Client Background
A $1.5B education company was preparing for the renewal of its long-standing Microsoft Enterprise Agreement. As part of a broader IT transformation, the organization sought to right-size its Microsoft portfolio, retire underutilized products, replace incumbent security solutions, and begin laying the groundwork for enterprise-wide AI adoption.
To maximize value and ensure alignment with realistic implementation capacity, the client engaged UpperEdge to develop a fact-based strategy and negotiation approach.
The Challenge
The client faced several critical challenges ahead of renewal:
- The need to right-size their Microsoft licensing footprint, removing unnecessary products and reducing volumes.
- Aligning the future-state roadmap with the organization’s actual ability to deploy and adopt new capabilities.
- Ensuring pricing transparency during the renewal process, as Microsoft’s initial proposals lacked clarity and carried inflated unit costs.
- Balancing transformation goals with maintaining a strong, existing vendor relationship.
The organization needed a structured, data-driven plan to drive the renewal on its own terms.
UpperEdge’s Approach
UpperEdge delivered a negotiation framework designed to keep Microsoft focused on the client’s true requirements and value drivers:
- Utilization & Requirements Analysis: Conducted a detailed review of current usage to ensure future commitments aligned with expected value and transformation readiness.
- Commercial Transparency & Pricing Guidance: Provided clarity around appropriate pricing, discounting, and term structures to challenge Microsoft’s proposals.
- Iterative Proposal Assessment: Evaluated each successive Microsoft quote to identify gaps, eliminate unnecessary products, and optimize unit pricing.
- Right-Sizing Strategy: Ensured the final licensing mix supported transformation goals without overcommitting or overspending.
This disciplined, transparent approach strengthened the client’s negotiation position and aligned the roadmap with real business needs.
The Results
The client achieved a best-in-class commercial construct through the renewal process:
- Over $850K in savings over 3 years
- Overall fee reduction from pre-renewal to post-renewal
- In-term price decreases and meaningfully improved net-unit pricing
- Core product pricing reduced from current-state to final renewal
By following UpperEdge’s negotiation plan and messaging, the client secured a significantly improved commercial outcome while ensuring their Microsoft roadmap remained achievable and value-driven.