For an international organization like PwC, predictability, scalability, and real-time insight are essential to serve clients efficiently. Teams from multiple countries collaborate on complex engagements and therefore need uniform processes and reliable data. When differences in systems and ways of working made international collaboration increasingly complex, PwC chose a new digital foundation with SAP Cloud ERP. During SAP NOW AI Netherlands, the company demonstrated how this transformation is taking shape.

PwC provides international assurance, tax, and advisory services to organizations in both the public and private sectors. Although the firm operates globally, its national entities are independently organized. This encourages entrepreneurship, but in practice led to major differences in processes, pricing models, and the applications used.

As many PwC clients operate internationally, alignment between countries became increasingly important. Processes and pricing strategies differed across global delivery centers. Countries also used their own payment systems and applications. This resulted in a fragmented IT landscape with more than eighty ERP systems, offering limited insight and creating ambiguity. Moreover, it no longer aligned with PwC’s strategic ambitions.

Harmonization of the entire contact-to-cash chain

This situation called for a fundamental redesign. To establish a single way of working worldwide, PwC streamlined the entire contact-to-cash chain. Customization was removed wherever possible, and all process steps were harmonized. SAP Cloud ERP serves as the central foundation. According to Nordin Sahil, Senior Manager SAP Alliance – Technology Applications Consulting at PwC Netherlands, this choice was logical: “Ultimately, this should make PwC’s professional services better, more efficient, and more cost-effective.”

With the new standardization, teams worldwide now have access to the same types of information. Employee availability, project planning, invoicing, and progress are visible in real time. Internal transactions, such as intercompany billing, are faster and more accurate. As a result, expertise is utilized more effectively and international projects can be organized more efficiently.

Real-time visibility into cross-border projects

A recent project illustrates the impact. For a client with a broad European footprint, a project was managed from the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, supplemented by technical expertise from India and local support in various European countries. Thanks to the cloud environment, all teams worked with the same project data.

Rob La Haye, Director at PwC Netherlands, sees a clear change: “The new system provides an integrated view of resource deployment, hours, and progress. Previously, this involved offline invoicing and separate financial postings. With the new approach, a project can be monitored and adjusted in real time.” This gives PwC stronger predictive capabilities. The organization can better assess whether a project is feasible and profitable and, if necessary, decide at an early stage not to take on an engagement.

AI requires uniformity in processes and data

In addition to process harmonization, PwC is working on the use of AI, both for internal optimization and client-facing services. AI solutions support, for example, automatic explanations in financial reporting and the preparation of invoicing and planning scenarios. PwC uses technologies such as SAP Joule to support and accelerate client delivery.

Sahil emphasizes that effective AI is only possible with consistent data: “AI only works well with a consistent dataset and a standardized process model. That foundation was previously lacking due to national customization and legacy systems. The current standardization with SAP is therefore almost a necessary step to deploy AI effectively.”

While AI delivers increasing value, oversight remains essential. Employees remain responsible for the final quality, while SAP provides insight into how AI arrives at its conclusions. This is an important prerequisite as organizations place greater emphasis on transparency and control.

Agility through cloud and a focus on sovereignty

The geopolitical context demands agility. Regulations are changing faster, risks are increasing, and organizations must be able to respond effectively. According to La Haye, the public cloud provides the necessary flexibility, partly due to the fixed cadence of semiannual updates: “There are updates twice a year, so users are not locked into lengthy and costly upgrade cycles.”

In addition, PwC and SAP are exploring how sovereign cloud solutions can play a role, particularly in the public sector, where demand for European data infrastructures is growing.

Toward an integrated suite and a central data layer

PwC is in the midst of its transformation. The organization is participating in a beta program around SAP’s Business Data Cloud, which enables centralized data access and further strengthens AI solutions. This aligns with SAP’s broader move toward a fully integrated suite, where applications work seamlessly together.

Sahil sees this development becoming increasingly decisive in the coming years: “PwC is in the middle of a transformation. Some countries are leading the way, others will join later. This leads to new innovations, such as AI agents that are now being tested and implemented.”

With these steps, PwC is setting a guiding model: a uniform, data-driven organization in which AI moves safely, explainably, and integrally with daily operations. This creates the foundation for further growth of the SAP suite and future AI innovations.

Video link