So, it’s time to sit down with your Microsoft account team to discuss contract renewal. Microsoft reps come prepared with what they believe will be best for your organization. When you sign the contract, you commit your company to another three years of Windows, Office, and Cloud services. But before you sign on the dotted line, there are a lot of questions you need to ask (and answer).
- How long will it take to deploy what you buy?
- Have you fully deployed the products from the last contract?
- Is there a clear business case for implementation?
- Can it be readily and briefly stated?
CIOs are increasingly called upon to justify IT spend by demonstrating returns on IT investment. Whether serving up the latest and greatest versions of Windows and Office or managing for 3 more years with Windows 7 and Office 2013, CIOs have to account for the choices they make and the impact to the business’ bottom line.
The best IT choices derive from precise alignment of business objectives with the supporting technologies. Organizations that keep an up-to-date IT business plan as well as a technology roadmap, are best prepared to make smart product and system acquisition choices in support of business goals.
In the past two years, we’ve witnessed a dramatic adoption of cloud services, Software Defined IT, and giant leaps forward in data storage and management options. The next two years will likely be as dynamic. Organizations that keep an up-to-date IT business plan as well as an up to date technology roadmap, will be prepared to make the right product and system acquisition choices in support of the business goals.
Are you compliant with Product User Rights and use licensing? How do you know?
Have you established a governance framework around IT operations? Have you implemented a system to give you fast, up-to-date licensing counts? If you have not already done so, it will be worth your time to establish a governance framework to improve and streamline accurate accounting of licenses and user assignment on a regular cadence. It is often advantageous to engage an outside organization, such as Earth & Sky, Inc, to leverage fresh perspective and assistance in choosing and implementing a system of governance. Good governance improves the speed and quality of business decisions and makes the most of precious human resources.
Microsoft licensing can be confusing and compliance can be challenging. When addressing Microsoft licensing compliance, you must account not only for license counts, but also product use rights to be compliant.
Earth & Sky, INC can help! As a service provider focused on making every dollar count, we help customers to reduce costs, optimize systems, and establish organizational governance. Call us today at 858-442-9591 or request a free consultation, so you can spend more time and resources on IT innovation, and less on software maintenance.