Practice · XIII.

Autodesk.

The named-user transition from network licences, the Premium plan uplift, the Flex token design, the AEC Collection and Product Design and Manufacturing Collection scope, the Maintenance and Support migration to subscription, and the transactional licence audit defence. Autodesk renewals close on a population-by-population reconciliation and a Premium tier contest, not on the publisher's listed uplift. Independent buyer-side advisory across the AutoCAD, Revit, Inventor, Fusion, Maya, 3ds Max and Construction Cloud estates.

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Autodesk licensing advisory

Premium pricing is the new uplift. The tier is contested.

Autodesk Premium plan pricing carries a sustained uplift over Standard plan licensing without commensurate functional value for most users. Without a Premium tier contest, the buyer pays the uplift on every named user.

Where the practice intervenes
Six points on the Autodesk contract cycle.
Pre-renewal
i.
Estate reconstruction
Nine months before the renewal anchor, the Autodesk estate is reconstructed across AutoCAD, Revit, Inventor, Fusion 360, Maya, 3ds Max, AEC Collection, Product Design and Manufacturing Collection, Construction Cloud, BIM 360, Vault and the Flex token pool. Named user populations, application usage and forecast growth are mapped. The position paper governs the renewal commercial conversation.
Named user
ii.
Population reconciliation
Named user populations are reconciled against documented application usage. Dormant seats, departed users, project-bound users and occasional users are identified. Flex token migration candidates and the contraction position at the renewal anchor are documented. The named-user position is filed before the renewal commercial letter is returned.
Premium contest
iii.
Premium plan rejection
Autodesk Premium plan uplift is contested against documented use cases at named-user level. Premium-only feature use is mapped. Where the Premium feature set is not used, Standard plan retention is filed in writing. Premium-tier swap rights at the renewal anchor are documented.
Flex tokens
iv.
Token pool design
Flex token consumption is sized against documented project-bound and occasional user populations. Token pool sizing, daily consumption rate, monthly burn-down protocol and the multi-year ramp are documented. The token-to-named-user breakeven is calculated and used as the migration decision.
Collections
v.
Collection scope
AEC Collection, Product Design and Manufacturing Collection and Media and Entertainment Collection scope are reconciled against documented application usage. Collection-to-single-product downgrades for users who use only one application are documented. Collection swap rights at the renewal anchor are negotiated.
Multi-year
vi.
Closing contract terms
The renewal closes against a multi-year commitment with documented discount tiers, contraction rights, named-user swap rights, collection swap rights and the renewal anchor terms. The closing contract is reviewed clause by clause. The senior advisor sits opposite the publisher's account team for the full negotiation.
Where the work concentrates
Active mandate areas across the Autodesk book.
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Named user reconciliation
Dormant, departed, project, occasional
Named user population reconciliation, dormant seat identification, departed user cleanup, project-bound and occasional user identification, Flex migration candidacy.
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Premium plan contest
Standard, Premium, feature use, swap
Premium plan uplift contestation, Premium-only feature use mapping, Standard plan retention in writing, Premium-tier swap rights at the renewal anchor.
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Flex token pool design
Sizing, burn, breakeven, multi-year
Flex token consumption sizing against project-bound and occasional populations, token pool design, daily consumption rate, monthly burn-down, breakeven calculation.
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Collection scope
AEC, PDMC, MEC, single-product
AEC Collection, Product Design and Manufacturing Collection, Media and Entertainment Collection scope reconciliation, collection-to-single-product downgrades.
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M&S to subscription migration
Perpetual, M&S sunset, transition
Maintenance and Support migration to subscription, perpetual licence retirement, transition pricing protection, multi-year contraction rights.
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Transactional licence audit defence
TLA, deployment, audit interception
Transactional Licence Agreement deployment audit defence, audit notice interception, evidence-package management, settlement negotiation.
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I.
Named senior advisor
The senior advisor named on the engagement letter leads every Autodesk conversation. No leverage model, no rotation of junior consultants, no anonymous correspondence with the publisher. The advisor signs every position document.
II.
Counter-signed positions
Every written counter-position to Autodesk is signed by the senior advisor and counter-signed by a second partner before transmission. Two named signatures on every position document for the full five-year retention period.
III.
Independent on every clause
Admodum holds no commercial relationship with Autodesk. No reseller margin, no Autodesk Partner status, no audit delivery subcontract. We do not work both sides.
IV.
Premium is a position, not a default
Premium plan uplift is contested against documented use cases at named-user level. Premium-only feature use is mapped. Where the Premium feature set is not used, Standard plan retention is filed in writing at the renewal anchor.
V.
Five-year retention
Every position paper, counter-position, and closing memorandum is retained inside the firm for five years from engagement close. The buyer can request source workings at any point.
VI.
Reset the baseline every cycle
Every Autodesk renewal closes with a written baseline reset. The closing position, the contractual amendments accepted, and the live obligations carried forward are tied into the next renewal preparation cycle through the Renewal Programme.
$95M
Autodesk Spend Advised
28
Renewals Closed
32%
Median Cost Reduction
9
Audits Closed
100%
Named Advisor
"
The opening renewal moved every AEC Collection named user to Premium plan and added a Flex token pool sized at full-time engineering staffing. After a named-user reconciliation and a Premium plan contest, the close landed thirty-four percent below the proposed run-rate with named single-product downgrades.
Director of Design Operations
Global Engineering and Construction Group · Renewal Q3 2025
Operating principles
How the practice is run.
Named user by usage.
Named user populations are reconciled against documented application usage at user level. Dormant seats, departed users, project-bound users and occasional users are identified. Flex token migration candidacy and contraction at the renewal anchor are documented.
Premium is a position.
Premium plan uplift is contested against documented use cases. Premium-only feature use is mapped at named-user level. Where the Premium feature set is not used, Standard plan retention is filed in writing at the renewal anchor.
Flex by breakeven.
Flex token pool sizing is calculated against documented project-bound and occasional user consumption. The token-to-named-user breakeven is calculated and used as the migration decision at user level.
Collection by application use.
AEC, Product Design and Manufacturing, and Media and Entertainment Collections are reconciled against documented application usage. Single-application users are reclassified to single-product entitlement at the renewal anchor.
Independence
Admodum is not a partner, reseller, or affiliate of any software vendor. No reseller margin, no referral commission, no audit subcontract from any publisher.
Autodesk licensing advisory

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Practice across AutoCAD, Revit, Inventor, Fusion, Maya, the AEC and Manufacturing Collections, and Construction Cloud. Independent. Buyer-side only. Engagement structured as fixed fee · contingency · annual retainer.

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