SPLiCE
SPLiCE CELEBRATES
Organization reaches its successful 15th year anniversary
The Society of Product Licensors Committed to Excellence, SPLiCE, founded April 26, 2004, celebrated its fifteen year anniversary. SPLiCE reached its successful milestone with relentless dedication. Its vision to improve brand licensing stands strong today. Since 2004, the organization has acted as a thinktank for brand owners. Success stems from the focus on brand and technology licensing practices. An academic platform ensues through design of conversational thought leadership. Kimberly Kociencki, Chief Executive Officer and a founder, stated “As a community of licensors, we’ve always shared best practices to protect, promote and enhance brand integrity. We have benchmarked functions of social & environmental responsibility, product regulatory compliance and quality. Business management, finance, legal benchmarking includes anticounterfeiting and trademark. SPLiCE Member engagement flourishes a kaleidoscope of brand knowledge from over 40 Industries”. SPLiCE benchmark success frames the organizational cornerstones of legal, marketing, and quality. The educational framework remains on functions that impact & influence licensing initiatives. PAGE 76
During its first formative five years, SPLiCE concentrated to objectify brand licensing processes. Paramount to best practices, was to create business metrics. Scorecards tied essentials to a successful licensing program and legitimize its management philosophies. By design, the SPLiCE Licensee Selection Checklist complimented the SPLiCE Licensee Scorecard. The SPLiCE Checklist tool supports a robust dialog with the (potential) licensee. The SPLiCE Scorecard factors the study of brand activation through licensing. Both tools offer an assessment of the licensees’ 360-performance per contract obligations. Areas include performance in Program Administration, Brand Alignment, Sales, Marketing & Advertising, Manufacturing, Environmental Sustainability, Product Integrity, Social Accountability, and International Licensing. From 2009 to 2014, SPLiCE created its Brand Licensing Metrics and Objectives Playbook. The Playbook introduced ways a brand owner can stretch and innovate through licensing. Benchmarking expanded to include technology, social media, and selling licensing internally. Tools, executive briefs and expert thought leader trainings affected monumental program management enhancements. In 2012, the SPLiCE Licensors Summit™ premiered. Hosted as an educational forum, it builds awareness for the licensing industry. The event facilitates collaboration for Licensors & Solution Providers. Together, they understand
business challenges and generate connections. Since 2014, benchmarking exercises expanded. Topics such as Licensing Models, Branded Retail Stores, Royalty Collections, Organizational Structure, eMarketplaces, and Food Licensing were organized. Today, SPLiCE is an active Community of Best Practice. With 70+ Members represent with brand voices of corporate, academia, military, and nonprofit. 61% enjoy 5+ years in membership and 11% are 15 year Members. Over 70% of the Member licensing programs in 2018 exceed 15 years. Global brand giants are actively engaged within SPLiCE. “We have witnessed colleagues commence, flourish and retire as successful licensing executives. Over 1,000 individuals collaborated within SPLiCE over the years. Our capacity, dynamism and vigor is principal within the industry. We know how to build collaborative communities. Future sights ahead include our fourth annual meeting in London at Member Host Unilever on September 30th. Our inaugural cooperation with the China Licensing Federation, Shanghai Licensing Expo, will occur this October,” stated Ms. Kociencki. SPLiCE HQ maintain offices in sunny Buffalo, New York, USA. For more information please visit www. SPLiCElicensing.com or contact Kimberly at kimberly@SPLiCEonline.com.
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