2023 Global Shared Services and Outsourcing Survey has been saved
Analysis
2023 Global Shared Services and Outsourcing Survey
Service delivery models are always evolving. The world’s largest companies are transforming to leverage global, multifunctional, and hybrid working models with tightening economic conditions. These organizations are prioritizing areas across work, workforce, and workplace to be successful. Apart from expanding the traditional functional scope, they are accelerating digital capabilities like automation, analytics, and reporting to become more customer-centric. These global business services (GBS) organizations are also promoting the social responsibility and diversity agenda and supporting a range of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) processes.
GBS organizations are taking the driver’s seat in delivering transformational capabilities to the organization and are becoming more closely aligned to the C-suite. Overall, what’s clear is that shared services centers (SSCs) and GBS models are becoming more agile, digital, and cost efficient as they seek to provide a better customer and employee experience.
Deloitte’s 13th Shared Services and Outsourcing Survey
What was happening in the world?
- The survey was conducted from Q4 2022 to Q1 2023; businesses all over the world were on a transformational journey to make their operations more agile while also reducing costs in response to the post-pandemic disruptions.
- Global economies were staring at a risk of a recession due to supply chain disruptions sparked by geopolitical events.
How was it different?
- Insights on trending topics such as hyper digitization, cost efficiency, and resilience in a constantly evolving environment.
- Evolution of GBS from an efficient back office to a key business partner.
- Increasing role of C-suite, particularly CFOs, in the GBS landscape.
- Focus on GBS playing a key role in sustainability and ESG.
2023 Global Shared Services and Outsourcing Survey
Key themes for this year’s survey
GBS continues to focus on cost reduction as a priority
- GBS organizations are focused on cost reduction as the no. 1 objective as they look to combat changing global economic dynamics.
- Organizations are refining their SSC footprint by moving more work to cost-efficient locations.
- Tight labor markets and cost pressures are primary factors impacting the footprint strategies of GBS organizations.
GBS continues to adopt key enablers to drive value
- Automation, single-instance ERP, and workflow tools are being heavily adopted across GBS.
- There is an increased interest in global standard processes, centralized analytics, and self-service for the next 1–3 years.
- GBS organizations have increasingly adopted an E2E process ownership model as they mature (>3 years).
GBS plays a key role in ESG
- GBS organizations are playing a key role in ESG, with ~50% reporting ESG as a focus area.
- Promoting social responsibility and diversity is the top ESG focus area for GBS. About 60% of these organizations are also supporting a broad range of ESG goals, such as ESG reporting.
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GBS gets more closely aligned to the C-suite
- Mature GBS organizations (>7 years) are reporting primarily to a GBS leader.1
- A third of newer GBS organizations (1–3 years) are reporting to a CXO.
- CFOs are the most common leaders for GBS out of the C-suite.
1Head of GBS may be reporting directly to the C-suite.
GBS provides value as business partners
- GBS organizations are shifting from transaction-processing back offices to business partners through a hyper-focus on customer and user experience, not just efficiency.
- More than 50% of GBS organizations have deployed capabilities of automation, reporting and analytics, process excellence, E2E process ownership, and business continuity planning.
GBS builds agile and resilient talent models
- GBS organizations are expanding work from home, accelerating the digital agenda, and implementing flexible work hours to retain talent in challenging environments.
- Well-being opportunities, upskilling, and market-based compensation are key retention strategies employed by GBS organizations.
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Managing Director
Enterprise Business Services &
Location Strategy
Deloitte Consulting LLP
Senior Manager
Enterprise Business Services &
Location Strategy
Deloitte Consulting LLP
Senior Manager
Enterprise Business Services &
Location Strategy
Deloitte Consulting LLP
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