Predictika · Deal desk approval and deal-book review

An AI agent's enterprise software deal, checked before it goes to signature

An AI agent prepares a multi-year enterprise software deal for approval. Before the deal goes to signature, the agent sends its terms to Predictika, which checks the discount against authority limits for the deal size, the ramp, the renewal clauses, the exit rights, payment and revenue timing, liability and partner terms, and the net price the agent states, and returns every finding in one answer. The same call reviews a signed deal from the deal book.

Scope: Approval of multi-year enterprise software deals, and review of signed deals from a deal book, one deal per call: discount authority, ramp, renewal uplift, exit rights, payment and revenue timing, liability, partner terms. See everything this validator covers

This validator models the deal-desk review of one multi-year enterprise software deal for a fictional software vendor with fictional customers. It checks the deal terms as fields; it does not read contract documents.

  • Discount authority — discount against rep, manager, VP and CFO limits set by first-year value band, with the approver named, and a block above the CFO maximum.
  • Ramp and renewal — year-over-year steps above 50 percent, a later year below year 1 with no stated reason, the renewal uplift cap against the contracted escalator, and an uncapped uplift.
  • Exit rights and term — termination for convenience inside or after the first year of a multi-year commit, and a term above the maximum.
  • Payment and revenue timing — payment terms, free months, start delay, and customer acceptance clauses or side letters.
  • Liability and customer terms — liability cap, SLA credits, most-favored-customer clauses, and a usage commit against forecast.
  • Partner terms and stated figures — partner margin plus discount against a floor, and the net first-year price the agent states against the computed one.

The validator handles any deal that involves these terms, not just the scenarios shown here: it checks 13 blocking rules and 10 approval rules together on every call (discount sign-off has manager, VP and CFO levels). It produces no price build-up or line-item quote; the only price it computes is the net first-year price, from the first-year value and the discount. Reviewing a deal book means one call for each signed deal; a sweep of a whole book is not shown on this page. It does not cover contract text or clause extraction, pricing recommendations, tax, or revenue recognition accounting itself. It is an illustrative model, not any real company's deal-desk policy.

The AI deal desk agentAssembles the deal terms from the negotiation and says the deal is ready for signature.
Predictika validatorChecks every rule at once and returns the verdict, each finding, and the computed figures.

7 scenarios in 4 groups · each group runs from the agent’s first attempt to the outcome · click one to switch

What the agent proposes

The AI deal desk agent says

Illustrative agent statement. The validator receives the structured request below.

Proposing agent: AI deal desk agent (scripted)

Before signing, the agent must call Recorded run

Predictika validator


      

        
        
        
      

      
Waiting for the call.

      
    

  

  
  

    
Where rules-based CPQ gets it wrong
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Our assessment of what a typical rules-based CPQ (product rules, price rules and validation rules, as in Salesforce CPQ) does with the same cases. It is a judgment about effort and reliability, not a claim that nothing can be built.

    
What the validator caughtTypical rules-based CPQPredictika
A ramp step across years, where a zero means no such yearOnly with care
A validation rule for each year pair, each guarded for a missing year; a rule without the guard flags or misses a two-year deal.		The step is computed once across the years that exist and compared with one limit.
An exit right that makes a multi-year commit shortOnly with care
Needs a derived field for how long the commit really lasts, and the 12-month floor kept in step with the term.		Exit month, term and the 12-month floor are compared in the model: month 12 blocks, month 13 goes to finance.
Clauses that contradict each other, and terms that stackOnly with care
Cap against escalator, and partner margin plus discount against a floor, are each a separate rule to build and keep in step as terms change.		All of them are checked together on every call, so a fix to one cannot hide the next.
A stated net price that disagrees with the computed priceOnly with workarounds
Works only if the agent's stated figure is a field on the deal; it is usually free text, so nothing compares it.		The stated figure travels with the request and is checked on every call.

  

  

    
What this validator catches: findings from its test cases
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Every rule is checked on every call, in any order the choices arrive; one problem never hides another. Blocking findings stop the deal; approval findings need a person to sign off; everything else is computed.

