Contents
Key takeawaysThe dates by vendorWhat the quarter end is worthWhose clock you runLining up with the quarterQuarter end tacticsWhat the file showsWhat to do nextFAQEvery vendor discounts harder in the last two weeks of a quarter and hardest at year end. The date is public. What it is worth depends on what you have built before it, and the buyers who arrive at the close with nothing in hand get the concession that was already approved.
- The dates: Oracle closes May 31, Microsoft June 30, Cisco in late July, Broadcom in early November, Adobe in late November, Salesforce and Workday January 31, and SAP, ServiceNow, IBM, AWS and Google Cloud on December 31.
- The quarter end is a close date, not a leverage source. In our Microsoft file, first quote to signed price moved 18 to 27 percent when the buyer brought a benchmark and a modeled alternative, whatever the calendar said.
- Preparation outweighs timing. Workday buyers who opened 150 days out saved 4 to 9 percent against buyers who reacted inside 60 days; the signature date was worth about 7 points and the preparation about 28.
- A ServiceNow fourth quarter close with signature authority was worth 3 to 5 points on top of the median, and only with executed paper available in the last two weeks.
- Fix your own signature date two quarters out and let the vendor's quarter end close the deal, not open it.
When does each software vendor's fiscal year end?
Twelve vendors, four fiscal calendars. Oracle, Microsoft, Cisco, Broadcom and Adobe run their own years; Salesforce and Workday close on January 31; SAP, ServiceNow, IBM, AWS and Google Cloud follow the calendar year. The last quarter of each is the deepest discount window, and the last two weeks of every quarter carry some of it.
| Vendor | Fiscal year ends | Quarters close | What the quarter end moved in our file |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oracle | May 31 | August 31, November 30, February 28, May 31 | Maximum leverage in Q4 and maximum attach risk; the buyers who did best had set their own signature date two quarters earlier. |
| Microsoft | June 30 | September 30, December 31, March 31, June 30 | June adds urgency on Microsoft's side; the 18 to 27 percent movement came from evidence, not the month. |
| SAP | December 31 | March 31, June 30, September 30, December 31 | December is when the deal desk has the most authority; the headline percentage it gives is recovered at renewal unless a cap is signed. |
| Salesforce | January 31 | April 30, July 31, October 31, January 31 | The fourth quarter is the deepest discount window; the count, the date and the uplift cap had to be settled before the quote. |
| ServiceNow | December 31 | March 31, June 30, September 30, December 31 | A Q4 close with signature authority was worth 3 to 5 points over the median; structure moved more than rate above 5 million. |
| Broadcom (VMware) | Early November | Early February, early May, early August, early November | Quarter end moved the VCF rate only against a documented exit option; the tier decision was worth more than the date. |
| AWS | December 31 | March 31, June 30, September 30, December 31 | EDP pricing followed commitment size and ramp shape far more than the calendar. |
| Google Cloud | December 31 | March 31, June 30, September 30, December 31 | Two clocks: the quarter end for the agreement percentage, the commitment anniversary for the committed use layer. |
| Cisco | Late July | Late October, late January, late April, late July | Quarter timing moved entry tier EAs most; above that, suite mix and true forward terms decided the value. |
| Workday | January 31 | April 30, July 31, October 31, January 31 | The signature date was worth about 7 points; preparation 150 days out was worth about 28. |
| IBM | December 31 | March 31, June 30, September 30, December 31 | Q4 carries the heaviest software bookings and the most approval attention, if the ILMT reconciliation is already on the table. |
| Adobe | Late November | Early March, early June, early September, late November | ETLA renewals landed inside Q4, September through November, settled flat or lower when usage evidence and a VIP comparison were on the table. |
OpenAI and Anthropic are private companies with no published fiscal calendar. Below 10 million dollars a negotiation rarely starts, and the only reliable leverage is a benchmarked case with credible competition between the three model vendors.
How to read the fourth column
The observations come from the Redress advisory engagement file for 2024 to 2026 and the benchmark pages behind each vendor. None of them says the quarter end is worthless. All of them say the quarter end paid out to the buyer who had already done the work.
What is a vendor quarter end worth in discount points?
Three to five points, on the evidence where we can isolate it, and only when the buyer can sign inside the window.
