Case Study: Microsoft EA Renewal for a Large US Professional Services Company
Challenge
A prominent US-based professional services firm with over 200,000 employees engaged Redress Compliance to assist with its Microsoft Enterprise Agreement (EA) renewal. The company’s IT environment supported diverse operations, including consulting, digital transformation projects, and technology integration services for global clients. The upcoming EA renewal presented a critical opportunity to:
- Assess current deployments of Microsoft products across business units.
- Optimize licensing allocations to reduce unnecessary expenditures.
- Align the licensing strategy with future growth and technology adoption plans.
- Benchmark costs against industry peers to ensure competitive pricing.
- Negotiate flexible terms for scalability and cost predictability.
The company’s licensing requirements were complex due to its extensive and distributed workforce. This necessitated a customized strategy to balance operational needs with financial efficiency.
The Process
- Deployment Assessment: • Conducted a detailed inventory of Microsoft product usage, including Office 365, Azure, Dynamics 365, and Power Platform solutions. • Analyzed license utilization across global offices to identify inefficiencies and underutilized resources. • Assessed cloud and on-premise hybrid setups to ensure alignment with the company’s IT goals.
- Optimization Strategies: • Consolidated licenses across overlapping business functions to eliminate redundancy. • Transitioned select teams to more cost-effective licensing models based on usage patterns. • Identified and recommended discontinuing low-priority solutions to streamline the software portfolio.
- Strategic Roadmap Development: • Collaborated with IT leadership to create a three-year roadmap for cloud-first initiatives and workforce enablement tools. • Prioritized investments in AI-driven analytics and collaborative platforms to enhance client delivery capabilities. • Integrated flexibility into the roadmap to adapt to evolving client demands and employee needs.
- Benchmarking and Negotiation: • Benchmarked licensing terms and pricing against other professional services firms with similar global footprints. • Identified key cost-saving opportunities in Azure and Dynamics 365 based on market trends. • Developed a robust negotiation plan to achieve volume-based discounts and more favorable terms.
- Agreement Renewal Support: • Presented data-driven recommendations to Microsoft, leveraging deployment insights to secure cost savings. • Negotiated a flexible agreement structure to accommodate the company’s growth and seasonal demand fluctuations. • Achieved concessions on advanced features and training packages to support workforce enablement.
Results
- Cost Savings: • Optimized licensing reduced annual costs by $8.4 million. • Negotiated discounts delivered an additional $4.6 million in savings. • Total savings over the three-year term: $13 million.
- Operational Improvements: • Reduced license complexity across departments, streamlining management. • Achieved full compliance with Microsoft licensing terms. • Improved collaboration tools for global teams, boosting productivity.
- Strategic Outcomes: • Aligned licensing strategy with the company’s growth trajectory and IT roadmap. • Secured a scalable agreement supporting future technology initiatives. • Strengthened governance and visibility into software usage and costs.
Quote from the CIO:
“Redress Compliance delivered exceptional value by optimizing our Microsoft licensing strategy. Their insights and negotiation expertise ensured we secured a flexible agreement aligned with our business goals while achieving significant cost savings. They were a trusted partner throughout the process.”
Key Results:
- Savings Achieved: $13 million over three years.
- Compliance Enhanced: Fully compliant with Microsoft licensing policies.
- Operational Efficiency: Streamlined licensing portfolio and reduced overhead.
- Strategic Alignment: Licensing strategy tailored to support innovation and growth.
This case demonstrates Redress Compliance’s ability to craft bespoke solutions for large professional services firms, ensuring cost optimization, compliance, and strategic alignment in Microsoft EA renewals.
