Evaluating
So how do you decide if shared services is right for your business? Just because industry competition has applied it… with results, does that mean you’re missing out on the potential benefits? Just because your company’s other business in North America is rolling it out successfully, does this actually mean shared services is the right model for you?
Most organisations would argue that, at a minimum, shared services reaps savings of 25%, just through doing the basics of function-centralisation, process-standardisation and system-consolidation. So it’s a no-brainer, right? Not necessarily. We have all heard at least one case of a shared services disaster – organisations brought to their knees, partly because of shared services. These stories are exceptional, but still a clear reminder that the evaluation and design stages of shared services need to be water-tight.
The key areas of Evaluation are:
- What are the drivers behind doing shared services (Cost saving? Services improvement? Financial control?)
- What is the functional scope?
- What is the Geographical scope?
- What is the As Is situation in terms of process, systems, service, and cost?
- Using this baseline, what improvement does shared services offer?
- How bought in is senior management and do you have a Sponsor?
- What shared services structures are attractive to you? Will you charge at cost or profit? Will you mandate use of your services or will customers have a choice and what are the risk implications of both?
Preparation for such a massive organisational re-engineering is critical, and minimises the risk of errors downstream. As your case for shared services develops, the spot light on you intensifies. The C levels in the organisation become interested. Your own confidence in your research and conclusions has to be infallible.
sharedserviceslink.com can help you be absolutely confident with your evaluation and conclusions. By introducing you to hundreds of other professionals who have been through the process you’re about to begin, you will gather the critical information you need to make your case.
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