Check out our latest article: IT Asset Management: 14 Best Practices for ITAM in 2022
In today's business environment, organizations are always looking for ways to simplify and streamline processes. Managing fixed assets is one of the most time-consuming tasks.
Your office supplies and furniture, as well as your computers and furniture, all need to be tracked. You also need a way to manage everything from purchase orders to inventory management, maintenance schedules, asset disposal records, and depreciation calculations.
It can be difficult even to know where to begin when it comes to keeping track of your fixed assets. Because of this, you should abandon Excel spreadsheet templates and replace them with software that will automate all these time-consuming tasks.
The issues with using Excel for Asset Management
Using Excel to keep track of fixed assets is one of the most common misconceptions in business. Unfortunately, using a spreadsheet has many problems, and here are a few of them:
- Detailed records. Since Excel spreadsheets are created and managed manually, it's possible for errors to occur. These might result in inaccurate data entering your system or missing information altogether.
- No change history. If you lack historical information about your assets, you will have no way of knowing how often a particular asset was repaired.
- No options to attach important files. It won't help you much if you meticulously record all of your fixed asset data in an Excel spreadsheet without a way to attach related files.
- Difficult to use for management. Excel spreadsheets usually require one person to act as the administrator and handle all the necessary changes, or they can be allowed to be accessed by anyone, which can create a lot of problems.
Why you should use Asset Management Software instead
In light of this, why is asset management software better than Excel? Here are a few reasons why asset management will change the way you manage your assets.
- Errors made by humans. When you manage your fixed asset inventory with an Excel spreadsheet template, human error is possible. However, you can reduce this possibility dramatically with asset management software that ensures these fields are filled out correctly.
- Easier to learn and use. A properly implemented asset management system makes using the software very easy, and there is little training required for your employees. This lets your employees focus on running your business, not on learning how to operate a spreadsheet.
- Improving communcation. By using asset management software, you can customize your reports to make them easier to read for different departments and stakeholders.
- Easier to tailor to your needs. The ability to customize the fixed asset management processes to meet your specific requirements is provided by an asset management platform.
Pick the right tool for the job
We've built BlueTally to help all kinds of companies and organizations manage their most important assets - both physical and digital. Learn more about BlueTally and get started with our free and simple asset management software.
