Shared Services and Outsourcing Week - Europe

👏🏆 Let's give a huge round of applause to the winners and runners-up of the 2024 European SSON Impact Awards! 🎉   We are so proud of the 2024 winners and runners-up. Last night was another memorable #SSOW moment! Steve Rudderham, Jackie Crockford, Richard Williams led the way under the Estoril Casino's sparkling lights as we celebrated the remarkable accomplishments of the most inspiring teams who are tirelessly pursuing excellence, innovation, transformation and continuously raising the bar for Shared Services and GBS success. Stay tuned as we'll be sharing the case-studies behind these wins!   🥁 Ladies & Gentlemen, drum roll please… here are the 2024 European SSON Impact Award winners!   ⭐ Automation Impact Award: Asahi Group Holdings ⭐ Business Transformation Impact Award: Smith+Nephew ⭐ Change Management Impact Award: Astellas Pharma ⭐ Creative Talent Management Impact Award: OMV ⭐ Customer Centricity Impact Award: Philip Morris International ⭐ Process Improvement & Value Creation Impact Award: Unilever | Genpact ⭐ Service Provider/BPO of the Year Impact Award: Tata Consultancy Services ⭐ Technology of the Year Impact Award: Allianz 🥁 2024 European SSON Impact Award Runner-Ups:   ⭐ Automation Impact Award: Philips ⭐ Business Transformation Impact Award: Takeda ⭐ Change Management Impact Award: Johnson & Johnson ⭐ Creative Talent Management Impact Award: SLB ⭐ Customer Centricity Impact Award: Smith+Nephew ⭐ Process Improvement & Value Creation Impact Award: Tesco Business Solutions ⭐ Service Provider/BPO of the Year Impact Award: Genpact ⭐ Technology of the Year Impact Award: NTT DATA   A massive shoutout 📣 goes to our incredible trio of event chairs for hosting this beautiful night, uniting our community again, and making it all truly unforgettable! 🤝   We would also like to thank this year's judges for the incredibly hard work in selecting the winners from a pool of hundreds of applications! It was no small task, and we truly appreciate their commitment to making these awards a success!   ⭐ Chris Gunning | Phil Priest | Joanne Griffin | Fraser Kirk | Kamila Grembowicz | Šarūnas Šuipis | Moolman Lafras | Deborah Kops | Sameer Jalundhwala | Tony Saldanha | Leigh Nicholson | Bobby Abraham ⭐   #SSONImpactAwards #SSOW #SharedServices #GBS #Innovation

We’re excited to invite you to take part in our State of the Global Shared Services and Outsourcing Industry Survey. This survey is designed to uncover the latest trends, emerging opportunities, and the critical challenges impacting the shared services and GBS model today. As a valued industry leader, your perspectives are crucial to creating this industry benchmark. By participating, you’ll not only contribute to advancing industry knowledge but also help shape the insights that fuel our most anticipated report. Plus, as a survey respondent, you’ll receive early access to the report when it’s released in January 2025. As a thank you, all participants will be entered into a draw for a free ticket to an SSON event of your choice (valued at USD $3,000) — whether in the US, Europe, or APAC! Take the survey here: https://lnkd.in/eYs-BAkW We look forward to hearing from you and value your expertise in driving our industry forward.

In this week’s newsletter, we’re excited to bring you exclusive insights from the DACH team ahead of their highly anticipated DACH event! Their latest eBook dives into key trends and priorities identified by industry thought leaders, along with insights gathered from an exclusive advisory board survey. This valuable resource highlights the top opportunities set to shape the future of Shared Services and GBS across the DACH region. Take an early look at the trends and strategies that will drive discussions at their event—and gain inspiration to elevate your own approach.

In this week's newsletter, we're excited to bring you one of the most highly anticipated sessions from SSOW London: the recent G6 BPO Debate! This engaging discussion explored why choosing a smaller BPO provider might offer unique advantages and greater benefits. Whether you're just starting out or well along in your shared services or GBS journey, this debate offers valuable insights and perspectives that we believe you'll find both thought-provoking and impactful. We hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

In this week's SSOW newsletter, we’re excited to reflect on the incredible event that was SSOW London 2024! 🎉 Whether you joined us in person or couldn’t make it this time, we hope this recap helps you relive the energy, insights, and unforgettable moments of the week! 🌟

👋 That’s a wrap on Shared Services & Outsourcing Week London 2024!   We want to extend a huge thank you to everyone who joined us for insightful discussions, thought leadership, and invaluable networking. Whether you attended to share innovative strategies, learn from industry leaders, or connect with peers, we hope you found the conference as impactful and rewarding as we did.   This year’s SSOW was packed with forward-thinking sessions, engaging workshops, and exciting new ideas that will shape the future of shared services and outsourcing. The energy and enthusiasm we saw throughout the event was truly inspiring!   We’re already looking forward to seeing you all again next year for more knowledge-sharing and collaboration. Keep an eye on your inboxes this week for our event highlights newsletter, where we’ll be sharing key takeaways, top moments, and much more.   Thank you once again for being part of this incredible community. See you in 2025!

