I'm part of a growing SaaS company that just secured its first round of funding, and we're getting ready to expand our teams significantly. A big part of my role involves asset management, and since over half of our current workforce is in-house, I've managed well so far. However, as we anticipate a large influx of remote hires for the first time, I'm feeling a bit anxious about how to effectively manage the procurement and delivery of equipment. I'm curious if others just buy equipment, print shipping labels, and track them daily? It feels like that could get messy quickly. Any advice on streamlining this process would be greatly appreciated!
6 Answers
Definitely avoid the old box-and-label method, especially beyond a handful of employees! Most organizations find a procurement partner who can handle the logistics for them. If you're in the Microsoft sphere, they might even set everything up via Intune. It’s a lifesaver in the long run!
Thanks for confirming that! I was really worried about getting stuck in the logistics mess.
You've got a few options here! For a smaller team, even manual methods can work if your helpdesk is on it. You can hire a third-party service to manage all of this, especially useful if you're in different countries. Alternatively, consider drop-shipping directly from manufacturers. We do that, and it makes things much smoother. But make sure you've got a plan for returning and handling old equipment, too!
It really depends on your vendor setup and what devices you need to ship. If you're using Microsoft products, you can leverage Intune and Autopilot for a smooth process. We order devices directly from our vendor, and they arrive assigned to the user, who just needs to log in with their credentials. We even do the same for iPhones via Apple Business Manager. It cuts down on a lot of headaches!
I've heard of companies that will come to pick up equipment, pack it, and ship it directly for you. I haven’t used one personally due to lower volumes, but it could save you a lot of time on logistics if you have enough onboarding going on. Just a thought!
Congrats on your funding! A lot of people I know recommend Allwhere for IT asset management. They’ve handled onboarding and offboarding for over 170 employees seamlessly for us, so it's worth looking into.
You might also want to explore whether using cloud services can allow employees to use their devices while connecting to virtual machines. It can save substantial costs on hardware, especially these days!
For sure! Plus, outsourcing really helps with offboarding since it can get messy chasing down equipment from ex-employees!