GUEST BLOG: Oracle ERP Licences, Pay up or Reduce Usage?

This guest post was written by Mike Ward from Q Software.

Contact from the Oracle Licence Audit team can be a rude awakening for many ERP users. I keep asking CIOs, “wouldn’t it be a good idea to get a count automatically every quarter, and make sure that you have no outstanding issues that will cost you money? With no technical effort?”

Every week I have a lot of conversations with users of Oracle ERP systems. Of course, it’s only when you talk to someone in the real world that you really understand the problems they face. And then the challenge is to find solutions.

I do understand that Software Asset Management (SAM) and Licensing aren’t the most pressing issues to a very busy IT Director. Until the above call comes…

SAM is a wide field, but as with all other corporate assets, you need to keep track of your licences. The problem with “leasing” is it’s easy to be caught out by usage bills that you’re not expecting.

Contain Oracle Licence usage creep
ERP application usage comes with another interesting challenge. It’s good to know that 100 people are using the Fixed Assets module, but why is the number so big? Rather than paying for the extra licences, doesn’t it make sense to look at whether all those users really need access?

So, I had an idea.  As well as counting the number of users accessing a module, why don’t we list them, along with their roles and responsibilities? Having that information to hand would give management a real chance to decide what to do about the issue.

Do you have users with superfluous access that should really be removed? This would give you greater control over risk, and potentially reduce your Licence costs.
If this makes sense to you, you can find out more about Q Software’s Oracle Licence Audit solutions here.</p