Preparing Your Microsoft EA Renewal - LicenseQ

Preparing your Microsoft EA Renewal?

Renewing one’s Enterprise Agreement?(EA)?is a stressful and often undervalued process. Both firms and individuals alike do not realize the potential that these renewals provide for cost reduction.?To properly prepare for these interactions, we recommend?the following tips and remarks.??

Tips for a?Timely Preparation?

The?first?tips revolve around the same general idea - Time is of the essence.?As such, one should commence gathering information, including finalized in-depth analysis of the usage and the current requirements,?12-15 months prior to the EA’s expiration.?Microsoft?will arrive to discussions with many?insights into?what you use, you should come equally prepared.??

Negotiation Tips?

Once the?initial stage is surpassed and it is time to negotiate -?Take the lead.?Dictate what the rules of engagement are and be clear with Microsoft?around?what is and isn’t expected. The purpose of negotiations?is to determine prices, discounts, and ultimately, what is purchased so do not let them determine the flow of this process.?Ultimately,?discounts and concessions are agreed?on a?case-by-case?basis. Customers tend to ask?what a good discount is?without realizing it depends on what products you are using.?Discounts?of?85-90%?are?possible?but?they require the proper business case?to warrant such extreme offers.?On the?other?hand, we have?also seen customers that?did not?have any?distinguishing factors?in their specific case?and thus did not warrant?a?discount. Lastly, regarding negotiations,?if you?are not growing?with?Microsoft’s?technology/developments, the negotiation with Microsoft?is likely to not be?fruitful.?Instead, it may be more?beneficial for you as a client to optimize your bill of materials and pay?using?different?contract?possibilities.?It can also be very helpful to have a discussion with your licensing partner about this topic.??

Transparency?

The last tip for?EA renewal?is that?you?should be very transparent about your own growth ambitions.?Microsoft tends to?want to?gain?large deals.?For example, the global pandemic has positively affected?the retail market?and as a result,?Microsoft is focusing on that?segment.?By being clear about your growth ambitions and future, you avoid Microsoft’s trend to attempt to get more money from you.???

What to Avoid Doing?

As experienced negotiators in this industry, we at LicenseQ have also compiled three main actions to avoid.?The first?-?avoid?disclosing?the?discount that you?desire from Microsoft. That number?may?remain?in their minds and influence their actions/decisions.?In our experience,?the best deals?are?negotiated?without?sharing the discount that you want, instead,?they emphasize?being?very well-prepared and?following?one’s?predetermined?strategy.?

Secondly,?do?not?do trade-offs.?Although?Microsoft?tends?to push the?premium deal/suite,?we recommend not taking?it. Ultimately, if you?use?50%?of the offer,?regardless of the?high discount,?you will pay more?per product?used.??

Lastly, we also say to our customers?to avoid?going?for the one-size-fits-all strategy.?The?licensing?needs of one’s employees differ,?so by profiling different types of employees, one may reduce costs and waste funds.?For instance,?in a retail market scenario, one that we discuss in our live sessions, there can be?many?profiles, such as?someone working in a supermarket?vs?someone?working in?an office. In our experience, a profile approach with groups of employees sharing similar needs proves most effective.???

In summary, to effectively negotiate an Enterprise Agreement renewal, thorough?preparation, transparency,?and control are critical. The details of every case differ and as such,?so does how to best handle that specific negotiation. Experience and finesse also plays a large role in your firm’s success, so if you have any concerns or questions, or need support, contact LicenseQ!?