PricewaterhouseCoopers US said it will collaborate with Microsoft to develop and deploy a portfolio of services designed and branded by PwC, and powered by Microsoft.

Bob Moritz

The relationship, which will focus on tax services, enables PwC to take advantage of Microsoft’s licensed software to deliver tailored compliance and consulting services to its clients. 

Critical business services designed and branded by PwC will use Microsoft’s technology to help clients drive efficiencies in their business. The initial service is designed to help tax departments with their function and overall business, while also managing their tax-reporting and compliance requirements.

“I am very pleased that our tax clients will be able to reap the rewards of this collaboration,” said PwC US tax leader Mark Mendola. “Tax departments have been dealing with resource constraints and concerns about tax risks for years, while concurrently grappling with increased compliance requirements. This initiative will enable us to provide top-notch tax services paired with leading edge technology.”

PwC US chairman and senior partner Bob Moritz noted, “While tax departments will be the first to benefit from this agreement, we believe there will be broader application of these new approaches and technologies over time, which will create additional value for our clients.”

“Microsoft and PwC are working together to bring to customers the combined benefits of each company’s expertise,” said Mark Hill, vice president of enterprise partners at Microsoft. “By offering clients options to deploy Microsoft-based solutions on premises and in the cloud, we are helping them to transform the way they do business. The initial solutions will take advantage of PwC‘s experience in the areas of tax management, with the portfolio expanding to other solutions for the enterprise.”

PwC Tax built a customizable tool called Tax Operations Manager, which is used by PwC’s tax clients, on the Microsoft platform. PwC Tax will help clients customize the tool to the client company’s circumstances, enabling it to become the company's own management tool. 

This tailored tool will facilitate collaboration between the company's internal tax department and its external service provider, PwC Tax. Tax Operations Manager will also enable the company to better manage its tax department and its compliance requirements seamlessly around the globe.

Through the development of this tailored tool, tax departments will be able to work both on premises, as well as in the cloud, using SQL Server, Windows Azure and other Microsoft applications. They will also be able to work with PwC Tax to design their own internal enhanced data analytics.