How to gain more value, stronger security and better governance through reevaluating your Microsoft licensing model.
The opportunity
Whether through Enterprise Agreements or pay-as-you-go credit cards, the direct path often results in higher costs, limited flexibility, and underutilised security capabilities.
Microsoft's Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) licensing model enables organisations to gain more value, better control, and stronger security outcomes — when delivered through the right partner.
Common challenges
If you're on an Enterprise Agreement or Azure PAYG, you may be experiencing:
Licensing and cloud costs that grow without clear governance or warning.
Annual or triennial renewals that don't align with how your business actually changes.
Complex bills and consumption patterns that obscure what you're actually paying for.
Powerful Microsoft security capabilities licensed but not fully deployed or governed.
Multiple invoices and procurement paths across Microsoft services.
Support that engages only at renewal — and not when you need strategic guidance.
What CSP gives your business
Scale up — and down — as your business changes. No locked-in renewal traps.
Better financial governance. Single invoice. Spend visibility you can take to the CFO.
Premier Support included as part of the engagement — not bolted on as an extra cost.
Microsoft, Azure, M365, security, advisory — consolidated, governed, and accountable.
Compare the models
| Area | Enterprise Agreement (EA) | Azure PAYG | CSP via System Squared |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost predictability | Fixed, inflexible | Highly variable | Predictable, optimised |
| Flexibility | Renewal-locked | Scale up only | Scale up or down |
| Spend visibility | Complex | Limited | Clear, consolidated |
| Billing | Multiple invoices | Credit card | Single invoice |
| Admin overhead | High | Medium | Low |
| Support access | Extra cost | Limited | 24/7 included |
| Security enablement | Inconsistent | Minimal | Proactively enabled |
| Governance | Periodic | Minimal | Continuous |
| Optimisation | Annual review | Rare | Ongoing |
| Strategic guidance | Renewal-based | None | Year-round |
Optimising your investment
CSP licensing, paired with the right partner, helps ensure your licences are actively delivering business value — not just sitting on a renewal.
We treat licensing as a living asset, not a once-a-year procurement exercise.
Instead of reacting to incidents, CSP supports a proactive, security-first approach.
Repeatable governance processes — not just at onboarding, but continuously.
Why System Squared
We work alongside your teams to ensure your Microsoft environment is secure, governed, and delivering measurable value.
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