Has anyone ever contacted Oracle LMS Services to get training and understanding of their licensing without initiating an audit? My manager would like to understand more about some of our Oracle licenses but doesn't want to initiate an audit by contacting Oracle for training and/or assistance.
Erick Hacking, CSAM, CHAMP IT Software Asset Manager, Lead Sr.
I know what you mean about the dangers of letting any publisher know you have licensing questions! 🙂
I'd suggest our Oracle training material in the Learning Center - it's part of our Advanced Publisher curriculum. In particular, I think the Practice Guide will have a good introduction on the licensing types and rules.
When working with vendors I would generally encourage seeking to foster a positive and open relationship. As a though exercise, imagine what a perfect world looks like, and then think about how to make the word as close to perfect as possible. This is likely to look something like a situation where:
The vendor trusts you: they are hearing from you, and know you are being diligent in your management of licenses. Hence they will be getting fairly paid for what you are using, and they understand and are being given the opportunity to work constructively with you.
You trust the vendor: you feel like you are being treated fairly and not being gouged, and are getting good assistance from the vendor.
This sort of relationship will help to reduce the likelihood that a vendor would choose to audit you.
The question here implies you do not feel like you are close to having this sort of relationship, which is of course very common in an industry with such a dysfunctional supply chain as the software industry. However it may be an opportunity to challenge your manager to think about how to move in this direction. Avoiding reaching out to the vendor and having some discussions perpetuates a situation where the vendor is not seeing your positive actions towards robust management of licenses, leading over time to less trust, leading to a higher likelihood of being audited.
(Did my reply solve the question? Click "ACCEPT AS SOLUTION" to help others find answers faster. Liked something? Click "KUDO". Anything expressed here is my own view and not necessarily that of my employer, Flexera.)
While I heartily agree with @ChrisG about vendor relationship management in general, Oracle (and a couple other vendors) maintains a consistent posture of.... not hostility, quite, but it's not friendliness. 🙂
I cannot in good conscience as an Oracle licensing specialist of many years recommend that you reach out to Oracle LMS without educating yourself as much as possible prior to that interaction. No matter the relationship status, Oracle LMS runs with a degree of independence from other teams including sales that they may very well see it as an invitation to audit.
Natalie Overstreet Lias Senior Product Manager I don’t speak for Flexera, and we should all be grateful for that
