilities and options. This is not a very versatile software solution and yet, it offers some of the most needed capabilities from an ITAM. 

The pricing model of Atera is based on how many pieces of technology you want it to track and monitor. This software gives you the option to manage as many devices as you need. You can opt for a monthly or annual subscription. 

Atera is a Remote, cloud-based platform for IT management used by consultants, MSPs, and smaller organizations and their IT departments. 

This tool is often used by small businesses because it is as educational as it is useful. THere’s an Atera Academy available to users who want to learn more about IT management. Atera’s Academy has a variety of free courses that can be very useful for people who haven’t used such solutions.

Here are some of the features that Atera has:

  • Remote monitoring and management
  • Network Discovery
  • Patch management
  • Ticketing and helpdesk
  • Inventory management
  • Troubleshooting capabilities
  • Monitoring and reporting on the condition and availability of managed devices
  • Customized alert settings and automated updates and maintenance

5. Best for collaboration: Nifty

Nifty is an excellent collaboration tool that assists organizations and their IT teams in managing their workflow. This tool facilitates visual project management and teamwork. It offers unlimited projects, welcomes an unlimited number of clients and guests, and is a hub for discussions and team chats. 

If you want to learn how this tool works, check this video.

Since Nifty is more focused on promoting collaboration, it’s much easier to use since it offers a more limited number of reporting and tracking features. Even so, this tool is very popular with smaller teams since it tracks and reports time, helps people reach milestones, and has desktop, Android, and iOS apps to make things more accessible.

Nifty is great for long-term as well as short-term projects based on a schedule. It measures and automates tickets and other types of workflows. If you want to better manage IT processes and speed up the organization’s resolutions, this is a good tool for you. 

Some of Nifty’s best features include:

  • Downloadable task and milestone reports (as PDF and CSV)
  • Reporting cross-portfolio and sharing roadmaps with users
  • Updates of project milestones based on task completion
  • Creation of project documents
  • File storage of all sorts of data and documents
  • Custom Fields and Task Tags standardize the information for better scalability

Wrapping up

Choosing software for your business is often a challenging endeavor. One tool can work for one organization and fail another, which is why you should make your decision based on the size, budget, and needs of your organization. 

That being said, we presented you with some of the best-rated ITAM software solutions available on the market, each offering a different set of features and options for those who need them. With tools like these, asset management can be easier than ever!