6 Game Changers for the Year Ahead

Nothing new—will it all be me, too? Having just completed the requisite round of "will 2014 be a good year for shared services and outsourcing?" chats with the great and the good, I’ve been dusting off my crystal ball to see what might improve, change…or even happen to turn the industry on its head. And what I see is sort of murky. We’ve got a services construct that is positioned for a major change, yet I’m not convinced that the players—buyers, sellers, advisors, capital sources, executive management – are ready to act. Here’s what we have going for us in 2014: increasing acceptance of global services delivery models maturing management talent no US election stable stock markets breathtaking technology advancements What more could the industry want as context? But will this year end with no breakthroughs? No sea change? No "That was the year that was"? What could 2014 game changers include? 1. Companies committing to implementing real GBS, not one of those rebranded shared services or sourcing operations that’s trying to "move up the value chain" through a bit of internal PR, marketing a new and improved services platform that’s no different from last year’s. What does a real GBS have to have? Functions beyond finance, global scope, standard management practices and platform, and power to make the calls. 2. Real, deep blue water between outsourcing providers. Perhaps this will be the year when the cats are no longer black in the night (to quote a very honest BPO leader). Perhaps some brave souls will take the plunge and truly differentiate themselves through their technology/customer experience/service offerings. 3. New constructs for service delivery. Seems to me the industry is awfully bipolar; companies either insource or outsource; or, if you are sufficiently bold to operate models at both ends of the spectrum, dare I say "hybrid?" Why not throw the service delivery Legos out on the table to design true best of breed models that incorporate client capabilities in customer intimacy with provider prowess in training, or in house contextual understanding with provider performance management? Why can’t a model be "open source?" 4. Onshore outsourcing options. We talk about onshore outsourcing, calling it by monikers such as near-, home- or rural sourcing. At the same time, our offshore brethren are busy establishing onshore centers as part of global delivery networks, marketing them as politically and culturally correct options to offshore service provision. But beyond a few indigenous operations primarily focused on applications development, some subscale transactions processing companies, and the offshore beachheads, there is little to choose from, particularly in the US. Will this be the year we can buy local at scale? 5. Corporate services monetized for the benefit of all. Much of the neatest stuff going on in the services industry is happening within corporations. Whether it’s management prowess running global platforms, or clever IP managing regulatory affairs, clinical trials or customers, hopefully this year corporates will entertain asset sales at reasonable prices…with outsourcers and private equity figuring out how to get a return for once. 6. BPaas, PETS, or whatever you want to call them. Perhaps this will be the year that the concept of labor arbitrage finally fades away in favor of true technology-enabled delivery. Mega-delivery centers of 5000 hardy souls managing pivot tables, or processing exceptions could start to disappear, supplanted by technologies that start to turn off the lights. Hope springs eternal…even in the heart of this old bird. Will any of these changes come to pass, or will the shared services and outsourcing industry continue on a same-y trajectory for one more year? [inlinead]

6 Game Changers for the Year Ahead

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