    
1A 31 percent discount is above the 30 percent maximum the CFO can approve for a deal with a first-year value of $400 thousand.
2The customer may terminate for convenience after month 12 of a 36-month commit; a commit that can end within 12 months is not a multi-year commit.
3The customer may terminate for convenience after month 13 of a 36-month commit; finance must review the committed revenue.
4Annual values of 2,500, 2,500 and 4,000 thousand dollars (0 means no such year) step up by 60 percent in a year, above the 50 percent maximum.
5The renewal uplift cap of 3 percent is below the contracted annual escalator of 6 percent; the two clauses contradict each other.
6Payment terms of net 90 days are above the 75 day maximum.
75 free months and no start delay shift revenue timing; finance must confirm the recognition schedule.
8A customer-specific acceptance clause or side letter can delay revenue timing; finance and legal must review.
9A most-favored-customer clause covering all terms cannot be accepted.
10The liability cap of 0 times annual fees (0 means uncapped) is uncapped or above the 3 times maximum.
11Partner margin of 20 percent plus customer discount of 36 percent stack to 56 percent, above the 50 percent floor.
12The stated net first-year price of $76.5 thousand does not match the $85.5 thousand the validator computes from the first-year value and the discount.
13A 12 percent discount needs manager sign-off; limits for this deal size are rep 5, manager 12, VP 18 and CFO 30 percent.
14A later year is below year 1 (400, 320 and 320 thousand dollars, 0 means no such year) with no stated reason.
15The renewal uplift is uncapped; legal and finance must review the clause.
16Payment terms of net 60 days are above the 45 day standard.
17A most-favored-customer clause on price needs legal and finance review.
187 free months are above the 6-month maximum.
19An SLA credit of 25 percent of monthly fees is above the 20 percent cap.
20A term of 72 months is above the 60-month maximum.
21The usage commit of 240 units is under 50 percent of the 800 units forecast.
22A 30 percent discount needs CFO sign-off; limits for this deal size are rep 5, manager 12, VP 18 and CFO 30 percent.

  

  

    
Scenarios and results
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The recorded result of the validator for each scenario on this page: the request the AI agent sent, the verdict, and every finding, in the order they appear above.

    
1. Large strategic deal: Large deal with many problems

    
The agent's request. Please approve a 36-month deal for Thornwick Industries through a partner at 20 percent margin: $2.5 million in years 1 and 2 and $4 million in year 3, 36 percent off. The renewal uplift is capped at 3 percent under a 6 percent annual escalator. The customer may terminate for convenience after month 6. Payment is net 90, with 5 free months, uncapped liability, a most-favored-customer clause on all terms and a customer acceptance side letter. The net first-year price is $1,600 thousand. It is ready for signature.

    
Verdict: Blocked.

    
    
      
  • Discount above the CFO maximum. A 36 percent discount is above the 35 percent maximum the CFO can approve for a deal with a first-year value of $2,500 thousand.
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  • Ramp step above the limit. Annual values of 2,500, 2,500 and 4,000 thousand dollars (0 means no such year) step up by 60 percent in a year, above the 50 percent maximum.
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  • Uplift cap below the escalator. The renewal uplift cap of 3 percent is below the contracted annual escalator of 6 percent; the two clauses contradict each other.
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  • Exit right inside the first year. The customer may terminate for convenience after month 6 of a 36-month commit; a commit that can end within 12 months is not a multi-year commit.
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  • Payment terms above the maximum. Payment terms of net 90 days are above the 75 day maximum.
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  • Most-favored-customer on all terms. A most-favored-customer clause covering all terms cannot be accepted.
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  • Liability uncapped or too high. The liability cap of 0 times annual fees (0 means uncapped) is uncapped or above the 3 times maximum.
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  • Partner margin plus discount too high. Partner margin of 20 percent plus customer discount of 36 percent stack to 56 percent, above the 50 percent floor.
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  • Revenue timing needs finance review. 5 free months and no start delay shift revenue timing; finance must confirm the recognition schedule.
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  • Acceptance clause or side letter. A customer-specific acceptance clause or side letter can delay revenue timing; finance and legal must review.
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2. Large strategic deal: The agent resubmits after fixing the errors

    
The agent's request. Please approve a 36-month deal for Thornwick Industries: $2.5 million in year 1, $3 million in year 2 and $3.6 million in year 3, no discount. The renewal uplift is capped at 7 percent over a 3 percent annual escalator. There is no exit right and no most-favored-customer clause. Payment is net 45, with liability at 1x annual fees. The net first-year price is $2,500 thousand. It is ready for signature.

    
Verdict: Allowed.