At ServiceNow, a fiscal Q4 close with executed paper available in the last two weeks added 3 to 5 points over the 27 percent median at around 2 million of annual contract value. At Workday, the signature date was worth about 7 points against roughly 28 from preparation.
| Lever | Observed value | What it takes to be credible |
|---|---|---|
| Vendor quarter end, signature available | 3 to 5 points (ServiceNow), about 7 points (Workday) | Executed paper and signature authority inside the last two weeks of the quarter. |
| Written competitive proposal | 8 to 12 points (ServiceNow) | A dated, signed proposal on the alternative, not a verbal threat. |
| Preparation opened 150 days or more out | 4 to 9 percent of the renewal (Workday); about 28 points of leverage in the Workday file | Notice window in the calendar, usage reconciled, the count defended before the quote. |
| Market benchmark plus modeled alternative | 18 to 27 percent first quote to signature (Microsoft) | A benchmark the account team can check and a costed MCA E or CSP scenario. |
Why the quarter end pays out unevenly
The quarter end changes the vendor's approval threshold, not your position.
A deal desk with authority to go one step deeper will go one step deeper for the buyer who has a defended count, a cap on the table and a signature ready. For the buyer who arrives with a wish list, the same desk approves the standard concession and moves to the next deal.
The year end against the quarter end
The fourth quarter is deeper than the other three at every vendor in our file, and it also carries the most attach pressure. Oracle's May close brought both the best database price and the hardest push to add options and cloud credits. Treat Q4 as the close for a deal you shaped in Q2 and Q3.
Whose calendar should a buyer negotiate on?
Your own. The vendor's quarter end is one date in a calendar that also holds your notice deadline, your budget cycle and your go live, and the first two matter more. A buyer who misses the auto renewal notice window has no quarter end to negotiate in at all.
Put three dates in the calendar
- The notice deadline. The last day you can decline to renew, reduce quantities or opt out of an extended term: 30 days before expiry for Microsoft's Extended Period Term opt out, 30 days for the Salesforce true down window, and typically 60 to 150 days for Workday and ServiceNow auto renewals, as written on your order form.
- Your signature date. Chosen roughly two quarters out, inside a vendor quarter end if the calendar allows, and known only to the executive team.
- The preparation start. Twelve to eighteen months before expiry for Microsoft, IBM and Oracle estates, 150 days at minimum for Workday and ServiceNow.
When the vendor's calendar and yours do not line up
Move the renewal date, not the preparation. Co terming lines onto one anniversary, or moving a Workday or Salesforce renewal to your budget year, is negotiable at signing and worth asking for. What is not negotiable later is the notice deadline you missed because the vendor's quarter end was the only date on the wall.
How do you line a renewal up with the vendor's quarter end?
Work backward from the signature date you chose, not forward from the vendor's quarter. The Oracle negotiations that did best at the May close had fixed their own date two quarters earlier, measured usage before Oracle proposed and funded one alternative workload. The quarter end closed the deal; it did not shape it.
| Quarters before the chosen signature | What is finished | Why it has to be finished then |
|---|---|---|
| Three | Entitlement and usage baseline reconciled; notice deadline in the calendar. | Every number the vendor proposes is tested against it. |
| Two | Benchmark run; alternative costed and funded; signature date fixed internally. | The vendor must believe the alternative before the quarter end pressure cuts both ways. |
| One | Clause set sent: uplift cap, true down, price hold, co term; concession ladder agreed internally. | Terms are traded in rounds; the last two weeks have room for one item. |
| The last two weeks | Signature authority confirmed; order form checked line by line against the agreed terms. | The quarter end concession only lands if you can execute. |
What to have ready before the last two weeks
- The written count you will sign for, with the reconciliation behind it.
- The uplift cap, stated as a percentage of net price, already on the table.
- The one alternative the account team can verify, with its budget owner named.
- A signature path that does not depend on a board meeting after the quarter closes.
Which quarter end tactics work against the buyer?
Every tactic below appeared in the 2024 to 2026 file. Each one uses the calendar to compress your decision into the vendor's window.
| Tactic | What it means | Buyer response |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing valid through quarter end | The approval expires, not the price; the same number is usually available again next quarter at the same approval level. | Ask for the approval in writing with its expiry, and keep your own signature date. |
| The attach | Q4 discount on the core product in exchange for options, credits or a new module. | Price the core line on its own first; add attach lines only against their own evidence. |
| The compressed calendar | A proposal arriving four to six weeks before expiry, aimed at the vendor's close. | Decline to decide inside the window; invoke the notice deadline and the extended term you prepared for. |
| Slipping the deal past the close | The vendor lets the quarter pass to reset the pressure onto your expiry date. | Hold the signature date; the next quarter end is as good as this one if the evidence is unchanged. |
| The year end escalation | An executive sponsor appears in the last week with a one time number. | Treat it as the concession that was always available; ask for the terms, not only the rate. |
The deal that should slip
Sometimes the right move is to let the vendor's quarter end pass. When the proposal arrived late, the count is undefended or the clause set has not been answered, signing inside the window locks the vendor's base for three years. The next quarter has an end too.
