Employee Self Service
Centralized Enterprise App Store Platform
Eracent’s AppStore Plus™ is a self-service platform that helps organizations easily manage software, licenses, and IT assets. It works like a secure enterprise app store where employees can browse, request, and receive the tools they need, through a controlled and trackable process.
Overview:
Eracent’s AppStore Plus™ is a powerful self-service and workflow automation platform designed to simplify how organizations manage software, licenses, and IT assets. It acts as a secure, centralized enterprise “app store” where employees can easily browse, request, and receive the applications or services they need all within a governed and fully auditable process.
Instead of relying on lengthy email chains, manual forms, or IT tickets, users can log into a clean, web-based interface and instantly view a catalog of approved applications, licenses, and hardware assets from which they can select. Once they submit a request, the system automatically routes it through a configurable approval workflow, verifies license and device availability, and can even trigger automated provisioning.
For IT teams, AppStore Plus brings together everything needed to streamline requests, approvals, deployments, and license management reducing manual effort while ensuring compliance and cost optimization.
Benefits:
Managing software and asset requests manually is a huge burden for IT and procurement teams. Delays, miscommunication, and redundant purchases often lead to increased costs and compliance risks. Shadow IT, where employees download unapproved applications, becomes a real threat, and tracking licenses manually is nearly impossible.
The AppStore Plus Portal solves these problems by automating every stage of the request-to-provisioning lifecycle.
It provides a structured, transparent, and auditable way for users to request what they need while giving IT and procurement full control over approvals, licenses, and costs. AppStore Plus:
- Eliminates manual processes: No more spreadsheets or scattered email threads. Everything happens in one unified portal.
- Prevents redundant purchases: By showing available inventory and license pools, it ensures that existing assets are reused before new ones are purchased.
- Improves compliance: Automated approval workflows and license validation protect against unauthorized installations and audit failures.
- Accelerates service delivery: Users get faster access to the tools they need, improving productivity and reducing IT workload.
- Enhances visibility and governance: Every request, approval, and installation is logged and reportable, helping maintain full operational transparency.
With AppStore Plus, organizations experience faster turnaround times, improved license utilization, reduced costs, and complete control over software and asset distribution, all without sacrificing compliance or security.
Key Features:
The AppStore Plus Portal is built around flexibility, automation, and control-three pillars that support both IT efficiency and user satisfaction.
1. Intuitive Self-Service Catalog
Employees can browse an easy-to-use catalog of approved software, services, and hardware. The catalog can be customized by role, department, or location to ensure users only see what’s relevant to them.
2. Automated Approval Workflows
Configurable workflows allow organizations to define exactly how requests should be reviewed and approved. Multi-level routing ensures compliance with internal policies and licensing rules.
3. Smart License Management
The portal automatically checks for license availability before provisioning. It can reclaim unused or underutilized licenses through built-in harvesting capabilities, reducing waste and maintaining compliance.
4. Automated Provisioning
Once approved, requests can trigger automated installations or distributions through integration with deployment tools like Microsoft SCCM or other software distribution platforms. This reduces manual IT intervention and speeds up delivery.
5. Complete Audit Trail and Reporting
Every action from request submission to approval and deployment is logged. Administrators can generate reports on license usage, asset allocation, and compliance status.(what about “Detailed metrics around transactions from request through fulfillment can be reported as well.” – I’m thinking number of transactions, types of transactions, transaction by department, time durations, etc.)
6. Inventory Awareness
The system is aware of existing software, hardware, and license inventory. It automatically allocates from available stock before initiating new purchases, improving resource utilization.
7. Flexible, Configurable Design
Organizations can easily customize workflows, approval paths, and user interfaces to match their internal processes. This ensures AppStore Plus fits seamlessly into existing operational models.
8. User-Friendly Interface
Designed with end users in mind, the portal offers a clean and intuitive experience, making it simple for employees to request what they need and track the progress of their requests.
These capabilities empower organizations to improve operational efficiency, eliminate bottlenecks, and establish a single, reliable system for managing requests and approvals.
How AppStore Plus Integrates with Eracent’s Broader Ecosystem:
One of the key strengths of the AppStore Plus Portal is how seamlessly it connects with Eracent’s full suite of IT Asset Management (ITAM) and Software Asset Management (SAM) solutions.
