Why you should follow Niki Lauda and avoid the Nero decree

Due to the complexity of the SAP license model, license management in companies is usually performed using simplified allocation methods, e.g. based on assigned authorizations, the number of transactions used, frequency of transaction execution or type of transaction use (display, change, etc.).

However, the license allocation becomes absurd if the license allocation does not correspond to the real use.

If changes are not taken into account, existing and current license requirements drift apart over time. Nevertheless, it is evident that in practice, no timely and thorough adaptation takes place.

Therefore, agile license management that is oriented to current circumstances (Agile & Reality based License Management) is crucial. To this end, licensing must be continuously adapted to changing internal (e.g., fluctuation, position changes) and external (e.g., changed regulations or deletion of license types - limited professional users) requirements.

The basis for this license management are timely analyses that are implemented as a fixed component in the company's processes. Reliable software-based analytics, such as RBE Plus Compliance, are recommended for this purpose.

It enables timely and periodic allocation based on sound as well as objective data. The results lead to an increase in allocation accuracy, adherence to compliance requirements, cost savings as well as improved administrability.

Since the SAP license model is based on usage, the licenses must be in line with the real activities of the users. In accordance with the least privilege principle of role-based authorization allocation, companies are well advised to follow a least license principle when it comes to license management.

This means that users are to be provided with the maximum number of licenses they require:

• Focus on active users (licensing based on authentication)
• Alignment with the actual task profile (licensing based on authorization): Relevant license types must be assigned in a manner that corresponds to the task environment, i.e., the employee's position.
• Licensing based on actual usage: An analysis must provide comprehensive insight into actual access behavior. In terms of licensing law, usage is shown either via direct use (named-user license), in cooperation with additional software functionalities (engines), or indirectly via interfaces.
• Agile adaptation based on continuous analyses (licensing based on analytics): In order to establish a least-license principle that meets the actual corporate reality, periodic control and adjustment based on automated usage analyses is necessary.

Software, such as an ERP solution, is characterized by the fact that it is so interwoven with companies and business processes over time that it can only be changed or replaced with increased effort.

Against this background and the knowledge that there is a very high level of loyalty between companies and their ERP solutions, Niki Lauda's negotiation credo should be followed: Do not leave "scorched earth" (Nero decree) in a negotiation.

Be well prepared and base your position and requirements on up-to-date objective data, e.g. through an RBE Plus compliance analysis. This way, underlicensing is already known a priori and overlicensing can be a negotiation opportunity based on your corporate and IT strategy by converting and distributing licenses - e.g. within the Extension Policies - in a future-oriented way.