Search Menu Home Resources Case studies VELUX Group CASE STUDY VELUX 11/9/2021 CATEGORY Software Asset Management Cloud Software VELUX takes cost-savings and cost-avoidance to the next level About VELUX Group The VELUX Group is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of roof windows, blinds, shutters, and skylight systems. Formed over 70 years ago, the Danish-based business has expanded consistently and profitably, especially over the past decade. VELUX now has sales and manufacturing operations in more than 40 countries and over 11,500 employees. The Business Challenge One of the biggest operational tasks facing VELUX is the management of software licenses across its complex, multisite, hybrid estate. “A business of our size and complexity needs deep licensing expertise to navigate all the crucial aspects of software and cloud operations,” said VELUX software asset manager Jesper Beck Lassen. “We need control of spend. We need strict processes and professionalism when it comes to compliance and auditing. Lastly, we need unrivaled knowledge about key vendors to control risks.” VELUX’s expansion over the last decade has been impressive. However, its striking growth means it now deploys software and cloud services from over 50 different vendors. That’s a complicated situation, and the company is not in a position to justify building an in-house team to manage this. “We would need to be experts in the 15 largest software/cloud vendors in the world just to get started,” Lassen said. “The three largest vendors alone have licensing regulations that stretch to 100 pages, and pricing that changes monthly. Managing this requires more than an in-house team.” Moreover, as the world has moved to the cloud, it’s obvious to Lassen that software and cloud asset management is not just about license control and good processes for compliance and audits. To future-proof a business, you need to build cost-avoidance strategies into your overall IT. Jesper Beck Lassen, VELUX Software Asset Manager “Making mistakes, doing things wrong, or not doing something important, can cost millions. That’s our challenge,” said Lassen. Why Crayon? “This new agreement is a continuation of the work we have been doing with Crayon for the last 10 years. It’s a set-up that has served us well,” Lassen said. A strategic approach to the complexity of SAM is a must, especially as the world switches to the cloud and spending within organizations become more fractured. Jesper Beck Lassen, VELUX Software Asset Manager “Again, this is why we chose Crayon,” said Lassen. “They can deeply penetrate our software/cloud consumption to help us manage current needs and optimize our IT estate. In addition, they boost our growth by projecting future needs as well.” Another way to describe the relationship is that VELUX is focused on governance and architecture, while Crayon manages everything else. Lassen acknowledges this means it depends on Crayon in key business areas. "Crayon has a profound understanding of all the major vendors. They have hundreds of experts we can use as and when required. Their broad global client base has given them insights others don’t have.” A perfect example of these benefits is when vendors try to pull VELUX in one particular licensing direction and Crayon challenges the vendor’s assumptions. “Crayon has proved their worth over many years,” said Lassen. “With one vendor a few years back, Crayon reduced our annual bill by 80 percent. At another more recent vendor, the reduction was 25 percent. Crayon has established processes and procedures that have led to cost avoidance in the region of millions of euros over many years.” For the last 10 years, we have not had a single negative audit impact on our budgets due to software licensing. Jesper Beck Lassen, VELUX Software Asset Manager According to Crayon Vice President Ulrik Roland, the new contract will enable VELUX to grow and Crayon to deliver on its promises. This new contract will enable VELUX to maintain its drive to increase professionalism and spending controls throughout its organization. The significant cost-savings and cost-avoidance Crayon has – and will – deliver, is what VELUX expects from us. Ulrik Roland, Crayon Vice President “Over the last 10 years, Crayon has transitioned from an arms-length sub-contractor to a trusted IT partner,” Roland said. “Originally, VELUX had an estate with a lot of different entities, systems, and platforms, and little in the way of standardization. But over the decade, we have used our growing expertise and VELUX’s operational professionalism to drive SAM, IT unity, and standardization across the entire estate.” Roland is nevertheless keen to underline that VELUX has made the job easier at every turn, highlighting VELUX’s desire for their products to stay relevant, and for the IT system their business is built on to stay relevant as well. “Each time we have hit a particular milestone or delivered on a particular target, the response from Velux is always the same – OK, what can we improve next?” said Roland. The Solution The VELUX Group has recently signed a new five-year co-operation agreement with Crayon Group for the outsourcing of all VELUX’s SAM requirements. The agreement covers license management, consolidation, and compliance, audit defense, as well as software procurement and advisory services. Crayon has been asked to deliver strategic cost avoidance and cost-projection. Project Results: Cost avoidance Software licensing has not had a single negative audit impact on VELUX’s budget. Standardized IT estate By driving SAM, IT unity, and standardization across the entire estate. WRITTEN BY Crayon Editorial Team SHARE Search Menu Let's talk Find your local office Follow us Services Resources Career About us Privacy and security Crayon Group Holding ASA, Sandakerveien 114 A, NO-0484 Oslo P O Box 4384 Nydalen - NO-0402 Oslo - Norway