Support the Business Silently
Not everything will be a request from a user, sometimes change needs to be enforced, whether that be upgrading to the latest version, or ensuring that that piece of unwanted application appearing on the network is automatically removed whenever it is discovered.
Being able to automate, based on rules, will keep your software estate in-line with policy, reducing the burden on support and keeping your estate secure.
Software delivery automation is one, very visible benefit, but there are many more opportunities for automation and self-service.
New employee processes, allow a new starter process to be initiated via the service desk, allow the requester to select the new user’s role, the hardware they will need and access to the services, files and network resources they require based on their role. And when you have this, the ability to execute all of the tasks needed from a single interface with integrated processes will enable this to be completed quickly and efficiently.
On the flip side, and one that can be easily forgotten is when a user leaves the business. Being able to quickly identify all assets such as hardware, software, services etc. allocated to the user is essential.
Software deployment or perhaps this should be called “service enablement”, should not only enable delivery of software and services, it should also facilitate the reclaiming of software and licenses, removal of access and rights. If the discovery and inventory process included details of the services and software being used, this should be made significantly simpler and bring confidence that the business has not been left exposed.