​Higher Education Shared Services & Outsourcing Week Conference​

Driving Competitive Growth and Sustainable Advantages with Shared Services

We understand that reducing costs and increasing productivity is a daunting task for higher education, given limited budgets, faculty resistance, administrative turnover, and public and administrative scrutiny. To ensure that your back-office continues to deliver maximum value, implementing or expanding a shared service model should no longer be a mere consideration—it is a strategy that’s essential to your higher education institution’s success. Whether you’re currently working in a shared services organization (SSO), building one, or thinking of taking the leap, the Shared Services for Higher Education Digital event will uncover how shared services leaders of different maturity levels from all across the country are implementing and reinvigorating their various shared services model. Leading service providers who will go through step by step how to move up the value-chain to support enterprise-wide decision making, and how to achieve success at every stage of your shared services journey.

Top Reasons to Attend:

• Hear how to leverage emerging technologies to streamline your procurement processes
• Understand the critical factors to proactively address functional and business-wide transformation
• Learn strategies and tactics essential to stabilize, standardize, and innovate your shared services operations
• Explore how process redesign can benefit your SSO
• Hear how to use analytics to drive decision-making for your institution

Day One – Tuesday, April 21, 2020

11:00 am – 11:40am

CREATING YOUR NEXT-GEN HIGHER EDUCATION SHARED SERVICES

Sometimes it is necessary to reinvent the wheel. Outdated legacy systems, manual, messy processes and workflows, and teams who need to be reskilled to embrace digitization are all common aspects of the pre-transformation journey within SSOs. And yet, in 2020, the Finance SSO leader has a vast array of tools in his or her kit to proactively address functional and business-wide transformation. This session will give you a clear plan to strategize how your finance function is required to transform.

Discussion includes:

• Transform from “Back-Office” to “One-Office” –proactively moving up the value-chain to support enterprise-wide decision making
• The role of predictive analytics, IA, and digitalization on your future operations
• How to create SWOT teams for Finance who are trusted experts in their field 

Presenter: Phil Searle, CEO, Chazey Partners 

12:00pm – 12:45pm

METRICS AND ANALYTICS — LEVERAGING METRICS TO GROW YOUR SS

When considering a mature shared services model there are different metrics and performance measurements that need to be evaluated. In this session you will learn:

• What are the post-implementation metrics to measure with your mature operation such as process performance and customer satisfaction
• How to analyze and convey metrics reports and implement them as tangible changes to the business strategy
• Innovative technologies that streamline data collections and analysis, such as dashboard reporting and data visualization tools

Presenter: Brandon Gaines, Senior Associate Director, Financial Support Services Office of Finance and Treasury, Princeton University

1:00pm – 1:45 pm

CASE STUDY: UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS SYSTEM SHARED SERVICES JOURNEY

The shared services staff in the Business Solutions and Support office, at the University of Illinois System implemented a support infrastructure in January, 2019. Join presenter as he shares insight into their shared services journey including challenges, successes, and lessons learned. You will leave this session with key information that will help you on your path to implementing a Shared Services Organization (SSO).

Discussion includes:

• Fostering leadership support
• Establishing our staffing model
• Developing a strategic plan
• Marketing our services
• Engage our customer in our shared services journey 

Presenter: William “Bill” Reimer, Associate Director, Shared Services, OBFS Business Solutions & Support, University of Illinois System

2:00pm -2:45pm

LEVERAGING EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES TO STREAMLINE YOUR PROCUREMENT PROCESSES

Emerging technology adoption is crucial in today’s hyper-competitive environment, even within the SSO community. Though not always easy for procurement teams to embrace due to a fear of job loss, technology can add significant value to your SSC and streamline your processes. This presentation will cover:

• Implementing innovative tools to streamline processes such as Source-to-Pay, Procure-to-Pay
• Overcoming challenges of resistance to adoption of new technologies
• Enhancing cross-functional collaboration and breaking down silos 

Presenter: Jessica Fuhrman, Assistant Finance Director, Office of Financial Shared Services, The George Washington University

Day Two – Wednesday, April 22, 2020

11:00am – 11:45am

DRIVING SHARED SERVICES SUCCESS AT EVERY STAGE OF THE JOURNEY – STRATEGIES AND TACTICS FOR LONG-TERM SUCCESS

Far too often, organizations invest heavily in the upfront planning and implementation of their shared services model only to let their shared service center stagnate over time. However, successful Shared Services operations continue to adapt and expand after the initial launch to meet the ever-changing needs of their internal customers.

• Building a long-term strategy for success –opportunities along your maturity curve 
• Establishing a continuous improvement culture
• Growing and developing talent within your service center • Mining data for performance management
• Establishing a framework to evaluate effectiveness of your shared services delivery model
• Using analytics to drive decision-making for your institution as a whole
• Exploring disruptive technologies
  

 Presenters: Courtney Jackson, Partner, ScottMadden, Inc. Betsy Curry, Manager, ScottMadden, Inc.

12:00pm -12:45pm

SHARED SERVICES FOR HR: A GRASSROOTS APPROACH TO SUCCESS

Success in Shared Services implementations in higher education often depends on an institutional mandate. What happens when the call for shared services comes without an institutional approach to implementation? Learn how one central Human Resources department and a pilot Shared Services unit navigated emerging mandates, maintained dual service delivery models with minimal confusion, and fostered an atmosphere of collaboration and teamwork while achieving success on mutual goals for the program. In this presentation, we’ll share the case study of University of Oregon’s pilot Shared Services and Talent Acquisition partnership, including:

A process for developing clear roles and responsibilities

• The importance of change management in a successful implementation
• Lessons learned throughout our one-year pilot program
• Refining and developing a long term program

Presenter: Nancy Nieraeth, Director, Talent Acquisition, University of Oregon Human Resources

1:00pm – 1:45pm

COMMUNICATION — THE BREAD & BUTTER OF A SHARED SERVICES SUCCESS PRE & POST LAUNCH

Far too often, organizations drop the communication ball after their SSO goes live. However, effective communication is essential to the success of a SSO at every stage of the journey—before, during, and after implementation. Keeping all stakeholders informed will lessen fear and anxiety, reducing the inevitable resistance to change. In this session we will discuss:

• What communication tools and platforms may be best for your messaging – your website, social media, mobile apps, newsletters, year end reporting
• Why it is imperative to continuously communicate with all units/departments
• What resources you can use to help deliver your message in a positive and effective way

Presenter: Kirk Trasborg MBA, CMA, PMP, Executive Director, ISC Finance & Shared Services, University of Pennsylvania

2:00 -2:45pm

ARE YOUR CUSTOMERS SATISFIED? KEYS TO ALIGNING SHARED SERVICES STRATEGY WITH CUSTOMER NEEDS AND EXPECTATIONS
As any shared services leader knows, the customer is King. And in today’s customer-centric environment where customers are demanding more, it is imperative for organizations to ensure that their shared services strategies align with their customers’ needs and expectations. In this session, learn how to develop and leverage impactful customer management strategies that maximize customer satisfaction and drive continuous improvement initiatives. Take home action-oriented strategies for:

• Collaborating and communicating with customers to ensure that your SSC service capabilities align with their needs and expectations
• Boosting the effectiveness of existing technology to expand service quality, capability and reach
• Engaging your customers to improve end-to-end performance
• Driving outstanding customer experience through process excellence to add value

Presenter: Melissa Long Shuter Executive Director of Business Operations University of Louisville