What have recent renewals shown about timing?
The buyers who did best at a vendor year end had decided their own date first.
Across the Oracle negotiations Fredrik Filipsson advised in 2024 and 2025, the May 31 close helped only the teams that already held the baseline, the approvals and the ability to walk past the quarter boundary. The Workday file put a number on it: about 7 points from the signature date, about 28 from the preparation.
The vendor's quarter end changes the approval threshold, not your position. It pays out to the buyer who has already done the work.
Where the common advice on vendor year end discounts is wrong
The common advice is to hold every renewal for the vendor's fiscal year end, because that is when the deepest discount is approved. We disagree, as a plan on its own. In the renewals Fredrik Filipsson advised between 2024 and 2026, the year end added three to seven points for buyers who could sign inside the window, and nothing for buyers who arrived with an undefended count and an open clause set. The preparation was worth four times the date in the Workday file, and in the Microsoft file the 18 to 27 percent movement came from a benchmark and a costed alternative in every month of the year. Use the year end to close a deal you shaped two quarters earlier, and never let it decide when you start.
What the dates do not tell you
Fiscal calendars change rarely but they do change, and a vendor's regional sales organization can work to a different quota cycle than the corporate close. Confirm the current quarter end with the account team in writing before you plan around it, and confirm your own notice deadline from the order form, not from memory.
Primary sources for this guide
- Oracle investor relations: Oracle's fiscal calendar and quarterly reporting dates.
- Microsoft investor relations: Microsoft's June 30 fiscal year and quarter close dates.
- Salesforce investor relations: the January 31 fiscal year end the account team works to.
- ServiceNow investor relations: ServiceNow's calendar year reporting and quarter ends.
Source: Redress Compliance advisory engagement file, 2024 to 2026.
What to do next
- Find your notice deadline on the order form and put it in the calendar with a named owner.
- Pick your signature date two quarters out, inside a vendor quarter end if the calendar allows.
- Reconcile the count before the vendor proposes; the quarter end discount is applied to whatever base you bring.
- Cost one alternative the account team can verify, with a budget owner named.
- Benchmark the quote when it arrives against the band on VendorBenchmark, free and without signup.
- Close on your date. Our negotiation team runs the renewal with you, fixed fee or 25 percent of what we save.
Frequently asked questions
When does Oracle's fiscal year end?
May 31. Oracle's quarters close on August 31, November 30, the last day of February and May 31. The fourth quarter brings the deepest database discount and the hardest attach pressure for options and cloud credits.
When does Microsoft's fiscal year end?
June 30, with quarters closing on September 30, December 31, March 31 and June 30. In our EA renewals the June close added urgency on Microsoft's side; the 18 to 27 percent movement came from a benchmark and a modeled alternative in any month.
When does Salesforce's fiscal year end?
January 31. Quarters close on April 30, July 31, October 31 and January 31, and the fourth quarter is the deepest discount window. The seat count, the renewal date and the uplift cap still have to be settled before the quote for the window to pay out.
When do SAP, ServiceNow and IBM close their fiscal years?
December 31, on calendar quarters. December is when the SAP deal desk has the most authority and IBM books the most software; a ServiceNow Q4 close with signature authority was worth 3 to 5 points over the median in our file.
When does Broadcom's fiscal year end?
In early November, with quarters closing in early February, May, August and November. In our VMware renewals the quarter end moved the VCF rate only against a documented exit option, and the VVF or VCF tier decision was worth more than the date.
Does signing at the vendor's year end guarantee a better price?
No. It raises the approval threshold the deal desk can use, which pays out only to a buyer with a defended count, a cap on the table and a signature ready. For everyone else it delivers the standard concession under a compressed calendar.
How far ahead of the quarter end should preparation start?
Two quarters at minimum for the signature date, and 12 to 18 months for the baseline on Microsoft, IBM and Oracle estates. Workday buyers who opened 150 days out saved 4 to 9 percent against buyers who reacted inside 60 days.
Should you let a deal slip past the vendor's quarter end?
Yes, when the proposal arrived late, the count is undefended or the clause set is unanswered. Signing inside the window locks the vendor's base for the term. The next quarter end offers the same approval level to a buyer whose evidence is unchanged.