9/7/2018
Myth: I have the correct IBM Cognos Licenses for BI or TM1
Are you an IBM Analytics client that inherited Cognos? Or maybe your organization purchased it years ago but with all the licensing changes you don’t know what you own. The question is do you have the correct IBM Cognos Licenses for BI or TM1? I am Heather Cole, president of Lodestar Solutions and a lot of IBM Cognos Analytic clients believe the myth “I have the correct IBM Cognos Licenses for BI or TM1.” They say, “Heather, we have the correct IBM Cognos licenses, in fact we may have too many.” But, the reality is that many clients are either on the wrong licensing model or worse yet, are not compliant and could fail an audit and they don’t know it.
IBM Audit
Like most software companies, IBM reserves the right to review any client’s licenses called a license audit. If you are thinking, “we are too small, IBM wouldn’t audit us,” you are wrong. Even clients with only a handful of IBM Cognos licenses can get audited. Imagine you receive a notice from IBM that they intend to audit you. Would you get a hot flash of adrenaline? Are you certain you have given the correct rights to your users? Do you even know what your licenses with IBM says? Well it doesn’t have to be that way.
IBM Licensing
As a licenses attorney, I encourage all clients to take licensing seriously! Because IBM does not have license keys that prevent you from accidentally setting up more users than you purchased, it’s up to you to make sure you are compliant. But I am speculating you are probably not a lawyer, and even though IBM has simplified their licensing over the years it can be confusing. Click here for more information.
I believe that clients that educate themselves on what they own not only can save huge amounts of money on IBM license renewals, but they also can leverage all the tremendous functionality IBM has added over the years to both Cognos Analytics (BI) and Cognos Planning Analytics (TM1). Most clients aren’t even scratching the surface of the power and features of IBM Cognos Analytics BI and Cognos Planning Analytics (TM1).
Cognos Untapped Features
Have you ever had someone show you a feature on your phone and you think, “Wow, how come I didn’t know that earlier?” IBM analytics is just like that. A lot of hidden WOW!
Now, you may be thinking “But Heather, I don’t have time to learn about the new features. I’m too busy.” I understand how you feel. But, you are looking at it the wrong way. Many of the features IBM has added to their Analytics Suite over the years are designed to help you automate processes to give you more time for the cool projects. Would you like to stop firefighting? I don’t think you can afford not to learn the new features and discover what the heck you own.
I feel so strongly that every client will benefit from learning the latest updates on licensing and functionality, that I created a 90 minutes session to coach you.
During your “What the Heck Do I Own – IBM Cognos” session, we will review your unique licensing, ensure your IBM contact information is updated, walk you through the functionality you own and help you understand the IBM Licensing Monitoring Tool, (ILMT) if you have virtualized your IBM environment. We also evaluate if you are in the optimal IBM licensing model.
Wrong IBM BI License Model
One client that experienced our IBM Cognos licensing session discovered they had out grown the authorized licensing model for their Cognos BI licenses. They regularly added more Cognos BI users and so we proposed moving them to a Processor Value Unit PVU licensing model that allowed them to add more users without buying an IBM Cognos license for each person. As a result, they saved over $100K a year in support fees, no longer had to track the number of end users, and saved even more in not having to buy additional licenses for each casual BI user. Wondering what a PVU is? Check our our blog, What the Heck is an IBM PVU?
Wrong IBM TM1/ Cognos Planning Analytics License Model
Another client was heavily deploying TM1 (Cognos Planning Analytics) and by restructuring their licenses into a model where they could add unlimited PVU’s or cores for the analytic servers, they saved over $1M in foreseeable future IBM licensing fees. The client was able to economically deploy additional TM1 models, even models that would put heavy demands on the analytic server without having to purchase more IBM Cognos Planning analytic server licensing.
Smaller Deployments
As an IBM Cognos reselling partner, we often find smaller IBM Cognos BI or TM1 clients that have owned the software for a long time are the ones that are in the wrong licensing model. Clients with less than 50 TM1 users and 100 BI users might be better suited for Cognos Express licensing. Cognos Express was released by IBM in 2009 to better serve the smaller, midmarket clients. Today Cognos Express is the same software as IBM Cognos BI and TM1 enterprise, it’s just a different licensing model at a lower price, with some restrictions. Check out IBM's site for more information.
Learn More and Survive an Audit
Don’t fall for the myth: I have the correct IBM Cognos Licenses for BI or TM1. It’s time to make certain. It takes only 90 minutes of your time for Lodestar Solutions to empower you with knowledge that could save you time, and money, while increasing the likelihood you will fly through an IBM licensing review and educating you on the new bells and whistles.
To schedule your complimentary “What the Heck Do I Own- IBM Cognos” licensing session, contact us at services@lodestarsolutions.com. I promise this will be the best use of your time all week and we will help you answer the main question - Do I have the correct IBM Cognos Licenses for BI or TM1!