Licensing Management and Contract Compliance
PwC offers a variety of services to develop and implement third-party compliance programs for various types of third-party business arrangements:
- Vendor compliance
- Channel partner compliance
- Software License Compliance
- Media and advertising
- Intellectual property protection
Vendor compliance
Complex pricing structures, time-based variables or use of sensitive information can inhibit transparency in vendor relationships and pricing. As a result, companies are often left wondering they have overpaid for goods and services.
Typical issues in vendor compliance:
- Most favored pricing requirements are not upheld
- Simple lack of process or controls
- Inclusion of unallowed costs in “cost-plus” pricing structures
- Miscalculation of rebates
- Incorrect labor rate classification
How we can help
PwC’s vendor compliance professionals have executed thousands of inspections, collaborating with our clients to manage global programs across numerous industries. Our teams have significant experience assessing compliance with a number of complex contractual arrangements and assisting with recovery of costs.
Failing to comply with contractual obligations
All of our solutions are designed to anticipate and address the reasons partners fail to comply with contractual obligations:
- Lack of vigilance: Once executed, contracts are usually put aside and only looked at for renewals or when there’s a dispute or other triggering event
- Limited resources: Business partners don’t have the structure or systems to coordinate various disciplines within an organization to properly manage and report on compliance.
- Human error: Organizations delegate compliance-related efforts to junior resources who often have not read or don’t have access to the contracts.
- Breakdowns in process or control: Business partners are focused on their own profitability and business metrics and fail to allocate proper resources to contract compliance.
- Differing contract interpretation: Differences in business culture, unexpected circumstances, complex language and undefined terms can all lead to interpretive issues. Organizations may also interpret terms so that they are beneficial to their own goals, without considering the original intent.
The value organizations derive from third-party compliance programs can be significant and include cost/revenue recoveries, identification of cost savings, process and continuous improvements, contract development risk mitigation opportunities, and industry-leading practices.
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