Modern organisations rely heavily on Microsoft technologies like Office 365, Azure, E5 suites and more. But this reliance brings with it an equally long list of licensing agreements. Most large businesses find themselves juggling several Microsoft licenses, each with different start dates, renewal cycles and terms and conditions.
Some contracts renew monthly ,others quarterly or annually; it all depends on when they were initially signed. As the number builds up, it quickly becomes a complex web of renewals that is almost impossible to track manually.
When poorly managed, these contract dates slip by unnoticed and automatically renew by default, even if they’re not being used. What we often see is smaller contracts being easily forgotten, but still renew at full cost, and teams missing the opportunity to downgrade, optimise or reallocate licenses based on current usage.
In short, IT and finance teams lose visibility of what they’re paying for, resulting in redundant licenses and gross overspend.
Businesses find themselves locked into contracts with license types or quantities that no longer match their workforce needs. Over time, these missed renewals add up to significant financial waste, sometimes hundreds of thousands annually across global enterprises. Security suites like Microsoft E5 can be underused if not monitored carefully, leaving businesses at risk of missing out on critical protection while still paying premium prices.
A lack of visibility can also leave IT and financial directors incapable of forecasting or budgeting accurately for future licensing needs. Instead, forecasting becomes guesswork and strategic planning suffers without a clear picture of what tools are being used and by who.
Take back control of your Microsoft licenses
What businesses need above all else is visibility.Having a clear map of all Microsoft licenses and renewal dates helps organisations answer questions like: are we allocating our software budget efficiently? Can we reduce licensing costs without sacrificing team productivity? Where will we be in 12 months and how do we get there?
That’s why at Soft-ex, we’ve created a solution to bring clarity to chaos. Our UCC Analyser enables businesses to track all Microsoft contracts and renewal dates in one place. Aspart of that, our clients:
· Receive advance notifications before any renewal dates
· See exactly which licenses are included in each contract
· Monitor usage trends to determine what’s working and what’s not
· Can decide whether to renew, reduce, reassign or retire licenses
What really sets Soft-ex apart is our ability to support long-term planning and forecasting. By capturing historical licensing and usage data, we provide trend reports showing usage rates and unassigned licenses, as well as insights into license growth, especially around high-value suites like Microsoft E5. Our clients also receive recommendations on whether they’re rolling out licenses quickly enough, or holding onto expensive excess.
In our minds, Microsoft licensing shouldn’t be a hidden cost for any business. With Soft-ex, you’ll never miss another deadline, lose sight of license usage or get caught off guard again.
If you’re ready to regain control of your Microsoft contracts, talk to Soft-ex today and make missed renewals a thing of the past.
