In Episode 6 of our Oracle video briefing series, we’ll take a look at our own Oracle Managed Services offering at Livingstone. In the final video of the series, we’ll take a brief look at what to expect when it comes to Livingstone’s Oracle Managed Service, and what makes us stand out from the crowd.
Livingstone’s Oracle Managed Services overview
At Livingstone, we know that Oracle customers are always looking for ways to address the likes of compliance and audits, as well as looking at how to become more efficient and effective at managing their Oracle estate costs.
The problem is that, without gaining a clear understanding and oversight of their Oracle estate, users are invariably exposed to escalating costs and unforeseen risks. And we know that, as with all mega vendors, analyzing and optimizing Oracle licensing models is both complex, challenging and time-consuming, a situation that is often further complicated by Oracle’s practices around audits, licensing and support. We also know that not every Oracle environment is the same, with organizations having different needs and requirements for compliance issues and beyond, and needing different levels of our services for varying amounts of time.
So, we wanted to deliver an ongoing offering that is a multi-year service, is tailored for each and every customer, and isn’t solely focused on compliance. This is our Oracle Managed Services.
Based on our extensive experience and deep understanding of Oracle contracts, including ULA and PULA, our Oracle technical and commercial world-class experts help Oracle customers develop and deploy strategies that help them to get the most from their Oracle investments.
We have helped organizations across the world to control and optimize their Oracle investments and deployments, by enabling them to gain valuable understanding of their compliance, consumption, costs and contract. With clarity on their current Oracle licensing position, and with an understanding of future requirements, Oracle customers are able to make smarter overall business decisions, evaluate their future Oracle on-premise and cloud solutions, and be in control of their Oracle estate, from cost to compliance.
What makes Livingstone different
We are very proud to say that Livingstone was named as a Leader in 2021 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Software Asset Management Managed Services, with the ITAM Review also singling out our independence as a managed service provider as a strategic differentiator in a competitive market.
Our position as an independent provider is extremely important to us. While many SAM and ITAM providers also resell cloud, software and hardware licenses and are therefore incentivized by the vendor or cloud provider to sell you more product, here at Livingstone we have no such conflicts. We only work for our clients, never for the vendor and/or service providers that supply them. Our entire business model revolves around delivering savings and value to you and you alone, and this places us in a position to achieve the best possible commercial and contractual outcomes for our Oracle clients.
In addition, we hire practitioners, not career-consultants, with experts who have worked at Oracle for many years. They have seen first-hand how the business model operates within Oracle, how sales teams are incentivized, and they know exactly which buttons to press and which questions to ask in order to secure favorable contract terms. What’s more, they are experienced in negotiating on behalf of the vendor so know what deals Oracle is likely to agree, how many licenses an organization needs, what organizations needs to do to become compliant and defend against an audit, and where they can make cost-savings. They can also help you make the most of your ULAs, how to optimize your VMware, what to consider when it comes to switching to third-party support, and many other aspects and issues related to Oracle.
For more information on how Livingstone can help with your Oracle Managed Services needs, visit our dedicated Oracle page, email us on info@livingstone-group.com or complete this form and one of our contract experts will be in touch.
Further reading & Oracle content...
Video series: Oracle Briefing Series.
Series of six short Oracle briefings helping you to prepare for 2022.
Article: The Perils of Oracle Java
Article: Oracle renewals: The myth of the Oracle May spend?
About the Author
Razvan Tarnovschi, Oracle Practice Lead
Razvan joined Livingstone Group in 2021 as Oracle Practice Lead and brings with him 13 years of Oracle experience. During this time, his responsibilities included negotiating high dollar value contracts with customers. Razvan has a deep understanding of the language of Oracle's complex contracts including policies and terms.