Drexel University Online Boost Productivity, Security, and Compliance
“SAManage automatically gathers inventory information for us. This really makes our team more efficient by enabling us to focus on the bigger picture. “
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Background
Drexel University Online is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Drexel University, offering accredited online degree programs to professionals who want to complete or advance their education at an online college without compromising quality.
Better managing its complex and multi-faceted IT environment with limited resources is a key priority for the institution. Carl Lahetta is Drexel University Online’s Sr. Manager Technology, charged with overseeing all aspects of the organization’s technology architecture.
Challenges
Like many others these days, the IT department at Drexel is under constant pressure to find ways to do more with less, closely watching the way budget funds are invested while meeting growing demands from a variety of constituents. The team’s responsibilities include acquiring and developing applications to support sales and marketing efforts, guaranteeing that all IT assets are performing at peak levels, and ensuring that all systems are adequately secured.
Adding to these challenges is the fact that Drexel’s infrastructure consists of many diverse systems. The company’s “road warriors” rely on laptops and handheld devices, while on-site staff members use a combination of PCs and Macs.
Solution
Unhappy with the existing IT asset management system in place, Lahetta and his team were looking for a solution that would provide greater flexibility, support unlimited number of users, and enable anytime, anywhere access. “What impressed me from the start about SAManage was the fact that they offered a free trial,” said Lahetta. “Any company confident enough to do that must really have faith in their product.”
Among the many reasons Drexel chose SAManage over other tools was its Software as a Service (SaaS) deployment model, which maximizes accessibility and ensures that the latest enhancements are immediately available to users.
SAManage is used by the Drexel team to support a variety of critical IT management functions, such as inventory, keeping end-user PCs and Macs up-to-date, and managing software license compliance. Deploying only a small-footprint agent on end-user machines, SAManage automatically collects inventory-related data, making the logging and auditing process far more efficient.
Results
Since signing up for the SAManage service, Drexel has realized dramatic benefits. Increased staff productivity is the most significant. “The SAManage agent automatically gathers inventory information for us,” claims Lahetta. “This really makes our team more efficient and enables us to focus on the bigger picture. We can now spend our time assessing what’s going on across the environment, instead of collecting data one asset at a time.”
And unlike the previous solution, which required special software to be installed on administrator desktops, SAManage allows Lahetta and other system administrators to utilize the application from any Web-enabled PC.
Drexel University Online also relies on SAManage to enforce internal policies, ensuring that end-users don’t install or use games, peer-to-peer file sharing programs, or other rogue software that can compromise security. In addition, the ability to rapidly and accurately compare installed software to what the company is licensed for minimizes the risks associated with software non-compliance.
“Overall, I'm really impressed with the SAManage product,” Lahetta concludes. “In just a few short months, it has really demonstrated its value to our business.”
