Most consulting firms charge by the hour. We charge a percentage of documented savings. That one difference changes everything about how we work.
We built our model to eliminate everything broken about traditional consulting.
Shared savings for eligible projects, plus fixed-fee/staffing options
Hourly or project-based fees regardless of outcome
$0 — zero financial risk
$150K-500K+ retainer before any work begins
Our revenue is tied to your savings
Revenue tied to hours billed, not results delivered
25+ years focused exclusively on software licensing
Generalist consultants with surface-level knowledge
Decades of negotiation data across 200+ vendors
Limited to public pricing and vendor-provided benchmarks
60-90 days to first verified savings
6-12 months for recommendations (not implementation)
Ongoing partnership — we keep finding savings
Fixed engagement, then you're on your own
Full software estate: licensing, contracts, cloud, telecom, M&A
Narrow scope, often single-vendor focus
We invest our time, expertise, and resources upfront — at our cost. We analyze your software estate, identify savings opportunities, and execute the optimizations and negotiations.
You pay nothing until savings are documented and verified. Then you keep 70% of the savings — we receive 30% as our fee, paid only from realized savings. If we don't save you money, you owe us nothing.
This model has sustained our business for 25+ years because it works. Our incentives are permanently aligned with yours — we're motivated to find every possible dollar of savings, and to keep finding them year after year.
Full assessment and analysis at our cost. Zero upfront fees.
Documented, verified savings you can see on your P&L.
You keep 70% of verified savings. We receive 30%. No savings = no fee.
We don't bill hours, so there's no incentive to stretch work, schedule unnecessary meetings, or staff junior consultants on your account.
We recommend only services that generate savings. Every recommendation is tied to a quantifiable outcome — not a revenue target.
Our revenue grows when your savings grow. That makes us long-term partners, not short-term vendors. Our average client relationship is 10+ years.
If our assessment finds nothing, you've lost nothing. We bear the cost of analysis, strategy, and initial engagement — not you.
"UMS has been an invaluable partner for over 15 years. Their shared-savings model means they're always aligned with our goals — they only win when we win."
UMS has partnered with the City of New York for over 25 years, delivering more than $700 million in software savings across 80+ agencies. The relationship has survived multiple administrations because results speak for themselves. David Burns has managed this account for close to 20 years, navigating complex government procurement and confrontational vendor relationships. The city recently signed a 6-year renewal agreement — their longest commitment yet.
Book a free 30-minute consultation. We'll show you where your savings are — with zero obligation and zero upfront cost.
