I love Microsoft’s solutions, but their license models on the Microsoft Dynamics 365 platform… let’s just say, I can understand if people are confused. Because it’s a bit of a jungle, and unless you are a very big company with decent skills in the field, it’s hard to get a proper overview of it.

If you ask Microsoft about which licenses are best suited to your needs, you’ll get an answer. But you may not get a clear answer. Or at least, I know of more companies that are looking for deeper insights into the licensing structure of the Microsoft Dynamics 365 platform.

There may well be many challenges: Enterprise or Business Central, Plan or App, Full User or Team, EA or CSP? Indeed, as with many things, and this is no exception, there are plenty of roads to Rome.

Read more: Cloud vs. On-Premise: Remember to Include the Value of Missing Functionality in Your Business Case

It is mainly in Customer Engagement (former CRM) functionality that the licensing becomes a bit tricky, because you can purchase Dynamics 365 applications individually or via a Plan License (Plan 1 or Plan 2), which is a bundle of applications for companies with users who need cross-platform access to the tools in the Dynamics 365 platform.

But when is it best to buy CRM applications individually, and when is best via a License Plan? What functionality is included, and what isn’t? And what about the Team Members license? It’s relatively cheap and allows you to do some things but not everything. When is this the most effective and most economical choice?

As mentioned, it may be something of a challenge to review Microsoft’s licensing models and to ultimately put together an optimal solution for the company. So how should you handle the task?

For example, you can get help from us at AlfaPeople. We are good friends with Microsoft, but we are even closer friends with our customers. Our licensing specialists know all of Microsoft’s licensing structures and can map them to your business needs, so you pay for what you need, no more, no less.

It’s mainly about saving pennies on the IT budget. But it’s also about reviewing the terms of each license so that you’re not locked into a licensing model you risk growing out of.

Read more: A Trusted Advisor Must Lead – Not Sell – The Journey To The Cloud

Our overview begins with an analysis and review of what you have today and whether you pay too much for your licenses, or are paying for something you don’t use. If you are like the majority of Danish companies then this is most likely the case.

With the right sparring partner, you won’t have to waste time struggling with licensing models that will never be any more transparent than they are today. Like so much else in the world of IT, license models have become something of a specialist discipline needing high levels of proficiency; something we have in spades.

I am a trader by nature, and it gets to me when companies pay too much for a product and there are many who do just that, and today there is absolutely no reason for it.

Read more about Microsoft Dynamics 365 or contact us here.