Cisco Security Enterprise Agreements: A Purchasing Vehicle Worth the Test Drive

Security plays an integral role in practically every workload, architecture and decision made within all organizations. Given its ever-increasing visibility among IT leaders, security software must be easy to buy and consume. 

Enter Cisco Security EAs.

First things first, who are Cisco's Security EAs designed for?

In the past, the answer would have been limiting — recommending only organizations that make significant Cisco security investments consider an EA as their software purchasing vehicle. In today's world, the answer is far more inclusive.

Security Choice (2.0) vs. All-In (1.0)

Cisco has two security EA vehicles in its garage, each tailored for different customer personas. If Security Choice is a nimble sports sedan, equipped to accelerate quickly and handle a few curves, then All-In is a do-it-all SUV, capable of performing wherever the road may take you. 

All-in hasn't changed much over the years. Here, Cisco offers customers the keys to the kingdom, allowing unlimited access to its security software portfolio. With uncapped organic growth and even a 20 percent buffer for inorganic spikes, this is the ultimate program for companies expecting sustained growth or dramatically increased consumption within the software stack over the term. It's also a great fit for customers with a broad commitment to the Cisco Security portfolio. 

Security Choice allows customers to pick and choose suites from the security portfolio to configure their initial EA purchase. The more suites incorporated, the greater the discount. Should a customer decide to include an additional suite down the road, it's simply co-termed to their existing EA, providing a very customizable and user-friendly experience. This is an ideal program for customers just beginning their Cisco Security rollout, only consuming a few products or with little expected growth. 

The Security Choice offer leverages the same set of program terms and conditions as Cisco's other 2.0 enrollments (Collaboration Flex, DNA and Data Center). This enables the customer to purchase and manage their entire Cisco software environment in a single, co-termed contract.

What's in it for you?

• Agility: In light of the recent global events, customers have a heightened desire for on-demand scalability. A mechanism that allows access to new software and services when they're needed is all but a requirement. Cisco EAs enable real-time license fulfillment for products like AnyConnect that are critical for a remote workforce through its central management portal, EA Workspace. No additional procurement cycles needed, and everything is managed in a single, co-terminus agreement. Varying renewal dates are a thing of the past.
• Flexibility: With on-demand deployment capability comes massive true-up bills, right? Wrong. Any billable growth is accounted for through Cisco's True Forward process. That is, you will not be charged for overages retroactively. Instead your consumption will be monitored on an annual basis. If you deploy more than your original agreement allows — no problem — begin paying for the new amount on a go-forward basis.
• Predictability: Need flexible payment options? Making an acquisition? Planning for organic growth and want to understand the cost impact? All these things are easily addressable with the help of an EA. Not to mention, buying through an EA comes with a few economic benefits such as growth allowances, price-locking and multi-suite discounts.

Buy with confidence

Having trouble determining where your organization fits into this puzzle? Our Software Advising Team can guide you through the process. They will assess your current state, consider the future, analyze each relevant buying option and conclude with identifying the most suitable proposal for your business backed by real data.

Do you need to validate a solution prior to a strategic investment, such as an EA? It's important that the technology you standardize on can be seamlessly inherited by your production environment. The WWT Advanced Technology Center is a collaborative ecosystem that allows our customers to drastically reduce their proof of concept time from months to weeks, if not days.

Now that you're buying the right technology within the best program, do you have a strategy to optimize the expenditure? With EA+, customers embark on a lifecycle journey that ensures they maximize their software investment. From Integration Services and Customer Success to Adoption Services, you will understand how to operationalize your investment, what your success roadmap consists of and what services will be delivered to ultimately achieve your desired business outcomes.