What an outstanding panel discussion we had with Elias Albino, Phil Priest and Leigh Nicholson at Shared Services & Outsourcing Week London! Exploring the triumphs and perils of GBS, the session highlighted the evolution of GBS operating models, innovation, and emerging ways of working. It also delved into the critical success factors and potential pitfalls organisations encounter as they push forward with enterprise transformation.   Here are some of the top insights:   🚀 Innovation is Essential: Adopting innovative technologies, such as generative AI, was highlighted as a key driver of future success. However, as raised by our panellists, the challenge lies in differentiating through innovation. GBS leaders must strike a balance between technology adoption and delivering real, lasting value.   🛠️ The Risk of Silent Running: One of the greatest risks to GBS operations is silent running—where communication gaps lead to eroded stakeholder trust. The panel emphasised that how GBS handles challenges is just as important as the outcomes. Clear, proactive communication is vital.   🤝 Supporting the Next Generation: As virtual work continues to grow, there are concerns about how younger employees gain the mentorship and learning they need. Our panellists stressed the importance of making it easy for talent to ask for help virtually, ensuring relationships and continuous learning remain strong.   ⚖️ Cost vs. Value: Striking the Balance In tough economic climates, GBS is often seen as a cost-cutting solution. Yet, our discussion emphasised the need for GBS to provide strategic value beyond cost savings—delivering solutions that support the business holistically.   We left the session inspired by the conversations and with a renewed focus on how GBS can continue to evolve and deliver maximum value. How are you tackling these challenges within your GBS function?

🏅 What an inspiring keynote session with Lord Sebastian Coe, President of World Athletics and Olympic gold medallist, at SSOW London! 🎤🌍   In this Olympic year, Lord Coe captivated the audience with profound lessons on leadership, personal growth, and how these insights can be applied directly to the shared services and GBS industry. Drawing from his remarkable journey as an Olympic athlete, MP, and leader of major organisations, he offered invaluable insights that resonated deeply with our community.    Key takeaways included:   💪 Leadership & Personal Growth: Lord Coe shared how bringing together political parties for the London 2012 Olympics not only shaped the event but also helped him grow as a leader. His proudest moment was having all three parties support his vision, a lesson in the power of collaboration—a key value in the GBS world, where uniting different functions and teams is essential for success.   🌱 Developing a Winning Culture: There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to building a winning culture. Lord Coe discussed the three phases of learning in his career, starting with athletics, and how the best leaders focus on removing distractions. This principle applies directly to the GBS industry, where creating streamlined processes and removing unnecessary burdens allows teams to focus on what matters most—delivering excellence.   👥 People-Centric Leadership: "Don’t compromise on the quality of people," Lord Coe said. Once you find the right talent, trust them—don’t micromanage. He highlighted the importance of allowing employees to flourish by creating an environment where they can make mistakes and learn, a vital message for the GBS sector, where empowering teams leads to greater innovation and efficiency.   🌍 Diversity & Inclusion: As highlighted in yesterday’s G6 debate, the shared services industry has a long way to go when it comes to the inclusion of women. Lord Coe set a powerful example by ensuring gender balance at World Athletics, which is embedded in the organisation’s constitution. His leadership in creating a diverse, inclusive environment, with 41 nationalities represented in his HQ, shows how industries like ours can make real, meaningful progress.   🎨 The Art of Management: Lord Coe views management as an art, with a constant curiosity for what lies ahead. His approach to leadership—rooted in resilience, vision, and the power of inclusion—offers a valuable framework for shared services and GBS leaders navigating transformation and driving sustainable change.   His words provided powerful lessons in leadership, resilience, and inclusion, offering actionable insights we can all apply within our own organisations. 💡🙌 Steve Rudderham

Welcome to day two of SSOW London! After an inspiring day full of actionable insights yesterday, we’re ready for more today. Make sure you head to the main stage at 9:40 for our keynote with our star speaker, President of World Athletics and Olympic champion, Lord Sebastian Coe! 🏃🥇 Here’s to another day filled with innovation and learning! Richard Williams | Andrea Schaffell

What a session! The G6 BPO Debate in London delivered some powerful insights from the smaller, more agile BPO challengers, and it’s clear these disruptors are shaping the future of the industry. One of the biggest takeaways? Innovation at the heart of smaller BPOs. 🌟 Their ability to pivot quickly and foster collaboration and flexibility makes them incredibly agile. With their deep industry knowledge, they are often able to solve client problems more effectively than larger players. This gives them the upper hand in opening new opportunities and driving success. AI was, of course, a hot topic 🔥—but not just generative AI. The real challenge? Organisational data. Without strong data foundations, AI won’t be the game-changer we hope it to be. A controversial moment came when the panel tackled the question of women in leadership. 👩💼 While the days of being the only woman in the room are gone, there’s still work to be done in getting more women into powerful leadership roles within the BPO industry. How do we champion and empower the next generation of female leaders? With the shift to hybrid working and evolving ways of operating, keeping humans in the loop will be critical. 🤖👥 We are at the start of an exciting phase, and it will be fascinating to see how the industry navigates this transformation. This debate was a clear reminder that smaller BPOs—with their focus on specialisation and innovation—are leading the charge into the future. 🚀   Sriram Panchapakesan | Jonathan Phillips | Krishnan Raghunathan | Chakradhar Gooty Agraharam | Deborah Kops