Chances are, if you have more than 250 devices at your organization, you have heard the Enterprise Agreement (EA) pitch more than once. In fact, I agree hands down you can find results anywhere from 15% to 45% off your costs with an EA under the right circumstances. If your organization wants to license software and cloud services for a minimum three-year period, you get built-in savings and several other benefits like free training, consulting services, and tech support. Even if you’re not ready for the cloud right now, there are ways to use the EA as a licensing vehicle to gain savings and benefits, and possibly even become cloud-ready—but with the ability to move at your pace, on your terms.

As good as it sounds, it’s still a bit complicated—like any licensing conversation. That’s where we come in again to help. Our team of Microsoft experts designed a free tool to help you determine if an EA is the right choice for your organization. We even put real numbers behind the assessment so you can make a sound decision. Read on to get started—you have nothing to lose, and everything to gain!

Before we go too far, here’s a quick EA recap. Microsoft’s Enterprise Agreement (EA) is a licensing option that can deliver exceptional value and cost-savings for customers, under the right circumstances. It’s not right for everyone, but if your IT needs align with EA strengths, there’s no better way to achieve your Microsoft goals and save money in the process. To start, you must have at least 250 devices or users to be eligible, although under the right circumstances we can still make the EA work even if you’re not quite at 250 seats. EAs are by far the best value for organizations that want to buy cloud services and software licenses under one agreement.

SOURCE: cio.com