A&O Shearman is a new global industry-leading law firm, with nearly 50 offices in 28 countries worldwide. Our fluency in English law, US law, and the laws of the world’s most dynamic markets, enables us to provide unmatched insight and seamless delivery to clients. We work on challenging and important deals and disputes that have the potential to shape the future.

We offer exceptional opportunities for our people; opportunities to work for the world’s leading businesses; to transform the status quo, and to deliver your best work, helping you and your career to thrive, while delivering unparalleled outcomes for our clients.

Whether you're helping clients solve complex challenges, transforming the ways we manage our business, or ensuring the smooth-running of our operations, this is an environment where you can belong and excel. We provide first-rate training and development, we are committed an inclusive environment, and we provide support and ways of working that help you optimise your wellbeing.

What truly defines a career with us? We recruit the best and ask for the best of you. And together, we will redefine success.

Department purpose

The Technology Services department is responsible for providing world-class support and services to our business across the globe. The IT Service Management team is part of Technology Services and operates all of the IT services and infrastructure for the firm.

Role purpose

Software Asset Management (“SAM”) is a subset of IT Asset Management (“ITAM”) and the Software Asset Specialist will work with the Software Asset Manager to introduce a set of business practices for to effectively IT Assets and software licensing across the firm. This will involve joining inventory, contractual, financial and risk management responsibilities to manage the overall lifecycle of the assets, including tactical and strategic decision-making.

The Software Asset Specialist’s primary responsibility will be to assist with the management of the firm’s software portfolio and key third party suppliers, collaborating with internal teams/stakeholders such as Procurement, In-House Legal, Product Owners and Senior Stakeholders across the firm, contributing as a SAM expert. They will work in consultation with the Software Asset Manager to develop and implement the SAM strategy and processes necessary for the effective management, control and protection of software assets and their licensing, throughout all stages of the lifecycle.

Role and responsibilities

Be a key liaison point between IT and key third party software suppliers with the ability to hold complex licence discussions with vendors and key stakeholders.
Be a trusted advisor for software licensing, ensuring that licences are optimised to maximise the value of existing investments, whilst identifying and mitigating risks and making informed decisions about new purchases.
Assist with software vendor licensing audits in line with the firms audit processes whilst managing stakeholders and communications to mitigate any risks in a timely manner.
Conducting regular internal licensing audits across the software estate to generate Effective License Positions ("ELPs") to assist with contract renewals, negotiations, optimisation, and audits.
Have a thorough understanding of complex licence models across Enterprise vendors, particularly Tier 1, and assess the wider licensing impact to the firm’s estate in line with the vendor and the firm’s strategy.
Apply knowledge of software licensing terms and the ability to work with Procurement and In-House Legal teams to amend agreements and contracts to improve the firm’s contractual position.
Interpret vendor licence models, assessing the impact of the wider licence implications on the negotiation of optimal deals.
Assist with the collection and maintenance of inventory data from multiple sources including the SAM tool, SCCM, CMDB, Active Directory, Vendor Portals, PO's, Invoices, Emails and a variety of data sets, to manage assets throughout their lifecycle.
Maintain the integrity of data in the SAM tool by ensuring deployment and entitlement information is recorded accurately and that complex licensing metrics are reflected appropriately.
Conduct detailed analysis of software usage collating data from multiple sources and being able to relay this effectively, via various means, to key stakeholders.
Proactively engage with projects ensuring the most efficient licensing model is in place.
Work closely with the Service Desk to educate in relation to SAM processes and governance, developing / maintaining workflow approvals for the automation of software requests for the firm.

Who we are looking for

Practical experience (ideally 3+ years’ experience) in a dedicated software licensing or software asset management role.
Experience of managing software licensing for a minimum of one Tier 1 vendor (Microsoft, Oracle, SAP etc).
Proven experience conducting detailed data analysis from disparate sources and the ability to interpret complex licensing models.
Comprehensive understanding of data analysis principles and processes, collating information from various sources.
Ability to plan, co-ordinate and execute short, medium and long-term initiatives to improve performance of processes.
Ability to develop and maintain strong working relationships with stakeholders at all levels across the business.
Excellent communication and presentation skills, both orally and written.
Qualification in Certified Software Asset Manager (CSAM) is preferred.
Previous experience working in a global organisation is preferred.

Should you require additional support at any stage of the recruitment process due to a disability or a health condition, please do not hesitate to contact a member of our recruitment team who will work with you to provide any adjustments as required.

We are an equal opportunities recruiter and do not discriminate on the basis of race, colour, sex, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, or any other protected characteristic.

We recognise the value of flexible working and embrace hybrid working, allowing our people to work from home up to 40% of their working time. We do however remain committed to working together in person for the remaining 60% of time so that we can learn, grow and succeed together.

A&O Shearman

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