Checklist to establish spc system software#
This will be the case even if you have an inventory tool that the auditing software vendor has approved. They will then demand to exclusively use their own. The auditors will most likely say that your SAM tools fail to collect all the data that they need in order to complete the audit. Prepare a Defense for the Accuracy of Your SAM Tools.Not to mention a rushed-out response will likely not provide you the solid defense you need. Negotiate a timeline that works with your schedule because you shouldn’t have to sacrifice your time off, your busy season and your sleep just to meet an unrealistic and arbitrary deadline. Unless you negotiate for more time, you could easily be left with having only fifteen days to slosh through thousands of rows of data. The auditors will want the process done as quickly as possible to ensure return on investment, but you need to push back against unreasonable turnaround times and fight for a timeline that works for you. The Statement of Work or its equivalent will be presented and topics including timeline and scope will be discussed. Scheduled to mark the beginning of the software audit, the kick-off meeting will be composed of (either in-person or online) the software vendor, their auditors, and any other stakeholders who will be involved in the process. The SPC should be someone who has a strong understanding of negotiations, software licensing, deployment data and software contracts. Having a single point of contact controlling the flow of information to the auditors will give you a clear picture on what the auditors know and where you stand with them. It is important to immediately establish who is responsible for corresponding with the auditors throughout the process. Designate a Single Point of Contact (SPC).
Checklist to establish spc system license#
Your Estimated License Position should effectively compare your deployment data with your purchased licenses regarding the scope of the audit. Immediately start to create your Estimated Licensing Position (ELP) by gathering data on the relevant products this will give you a strong case to oppose the auditor’s findings, which will most likely have an over-inflated compliance gap. In order to avoid scope creep, make sure that the scope of the audit is clear regarding the regions that will be included and if the vendor has several products, which products will be examined.
Related: For a Deeper look into the difference between a Software Review and a Software Audit, you can check out our article: Software Asset Management (SAM) Review vs Audit: What’s the Difference?īefore any data is handed over to the auditors, you need to set up a three-way non-disclosure agreement between the third-party auditor, the software vendor, and your company.
It will set the process off to a rocky start, with your software vendor knowing you were dragged to the software audit kicking and screaming. Therefore, determine if you have to respond and plan accordingly.Īt MetrixData 360, we advise that you respond to reviews and treat them with the same severity of a software audit since refusing a review often results in the same vendor sending you an audit, which you can’t refuse. They are voluntary, they often result in lighter fines, and they can be conducted internally. However, reviews (or whatever flowery, less aggressive name your particular software vendor gives them) are not audits. Reviews are similar to software audits in that they go through the same process. While you are legally obligated to participate in a software audit, not everything that is dressed up to look like a software audit is one. Upon receiving a notification that you have been selected for a software audit, you will need to do these first steps immediately.