You are in an audit
It does not matter where you are in the audit process. Maybe all you did was to respond to the publisher or the audit firm’s request. Maybe you are at the end of the audit process where you have received a settlement letter and don’t agree with the findings. Remember they do this type of work every day. You should find help to even out the sides. Clarify can help anywhere along the process.
The biggest mistake you can make
Do not assume that the licensing position is correct. Auditors typically use the approach of throwing everything at the wall and seeing what will sticks. At best, they interpret all the data in the way that servers them best. They know with experience that most of the customers are not going to review the license position report, rather they will accept the report and then focus on the settlement numbers.
The second mistake we often see
The second biggest error customers fall into is often to negotiate a lower cost settlement before knowing if the license position is correct. Settling before knowing the true license deployment without evaluating the actual position can be costly. This mistake usually ends up with a higher initial settlement cost then what is required, and also higher on-going costs for licenses or products that are not truly required.
Understand you have rights
You should not be controlled by the rulings of the auditors or by their time schedule. You have the right to review their findings and to correct mistakes that have been made. You should review all the findings and thoroughly challenge what you believe is not correct. Only then, should you start to discuss a settlement. Ideally you can negotiate a settlement that gives your company some business value and try to avoid a settlement that is punitive and where you end up with products you do not want.