STRATE, the authorised Central Securities Depository (CSD) for the electronic settlement of all financial instruments in South Africa, has renewed an enterprise agreement for its Microsoft licensing requirements with IT solutions and service provider, Datacentrix.
STRATE is owned by the JSE Ltd, the four major South African banks - Absa Bank, First Rand Bank, Nedbank and Standard Bank - as well as Citibank.
According to Monica Singer, chief executive officer at STRATE, the agreement enables the organisation to budget for Microsoft licences, offering a cost-effective way of obtaining all licences required while removing the headache of having to deal with a complex procedure.
"Datacentrix understands Microsoft's different licence schemes and is able to coordinate the best fit for STRATE's requirements.
"The benefits of this arrangement are not only an upfront cost saving, but also the ability to ensure we remain current in terms of software by receiving new versions and patches for the period of the agreement. This provides a good platform for future-proofing the company as there would be no added costs for any upgrades," she says.
STRATE's new agreement with Datacentrix overlaps the contract signed in 2003, adding new Microsoft products to STRATE's list of requirements, including Visual Studio 2005, SharePoint, Enterprise Project Management (EPM) and Content Management Server; such technologies allow STRATE to increase productivity, streamline project management and allow for better collaboration and communication within the company. Because of these key benefits Microsoft software has to offer, STRATE has decided to continually upgrade its Microsoft software as to receive full potential from all purchased products.
Says Singer: "Datacentrix is STRATE's preferred Microsoft partner, handling of our Microsoft support - the company understands our environment and requirements, it has delivered, taken the time to understand our needs and provides a good service at a competitive price. Datacentrix's close relationship with Microsoft was key in STRATE's decision to renew this agreement."
"Datacentrix ensures that STRATE is compliant at all stages in the contract's life," says Johann Coetzee, general manager - Johannesburg at Datacentrix. "We also see that STRATE is able to optimise its investment by way of being a trusted adviser when new technology is released. Datacentrix is a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner with the following competencies: Business Intelligence Solutions, ISV Software Solutions and Microsoft Business Solutions. Datacentrix has the necessary infrastructure and skills to consult, deploy and maintain the latest Microsoft technology to large organisations throughout South Africa.
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