SAP License Optimization Case Study: Texas Retailer Cuts SAP Named-User License Costs by 35%
Background
A regional retail chain based in Texas, operating hundreds of stores, used SAP for everything from inventory to point-of-sale integrations.
With a large workforce including store clerks, warehouse staff, and corporate users on SAP, the retailer had thousands of named user licenses.
The IT budget team noticed that SAP licensing costs were climbing year over year, eating into margins.
Challenges
Upon review, the retailer discovered that many employees had been allocated expensive “Professional” SAP user licenses by default, even if their job role only required basic system access.
For example, temporary staff and retail clerks were often given the same license type as power users.
This one-size-fits-all approach meant the company was overpaying for functionality most users didn’t need. The challenge was to right-size every user’s license type to match actual usage without disrupting any operations.
Additionally, the retailer needed to ensure they remained compliant with SAP’s licensing rules during the transition, and ideally reduce the overall license count if duplicates or inactive users were found.
Solution (How SAP Licensing Experts Helped)
- License Usage Profiling: SAP Licensing Experts were engaged to perform a detailed SAP License Optimization analysis of user activity. Using SAP’s own logs and expert tools, they profiled how each role (cashier, store manager, analyst, etc.) was using the system. They found that a large subset of users never utilized advanced SAP features that warranted a Professional license.
- Role-Based License Reassignment: Working with HR and department heads, the team redefined licensing roles. They created a map to assign the optimal license type for each category of user. Many retail staff were moved to Limited Professional or Employee Self-Service licenses, which were far more cost-effective but still covered their needs (such as basic data entry and reporting). Corporate users with read-only requirements were shifted to Business Info Viewer licenses.
- Cleanup of User Accounts: The audit also revealed numerous duplicate and inactive user accounts. The experts coordinated a cleanup, removing or consolidating these accounts. Not only did this cut license needs, but it also improved security and user management hygiene.
- Compliance Assurance: Throughout the optimization process, the advisors ensured that every change adhered to SAP’s licensing terms. They maintained documentation of the new assignments and the business reasoning behind each change. This would prove crucial in case SAP audited the company – they could clearly demonstrate that each user had the appropriate license type.
- Cost Analysis and Negotiation: After reassigning licenses, the total count of high-level licenses dropped significantly. SAP Licensing Experts assisted the company in renegotiating their license and support contract. By showcasing the reduced license footprint and leveraging SAP’s license conversion programs, they secured credits and adjusted the support fees downward to reflect the new, lower license count.
Outcome and Savings
The result was transformative: the Texas retailer reduced its SAP named-user license costs by approximately 35%. This reduction came from both a decrease in the number of pricey license types and the ability to retire unneeded licenses entirely.
In financial terms, the company saved a substantial sum annually, improving its IT budget outlook. Importantly, these savings were achieved with no loss of functionality or productivity for end users – every employee still had the access required for their job.
The retailer also established an ongoing license management practice, so that as new employees join or roles change, their SAP access is evaluated for cost efficiency.
This case demonstrates that with expert guidance, companies can cut significant costs from SAP licensing through intelligent reallocation and cleanup.
“We expected some savings, but cutting over a third of our SAP user costs blew us away. And it was done simply by aligning licenses to actual need. It’s now standard practice for us to regularly review user licenses,” — IT Director, Texas Retail Company
