Difference Between Software Compliance and Software Asset Management

Software License Compliance is focused on avoiding ‘under-licensing’, by ensuring compliance with license entitlements – often with (inadequate) focus on the number of licenses as compared to software deployments. However, compliance must take into account other license parameters such as device configuration, geographic location, employee/non-employee, and many others.

Software Asset Management goes beyond a focus on licenses to additionally focus on the software product (asset) – function, currency, standardization, full life cycle cost, and more.

As with most things in business and life, SAM success depends in part on setting appropriate expectations with stakeholders, and a common understanding of key concepts. More specifically, differentiation is needed in order to:

• Identify expected results (benefits).
• Establish an appropriate plan and budget.
• Establish standard and appropriate definitions – e.g., IT asset vs. license.
• Select/define an appropriate program framework to assess current practice and implement new/improved practices.
• Within that framework, identify necessary policies, processes, data, technologies and roles/accountabilities.
• Select appropriate resources, with requisite experience and knowledge. Provide appropriate training.

Bottom Line: We must understand and obtain consensus on the objectives and scope of our ‘SAM’ initiatives to ensure that we implement the appropriate solution – in all respects (policies, technologies, resources, roles/accountabilities etc.). Proper differentiation within SAM and its subsets will facilitate that understanding and consensus and lead to higher levels of SAM maturity and success.