Notes from the Compliance Manager Summit

March 18, 2016

It was a a pleasure to attend the Compliance Manager Summit in San Francisco last week. The Software Compliance Group presented "Use Big Data to Boost Compliance Results." and it was good, interactive session.

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Join us at the Compliance Manager Summit in San Francisco

February 25, 2016

On March 8, I will be presenting a session titled, “Use Big Data to Boost Compliance Results” at the Compliance Manager Summit in San Francisco. I'm going to cover how you can leverage both existing internal data and software usage analytics to make more informed decisions about your compliance engagements.

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What’s the Right Engagement Model in Russia?

February 02, 2016

Software Licensing Audits in Russia Take Local Expertise, Careful Planning

The economic boom that is sweeping the BRIC countries certainly doesn’t include Russia right now. Economic sanctions and the low price of oil (upon which the Russian government depends for 50 percent of its budget) have contributed to a weak currency. Wages are declining, and Russians aren’t spending money. And there are unique policy challenges for software publishers. Russian government agencies have to prove they need foreign software before they can buy it, and can only make such purchases if there is no equivalent Russian software.

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Fishing Expeditions vs. Fish Finders: Benefits of Data-Driven Compliance

December 11, 2015

Any fan of National Geographic’s “Wicked Tuna” knows the melodic beep the boat’s fish finding software makes when one boats zeroes in on a potential catch.

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Is Your Customer’s M&A Strategy Your Best Sales Lead?

November 12, 2015

Global mergers and acquisitions are on pace to set an all-time record, surging toward a $4.58 trillion mark for 2015 that shatters even 2007’s staggering numbers, according to a recent Wall Street Journal article.

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Software License Auditing: Five Reasons Your Customers Will Thank You

October 27, 2015

I sat at my desk, hesitating to press send. There are few things that give me pause when trying to sell something I think will accelerate a client’s business, but this was different. This was an audit request.

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Are Your Field Reps Comfortable Being Uncomfortable?

August 25, 2015

Compliance cases are not for the meek. Each case is unique and you never know how the client will react when approached about unpaid software. This is why you need a professional third party to navigate this sensitive subject. There is a large amount of preparation involved:  understanding the clients' rights, privacy law, vendor license agreement, entitlements, and more. The bar is high before you can even begin the conversation.

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The Top 7 Excuses Used by Software Infringers

August 05, 2015

Over the years we have dealt with various software vendors on countless software infringement cases globally. Even though no case is ever identical, we have seen a growing trend of the same excuses being used over and over by the software infringers. As boastful as it sounds, there aren’t a lot of piracy excuses we haven’t already heard. Today, we’re going to review the top reasons we hear why people are using unlicensed software.

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So You’ve Received a Letter from Software Compliance Group

July 22, 2015

If you received a letter from the Software Compliance Group (SCG) you are most likely a senior official in your organization. The reason for our letter is to foster constructive dialogue with your firm about a sensitive matter: unlicensed software usage.

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Sales Strategies that will Guarantee Revenue Recovery Results

April 29, 2015

Earlier this month, I participated in a webinar hosted by our partner Revulytics that focsed on the different approaches to license compliance that software companies can take. I discussed four main approaches that we use at SCG: inside sales, legal, audits, and raids, and explored client case studies that illustrated how those approaches work in practice.

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