    
3. Discount authority: Discount above the CFO maximum

    
The agent's request. Please approve a 36-month deal for Brookhaven Freight: $400 thousand a year for three years, 31 percent off, net 30 days. The net first-year price is $276 thousand. It is ready for signature.

    
Verdict: Blocked.

    
    
      
  • Discount above the CFO maximum. A 31 percent discount is above the 30 percent maximum the CFO can approve for a deal with a first-year value of $400 thousand.
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4. Discount authority: The agent resubmits after fixing the errors

    
The agent's request. Please approve a 36-month deal for Brookhaven Freight: $400 thousand a year for three years, 5 percent off, net 30 days. The net first-year price is $380 thousand. It is ready for signature.

    
Verdict: Allowed.

    
5. Exit right: Exit right in the first year

    
The agent's request. Please approve a 36-month deal for Larkfield Insurance: $400 thousand a year for three years, 5 percent off, net 30 days. The customer may terminate for convenience after month 12. The net first-year price is $380 thousand. It is ready for signature.

    
Verdict: Blocked.

    
    
      
  • Exit right inside the first year. The customer may terminate for convenience after month 12 of a 36-month commit; a commit that can end within 12 months is not a multi-year commit.
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6. Exit right: The agent resubmits after fixing the errors

    
The agent's request. Please approve a 36-month deal for Larkfield Insurance: $400 thousand a year for three years, 5 percent off, net 30 days. The customer may terminate for convenience after month 13. The net first-year price is $380 thousand. It is ready for signature.

    
Verdict: Needs approval.

    
    
      
  • Exit right after the first year. The customer may terminate for convenience after month 13 of a 36-month commit; finance must review the committed revenue.
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7. Stated price: Stated price does not match

    
The agent's request. Please approve a 36-month deal for Aldermoor Dental Group: $90 thousand a year for three years, 5 percent off, net 30 days. The net first-year price is $76.5 thousand. It is ready for signature.

    
Verdict: Blocked.

    
    
      
  • Stated net price does not match. The stated net first-year price of $76.5 thousand does not match the $85.5 thousand the validator computes from the first-year value and the discount.
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Narration transcript
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The text of the narrated walkthrough, step by step.

    
    
      
  1. Welcome to a demo of Predictika's Validator. An AI agent prepares a multi-year enterprise software deal for approval. Before the deal goes to signature, the agent sends its terms to Predictika, which checks the discount against authority limits for the deal size, the ramp, the renewal clauses, the exit rights, payment and revenue timing, liability and partner terms, and the net price the agent states, and returns every finding in one answer. The same call reviews a signed deal from the deal book.
    2. 
      
  2. I will start with the first request by the agent.
    3. 
      
  3. The agent says. Please approve a 36-month deal for Thornwick Industries through a partner at 20 percent margin: $2.5 million in years 1 and 2 and $4 million in year 3. The renewal uplift is capped at 3 percent under a 6 percent annual escalator. The rest of the request is on screen. The net first-year price is $1,600 thousand.
    4. 
      
  4. Before it goes out, the agent calls the validator.
    5. 
      
  5. Blocked, with eight findings and two approvals, all in one answer. A 36 percent discount is above the 35 percent maximum the CFO can approve for a deal with a first-year value of $2,500 thousand. Annual values of 2,500, 2,500 and 4,000 thousand dollars (0 means no such year) step up by 60 percent in a year, above the 50 percent maximum. The renewal uplift cap of 3 percent is below the contracted annual escalator of 6 percent; the two clauses contradict each other. The other five are on screen.
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  6. The validator returned eight blocking findings and two approvals in one answer. A check that reads one field at a time would pass most of this; it shows only when the choices in the deal are checked against each other.
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  7. What this shows: for a ramp step across years, where a zero means no such year, a rules-based CPQ is error-prone for this.
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  8. Now the agent resubmits.
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  9. The corrected request. It changes the annual values to 2500 / 3000 / 3600, the discount to 0 percent, the payment terms to 45 net days and the stated net first-year price to $2,500.
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  10. It calls the validator again.
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  11. This time the validator clears it.
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  12. All ten earlier findings are cleared, and the validator's total, $2,500 thousand, matches the deal.
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  13. Ten problems caught in one call, fixed in one pass, and a clean deal. That is the value of Predictika's validator: catching mistakes before the deal is signed.
    14.