“With licensing for Microsoft cloud services available through our Enterprise Subscription Agreement we can do more with less cost.” Katia R. Ceará Sanfins, Chief Information Officer, Schahin Group Brazilian conglomerate Schahin Group sought a licensing solution that would accommodate fluctuating staff levels and make new technologies—including Microsoft cloud services— more affordable. The firm chose a Microsoft Enterprise Subscription Agreement, financed through a Microsoft payment solution. Thus, Schahin was able to afford the software it needed and pay for it monthly, preserving cash flow to be used for other business opportunities. Business Needs Schahin Group is a Brazilian conglomerate active in the country’s main development sectors: oil and gas, engineering, real estate development, telecommunications, and energy. To support its growth, the firm relies on Microsoft software and HP hardware. The nature of its business requires Schahin to open temporary operations at major construction sites for a year or two. This means employee counts may fluctuate significantly during the year. As a result, the firm finds it difficult to accurately predict its software licensing needs. “Sometimes we need a lot of licenses and sometimes we don’t need as many,” says Katia R. Ceará Sanfins, Chief Information Officer, Schahin Group. Due to the variable number of employees, the firm had been acquiring its Microsoft software for several years through OEM licenses or distributors. Using this acquisition model meant that Schahin paid premium prices and did not have a direct relationship with Microsoft. By 2010, Sanfins began to look for a more cost- efficient way to acquire Microsoft licenses. “I was looking for a licensing solution that I could pay for monthly and only pay for the licenses we needed, rather than pay for a lot of licenses that we might not need,” says Sanfins. She also wanted an easy way to move to Microsoft cloud services. Solution In August 2010, Sanfins met with a local Microsoft account manager to discuss the best Microsoft software licensing strategy and to determine the firm’s overall IT goals —including the deployment of Microsoft cloud services. To address the firm’s fluctuating employee counts, the Microsoft account manager recommended that Schahin enroll in a Microsoft Enterprise Subscription Agreement. This agreement would decrease the firm’s initial cost by 25 to 30 percent and allow increasing or decreasing subscription counts each year. It would also enable Schahin to license both on- premises and online software through the same agreement. However, even with the savings, the total licensing costs for all the selected technolo-gies exceeded the firm’s software budget by about one-third. To finance the difference Sanfins explored options from several vendors before choosing a Microsoft payment solution. "In selecting suppliers, we analyze both the product itself, and other relevant issues, like the vendor’s financing solutions,” says Sanfins. “The Microsoft payment solution process was fast, simple, and offered competitive rates.” Customer: Schahin Group Website: www.schahin.com.br Customer Size: 6,605 employees Country or Region: Brazil Industry: Oil and gas, engineering, real estate development, and telecommunications Customer Profile Founded in 1966, Schahin is a solid and diversified group that operates in key sectors of the Brazilian economy, such as oil and gas, engineering, real estate development, energy, and telecommunications. Software and Services Microsoft Payment Solutions Microsoft Enterprise Subscription Agreement Microsoft Office − Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2010 Microsoft Server Product Portfolio − Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager 2007 R2 Microsoft Services − Microsoft Services Premier Support Windows 7 Enterprise Windows Azure − Windows Azure Microsoft works with financing providers around the globe in 14 countries to offer world-class payment solutions under the Microsoft Financing program. For more information about Microsoft Financing visit: www.microsoft.com/volumelicensing Microsoft Financing Customer Solution Case Study Diversified Services Group Gains Flexible Software Licensing and Financing Solution