JOHANNESBURG - Most businesses have storerooms full of old computers and other electronics that could easily be converted into cash, especially at a time when many businesses are struggling to survive.
With modern companies constantly acquiring new technologies, there is a corresponding and often overlooked increase in retired IT assets.
These outdated PCs, laptops, monitors and other IT equipment tend to quietly pile up in storerooms. Scrapping storeroom-bound computers without consideration for data protection processes and regulations or proper elimination of data, could be disastrous for any company. Also, disposing of this equipment in a haphazard manner, through auctions or staff sales, is risky.
Xperien chief executive Wale Arewa urges companies to schedule a year-end asset disposal and data destruction campaign. “This is a good time to clear storerooms out and start 2019 with a clean slate. Asset disposition presents unique challenges and potential costs that companies seldom consider - it must be done professionally.”
Most businesses struggle to manage IT assets effectively because they do not have a clear picture of the assets they have deployed. Consequently, they probably pay unnecessary insurance and other charges due to inaccurate IT asset inventory data.
Arewa says controlling and having insight into a company’s IT assets is critical in today’s technology-driven business environment. “To manage these IT assets more efficiently, drive down costs, increase productivity and reduce risk, one needs clear and comprehensive visibility into the whole life cycle of an IT asset with a spotlight on IT disposal.”