(Source: MARKETWIRE)Avocent Corporation (NASDAQ: AVCT), a global leader in IT operations management, today announced the availability of the latest best practice guide: "KOALA in Depth: Lifecycle - Foundation for Operational Alignment and Audit Response." This white paper is the fourth installment of a comprehensive five-part series that explores in detail the five key elements of asset management -- key costs, ownership, accountability, lifecycle status and assignment -- offering strategic advice to IT managers who are implementing the practice.

LANDesk developed the five-part KOALA white paper series as a result of unprecedented demand for the initial KOALA white paper, "A Pragmatist's Guide to Structuring IT Asset Data." The fourth installment, focusing on the lifecycle of asset tracking, provides a how-to guide that helps IT asset managers clearly define a set of asset lifecycle states for both software and hardware that directly relate to the primary task areas in finance, operations, and support. Managers can then use the normal internal operational triggers within those organizations to also trigger the IT asset management processes that run in parallel with them.

"Asset lifecycle tracking might be the most discussed, yet least understood, of the core IT asset disciplines," said Steve Daly, executive vice president and general manager of LANDesk. "This is a shame because it's the basic value analytics, policing operational control, and effective audit response. Our goal is to encourage IT departments to implement a tight set of guidelines for tracking physical assets -- and to do this effectively, the lifecycle starts as soon as they fill out purchase orders and does not end until they are physically disposed."

The KOALA white paper series uses a "cradle to grave" model to provide a thorough, practical framework showing both IT and businesses stakeholders the immediate and significant value of managing assets throughout their entire useable lifecycle. By defining a clear asset lifecycle, organizations achieve greater organizational alignment, tighter process coordination, and effective demonstration of how IT asset management can drive both business and operational value. The white paper highlights three major phases of asset lifecycle tracking:

--  Procurement - this phase is primarily a financial activity driven in
    conjunction with budget planning, purchasing, and receiving. Planning is
    triggered either by new requirements created and approved during strategic
    planning or by ordinary asset refresh as existing assets go out of service
    and need to be replaced.
--  Operations - this phase is primarily where the physical state of the
    asset is determined.