Creating greater economic and social value for clients and society as a whole
Long-term value creation is critical to secure competitive advantage, mitigate risk and strengthen stakeholder relationships, boosting overall business performance. At PwC, we invest heavily in innovation and the development of new products and services that can help companies in their quest to build trust with stakeholders and deliver sustained outcomes, thereby creating greater economic and social value for their customers and society as a whole.
Our efforts to remain close to clients, focus on our people and to stay connected as a workforce during the COVID-19 pandemic paid off, enabling us to continue to grow our business, even in the most challenging of times. In FY21, PwC Belgium reported total net revenues of 386.2 million euros, an increase of 0.86% on FY20. Feedback received from clients indicates that they were impressed with our agility and ability to support them and maintain the high quality of our services even in a remote setting.
In a highly competitive market and a year that was again materialy impacted by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, TLS (incorporating PwC Legal) performed well and was able to consolidate net revenues to a level of 136 million euros. Continued efficiency programmes also yielded sustained returns and additiational investment capacity with profitability levels up by five percent compared to prior year.
In FY21, our Assurance practice achieved a net revenue of 133.2 million euros, which were achieved both through Financial Audit Services (FAS) as well as Broader Assurance Services (BAS) delivered as part of clients’ large-scale transformation and compliance projects.
Combining the company’s Consulting and Deals units, PwC Belgium’s Advisory practice saw a 12.82% increase in net revenues, taking the total to 116.2 million euros. Growth was especially driven by our Management and Technology Consulting practices that experienced a significant increase in client demand.
We believe business has a key role to play in addressing current societal challenges and to foster the inclusive transformation of society for a more digital world. And that people should be given the time and opportunity to make a positive contribution which not only benefits the communities around them, but also offers them meaning in their personal and professional lives. That’s why we encourage people to get involved in projects that serve society, be they proposed by the firm or by our people who have a cause close to their heart for which they’re looking for support.
FY21 | FY20 | |
Volunteering participants | 200 | 317 |
Volunteering hours | 635 | 1.500 |
Monetary contributions | 691.457€ | 531.615€ |
Number of pro bono and lower-fee engagements | 18 | 24 |
Number of PwC participants on pro bono and lower-fee engagements | 112 | 74 |
Beneficiaries reached | 1.786 | n/a |
PwC began our digital transformation some years ago, but the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated both the need to become more digital and our actions to achieve this. Working closely as they do with clients, our people often come up with ideas on how we can better serve them, using technologies in new and novel ways. To make sure we’re able to pick up and develop their ideas, and to give them a real contribution to make to their work, no matter where in the business they are, we’ve created a dedicated innovation and creativity framework that includes innovation ambassadors, training and support. In FY21, we also introduced chief digital officers (CDOs) to every line of service to encourage, lead and develop digital ideas and initiatives.
We believe that to make a notable positive contribution to the environment and society around them, businesses need to think beyond their own borders and seek to work with partners who adhere to the same high standards of concern throughout their value chain. PwC’s committed to operating within a framework of ethical and professional standards, laws, regulation, internal policies and core values. We’ve been a signatory to the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) since 2002 and remain deeply committed to UNGC’s ten principles for responsible business practices.