2023 Highlights Day 3: Collaborative Procurement for Microsoft Licences

Day 3 of our 12 days of Digital Partnership highlights of 2023.

Today, we reflect on our successful collaboration with Scotland Excel and Crown Commercial Services (CCS) for a joint procurement of Microsoft licences.

Earlier this year, we successfully partnered with 11 Councils in conjunction with Scotland Excel and Crown Commercial Services (CCS) for a joint procurement of Microsoft licences. In total, this procurement was able to deliver over £987,000 in savings for the participating councils over the course of the 3-year contract.

We are thrilled to announce a new opportunity for a collaborative procurement of Microsoft licences. This initiative is led by CCS and backed by Scotland Excel and the Digital Office.

The submission deadline for your requirements is December 15th 2023, with the contract anticipated to be awarded in mid-February. This contract will cover enrolments from 31st March 2024, to 1st July  2024. It's important to note that participating in the procurement process imposes no obligation to commit to the successful bidder.

Participating in one of the CCS aggregated procurements is likely to provide you with a saving between 2% to 3.5%.

Martyn Wallace, Chief Digital Officer of the Digital Office for Scottish Local Government said "Delighted that we are collaborating again on another great opportunity to drive benefits, savings and efficiencies through procurement of licences around a common solution, especially when we are all facing the same challenges financially across Local Government.

Hugh Carr, Head of Strategic Procurement at Scotland Excel said "Having already established the benefits of partnership working through the work done to date, this is another great opportunity to drive efficiency through effective collaborative procurement. We look forward to continuing to support the local government sector in the pursuit of best value.

If you would like to find out more information about this initiative, please get in touch at info@digitaloffice.scot.