What was said
What this says
As at Fri 9 Oct 202621 Nov 2024 renewal call. Philip Annear accepted the renewal timetable but challenged paying for unused seats and a higher figure, and said he does not renew on autopilot without a stated saving.
What happened: Daniel Okafor and Tom Ashdown walked Philip Annear, the Finance Director, through usage: about a dozen daily active people, up roughly a third, against fifty licensed users. Tom said the open renewal deal is forty-seven thousand five hundred pounds against the contracted £43k.
Customer view: Philip called headroom paying for seats nobody sits in. He asked what he gets for the difference and was told same tier and same users, with a written breakdown to follow.
Commercial: the deal is pencilled for 16 Dec 2024, before the term ends on 27 Dec 2024. Philip wants the paper in early December.
Watch: no saving has been measured, and the call does not show a signed outcome.
Themes
As at Fri 9 Oct 2026Who was there
BG-Demo
Them
Follow-up
Next steps
As at Fri 9 Oct 2026- Tom Ashdown to send the written renewal breakdown, with the paper reaching Philip Annear in early December.
- Daniel Okafor to send a short usage note before the renewal paperwork arrives.
- Tom Ashdown to aim for signature by 16 Dec 2024, ahead of the term end on 27 Dec 2024.
Risks
As at Fri 9 Oct 2026- The open renewal figure is higher than the contracted £43,100 and the breakdown has not yet been sent.
- Philip Annear sees fifty licensed users against about a dozen daily as paid-for seats nobody uses.
- No saving has been measured, so the Finance Director has no answer if asked to justify the renewal.
Opportunities
As at Fri 9 Oct 2026- A short numbers-first usage note could give the Finance Director the value case he says he needs.
Transcript
- Daniel OkaforAfternoon, Philip. Afternoon, Tom. Thank you both for making the time. Is everyone here who should be? I think it's just the three of us.
- Philip AnnearAfternoon. Just us, yes. I can hear you fine.
- Tom AshdownAfternoon both. Loud and clear this end. How's your week been, Philip? Grey one down in Bristol, I'd imagine.
- Philip AnnearWet. Avonmouth is always wet. Busy, though, which is the main thing. The pre-Christmas volumes are building already, so I've got about forty minutes and then I'm needed on the floor.
- Tom AshdownNo drama, we'll keep it tight. Daniel, do you want to set it off?
- Daniel OkaforOf course. Just to close the loop on why we're here: the Growth subscription runs to 27 December 2024, so we wanted to talk renewal properly, in good time, rather than let it creep up on you.
- Philip AnnearGood. Before we get to that, who's using it? That's what I want to know first.
- Daniel OkaforFair question, and I've got the numbers to hand. On an average day, about a dozen people are actively in the brain. That's up by roughly a third on the previous quarter, so it's moving the right way.
- Philip AnnearA dozen. And we're licensed for fifty.
- Daniel OkaforFifty licensed users, yes. I'd say that's fair to flag. A dozen daily isn't the whole picture, because people dip in and out across the week, but you've clearly got headroom.
- Philip AnnearHeadroom is a polite word for paying for seats nobody sits in.
- Tom AshdownHa. Aye, fair. I'd not argue with that, Philip. Though the direction's what I'd look at. A third up in a quarter isn't nothing.
- Philip AnnearMm. Who are they? The users.
- Daniel OkaforMostly your account managers, from what I see. They're the ones pulling a client's temperature-excursion tickets, orders and contract reviews together in one place, which is what you bought it for in the first place. How is the team finding it, from where you sit? I'd be interested to hear what you're picking up.
- Philip AnnearI don't hear much, to be honest. Which I take to be a good sign. People tell me quickly when something's a nuisance.
- Daniel OkaforThat fits with the support side too. We had one ticket in the last month, one, and it wasn't something that held anyone up. Otherwise it's been quiet.
- Philip AnnearGood. Quiet I like. What does it save us? In plain terms.
- Daniel OkaforIn plain terms, it saves the account managers having to chase three systems before they walk into a client review. I wouldn't want to put a pounds figure on it from memory, because I don't think we've measured it that way together. That might be something worth doing before the next renewal, actually.
- Philip AnnearIt would. I don't renew on autopilot. If I can't say what it saves, I'm going to be asked, and I'd rather have an answer.
- Tom AshdownWhich is exactly right, and I'd not want you to. Can I say where we've got to on the commercial side, then, and you can tell me if it's off the mark?
- Philip AnnearGo on.
- Tom AshdownSo at the moment you're contracted at forty-three thousand one hundred pounds a year. That's what's on the order form and it's what you've been invoiced. The renewal deal we've got open comes out at forty-seven thousand five hundred. Now, I don't want to quote that line by line from memory, so I'll confirm it in writing with the breakdown, but that's the number we're working to.
- Philip AnnearThat's higher.
- Tom AshdownIt is higher, yes. I'm not going to dress that up.
- Philip AnnearSo what am I getting for the difference? Same fifty users, same tier?
- Tom AshdownSame tier, Growth, same fifty users as far as I know. And this is why I'd rather send it in writing, Philip. I'd hate to guess at how it splits and get it wrong. Leave that with me, and you'll have the breakdown before you have to think about it.
- Philip AnnearSend me the renewal in good time. I'll want to see it properly before I say anything. And no surprises on the invoice, please. I've had enough of those from other suppliers.
- Tom AshdownUnderstood. Nothing lands on you that you've not been warned about.
- Daniel OkaforAnd just from my side, Philip, you've been on time with everything this year. There's nothing outstanding on the account that I can see, so the paperwork side should be straightforward.
- Philip AnnearGood. We pay what we've been warned about.
- Daniel OkaforWhich is why we'll warn you. Can I suggest something that might help you with the question you keep asking, about who's using it and what it saves?
- Philip AnnearPlease.
- Daniel OkaforI can put together a short note on usage: how many people, which teams, how that's moved over the last few months, and a couple of examples from your account managers on how they use it before a client review. Nothing glossy. Something you can read in a couple of minutes and use if you're asked.
- Philip AnnearThat would be useful. Short, please. Numbers first.
- Daniel OkaforNumbers first, then. I'll come back to you with it before the renewal paperwork reaches you, so you've got the two together.
- Tom AshdownLet's get something in the diary for the signing end of it as well. We've got the deal pencilled for 16 December 2024, which gives a bit of room before the contract ends on 27 December 2024. Does that sit all right with you, Philip, or is that tight with your year end?
- Philip AnnearIt's workable. I'd rather not be doing it in the last week of the month, with the depots as they are. If the paper's with me early December, I can turn it round.
- Tom AshdownEarly December it is. I'll get it to you well before then, and I'll flag it to you if anything moves.
- Philip AnnearFine. And the renewal date itself is 28 December, is that right? I want to be sure we don't lapse.
- Tom Ashdown28 December 2024, yes. The current term ends the day before. We'll have it signed long before that, so there's no gap.
- Philip AnnearGood. Anything else from you two? I should get back to the floor.
- Daniel OkaforOnly to say thank you, Philip. It's good to hear it's quiet and being used. If anything changes before the paperwork, you know where I am.
- Tom AshdownCheers, Philip. Talk soon. Mind how you go in that rain.
- Philip AnnearThank you both. Goodbye.