Rather than operating as a standalone tool, it functions as a dynamic part of the Eracent IT Management Center™ (ITMC) ecosystem sharing data, insights, and workflows across the entire asset lifecycle.
- Integration with Discovery and Inventory Tools:
The portal uses Eracent’s powerful discovery engine to access up-to-date information about all installed software, active licenses, and available hardware assets. This ensures every request and approval is based on accurate, real-time data.
- Connection with the Continuous License Reconciliation™ (CLR):
The AppStore Plus Portal works hand-in-hand with Eracent’s license optimization and reconciliation modules. This allows the system to automatically check entitlement data before allocating or approving a request, ensuring every deployment aligns with available licenses.
- Data Enrichment via IT-Pedia®:
IT-Pedia, Eracent’s comprehensive IT product catalog, enhances the AppStore Plus experience by providing accurate, normalized product data including software editions, versions, end-of-life information, and license metrics. This helps maintain consistency and accuracy across the organization’s entire IT environment.
- Integration with ITSM and Procurement Systems:
The portal can easily connect to existing IT Service Management (ITSM) systems, procurement tools, or other enterprise platforms through APIs and connectors. This enables smooth data flow between teams, avoids duplication of effort, and keeps processes unified.
- Support for Physical Asset Workflows:
Beyond software, the AppStore Plus Portal also supports hardware management through integration with Eracent’s Automated Stockroom solution. [The automated stockrooms were a bust and our partner stopped producing them] Employees can request, check out, or return physical equipment such as laptops or peripherals all through the same portal.
Through these integrations, AppStore Plus becomes much more than a self-service tool – it becomes the central hub of Eracent’s IT ecosystem, connecting people, processes, and data in one intelligent platform.
It enables enterprises to achieve complete lifecycle control over their IT assets from request and provisioning to reclamation and retirement while maintaining accuracy, efficiency, and compliance every step of the way.
Solution Overview:
- Scalability & Multi-Cloud Support
Designed for modern enterprises, AppStore Plus supports hybrid and multi-cloud environments. Whether you manage on-premises software, SaaS subscriptions, or cloud applications, the portal scales effortlessly to meet your growing needs.
Additional AppStore Plus Portal Use Cases:
The flexibility of the AppStore Plus Portal makes it suitable for a variety of business scenarios across different industries:
- New Employee Onboarding: Automate the assignment of required applications for new hires. With a single click, employees can get access to all the tools they need from day one.
- Project-Based Access: For teams working on short-term projects, the portal allows temporary access to software licenses, which can be reclaimed once the project ends.
- Department-Specific App Portals: Customize catalogs for each department, so marketing, finance, development, and operations teams see only what they need.
- Remote and Mobile Workforce: Enable remote employees to access approved software securely from anywhere, ensuring consistent governance across hybrid work environments.
These scenarios demonstrate how AppStore Plus adapts to different operational models, giving organizations flexibility without losing control.
Automate the assignment of required applications for new hires. With a single click, employees can get access to all the tools they need from day one.
For teams working on short-term projects, the portal allows temporary access to software licenses, which can be reclaimed once the project ends.
Customize catalogs for each department, so marketing, finance, development, and operations teams see only what they need.
Enable remote employees to access approved software securely from anywhere, ensuring consistent governance across hybrid work environments.
Integration & Ecosystem Fit :
- Connectors to Identity & Access Systems: Integration with LDAP, Active Directory, and SSO ensures secure user authentication and role-based access control.
- APIs and Custom Integration Paths: The platform supports REST APIs and connectors, enabling easy integration with ITSM systems, procurement tools, and other enterprise software.
Customer Testimonials:
Organizations that have adopted Eracent’s AppStore Plus Portal consistently report measurable improvements in efficiency and compliance.
“AppStore Plus helped us cut our software request turnaround time from three days to under an hour. IT no longer needs to handle every ticket manually, and users love the simplicity.”(how simple it is to use)
“By integrating AppStore Plus with our existing SAM tools, we reduced unnecessary license purchases by 25% within the first quarter.”
Many Customers have experienced:
- 50% faster provisioning times
- 30% cost reduction through license optimization
- 100% audit readiness across departments
These results highlight the real-world impact AppStore Plus delivers empowering organizations to modernize IT operations, reduce costs, and maintain continuous compliance.