SoftwareOne logo

4.5 min to readAsset ManagementSoftware Sourcing Services

2022 ITAM Virtual Summit recap: Cost Optimization and SaaS

A man wearing glasses and a gray jacket.
Kevin HootonService Lead - Asset Management
Asset Management

We kicked off the first day of our IT Asset Management event, 2022 ITAM Virtual Summit, with some incredible discussions around Cost Optimization and Software as a Service (SaaS).

Below is a quick recap of each session, so you can get a taste of what was covered. Full sessions will soon be available on-demand soon so you can re-watch your favorite sessions or catch up on what you missed.

Unintended consequences of transitioning to the Cloud

– Jim Ryan, CEO at Flexera

Organizations struggle to maximize the value of their IT investments. But surprisingly few CIOs are prepared for the optimization challenges magnified by hybrid IT as more software, SaaS, containers, and cloud are introduced into the environment. This session examined where the market is going, and the impacts on the traditional roles of asset management, procurement, and cloud teams.

Optimizing vendor spend via AI & Machine Learning

– Ken Male, CEO & Co-founder at CXO Nexus

A key factor in cost optimization is knowing the current state of your IT, yet it can be the biggest challenge. In this session, Ken discussed how AI & Machine Learning come into play by establishing baselines, identifying opportunities, implementations, monitoring, and improvements. The beauty of AI & Machine Learning model is that it’s not a point and time exercise – it’s purpose-built to drive cost optimization. Meaning, it is intuitively looking at your data, interrogating that data, and transforming it to show where the spend is actually happening – helping you to identify unmanaged, or rogue spend.

The SaaS explosion is here: are you ready for the next era of SAM?

– Cory Wheeler, Co-Founder and Chief Customer Officer at Zylo

SaaS is an unstoppable force and riding the wave is critical. Leaders know they need SaaS for employees to get work done, but the applications in their stack are growing at an alarming rate. In this session, Cory shared how beneficial a SaaS strategy is for your business transformation, especially as spend continues to increase exponentially in this area; for large companies it is now the second largest line item. There’s a real need to strategically manage what applications you already have as well as the onboarding of applications and the constant stream of applications in your environment.

What is your 12-month ITAM roadmap? Building your program around SaaS and Cloud

– Becky Trevino, Executive Vice President of Product at Snow Software

The shift to SaaS and cloud technologies has been a top discussion in ITAM circles for years. In 2022, ITAM teams without a plan to manage SaaS or cloud within their program are getting left behind and unable to deliver significant value to their organization. In this session, Becky breaks down exactly what you need to do to create a successful 12-month ITAM roadmap that will empower your ITAM team to effectively manage Saas and Cloud technologies – covering everything from traditional asset management and maturing (Cloud and SaaS) to early adoption assets. A well-executed 12-month roadmap should enable you to expand your ITAM team to prepare for a more complex tech landscape, start managing SaaS and cloud technologies based on where you are today, and develop key strategic alliances — such as FinOps — to meet the right business outcomes.

How to effectively manage your SaaS portfolio in 2022 and beyond

– Liz Herbert, VP Principal Analyst at Forrester

SaaS and other cloud options are the dominant (or only) way to buy in several software categories. However, most organizations face significant challenges with SaaS sprawl, cost and risk management, and balancing agility with control. In this session, Liz discussed major challenges – and solutions – for effectively managing your SaaS portfolio today and recommendations for what’s next.

How do you get your arms around what you have? What is the process for knowing what you have? How do you reduce, combine or optimize apps in other ways?

Short on time?

Here are the key takeaways from each session:

  • Organizations struggle to maximize the value of their IT investments
  • A key factor in cost optimization is knowing the state of your IT, but it can be the biggest challenge
  • Leaders know they need SaaS, but the apps in their stack are growing at an alarming rate
  • A well-executed 12-month ITAM roadmap should enable a more complex tech landscape
  • Most organizations face challenges with SaaS sprawl, cost/risk management, and balancing agility with control

There's more

Day two of the 2022 ITAM Virtual Summit has wrapped, and it's time to recap! Read more about Public Cloud and Cloud Financial Management.

Aerial view of rice terraces in guangdong, china.

Interested in learning more?

Discover the breadth of our ITAM Services and all they have to offer.

Interested in learning more?

Discover the breadth of our ITAM Services and all they have to offer.

Author

A man wearing glasses and a gray jacket.

Kevin Hooton
Service Lead - Asset Management

Cloud, Software Asset Management, Software Procurement Services, Cloud Spend Management