A good license optimization strategy can immediately help lower overall software expenditures, while simultaneously reducing the risk of non-compliance. License optimization strategies are comprised of four key tenets: Metering: the ability to accurately count the number of deployed licenses to reconcile against license entitlement Right-sizing: continuously reducing the number of licenses deployed Standardization: reducing the variability of software versions and vendors Monitoring: active policing of non-approved software to enable fast remediation Good software asset management is a necessary part of driving down the costs of delivering efficient IT services to the business. The foundation of software asset management is understanding what is actually being used in the environment.