At this year’s SSOW conference, one message defined day one: GBS leaders must navigate uncertainty without disrupting operational efficiency.
In their opening remarks, Heather King and Brad DeMent set the tone by reflecting on three decades of transformation while celebrating the resilience and evolution of the shared services industry.
Today, leaders operate in an environment shaped by geopolitical volatility, accelerating AI adoption, and relentless cost pressure. Organizations are no longer asking whether to transform, but how to do so without destabilizing operations.
How do you fundamentally change the way work gets done without breaking what already works?
From One-Off Transformation to Continuous Adaptation
Traditional shared services models have evolved into a diverse ecosystem, consisting of GBS, GCCs, and hybrid models. Each comes with different governance, objectives, and delivery approaches.
This growing complexity means there is no longer a single “right” model. Instead, there is a need to continuously adapt how services are delivered.
At the same time, macro pressures are increasing:
- Up to 60% of transactional work is automatable
- Yet 94% of executives remain dissatisfied with outcomes
This gap between potential and reality is driving a shift away from one-off transformation programs toward something more enduring: continuous adaptation.
The Power of “Doing More with Less”
A message reinforced in Eckard Erbele’s keynote is that productivity is now the defining metric of success. As organizations look to balance delivery requirements with the race for digitalization, teams are truly expected to “do more with less.”
- Deliver stronger customer focus
- Accelerate innovation cycles
- Achieve more profitable growth
All while operating under tighter constraints.
Throughout the sessions, several pillars of resilient transformation emerged:
1. Orchestration
As digital transformation accelerates, organizations are shifting focus from isolated improvements to maximizing impact across the entire enterprise. This means moving beyond siloed operations toward orchestrating a complex, interconnected ecosystem.
Organizations must manage:
- Human workers
- Digital workers
- AI-driven processes
- Multiple systems and platforms
As such, orchestration is emerging as the core capability of modern organizations, enabling leaders to align people, technology, and processes into a seamless, outcome-driven model.
In fact, the concept of shared services leaders as “Chief Orchestrators” reflects the shift from managing functions to coordinating an integrated ecosystem.
2. People
While technology is a major driver, bringing people along for the transformation journey is crucial for success. Change management can make or break transformation initiatives. Key pieces of advice include:
- Transparency reduces resistance.
- Set expectations early.
- Commit to continuous training/ upskilling.
- Embed change management into daily operations.
- Address fears of job displacement head-on.
Overall, teams need to be reassured that transformation promises value creation, not disruption and risk.
3. Operating Model
Sessions also reinforced that resilience is not just cultural, it is structural. Advice included:
- Simplified operating models for faster response
- End-to-end accountability across service delivery
- Digitization and standardization as foundational enablers
- Global hub strategies to diversify risk and ensure continuity
In a world of geopolitical disruption and supply chain volatility, resilience must be designed into the system.
4. Leadership
Finally, leadership itself is evolving. The most effective leaders today demonstrate:
- Active leadership: clearly guiding teams through uncertainty
- Active learning: embracing continuous improvement
- Collaborative leadership: breaking silos to deliver customer value
“Starting GBS from scratch is hard, but we are all leaders, and we all have to take an active role in listening empathetically while learning relentlessly.”
Final Thoughts: Transformation Does Not Equal Upheaval
Although transformation is not getting easier, organizations are thinking more strategically about how to approach it:
- Orchestrate: optimizing in siloes limits impact.
- Embed change: it is not a one-off project; transformation is continuous.
- Invest in people: bringing teams along for the journey is just as important as technology adoption.
Above all, they recognize that the goal is to make change feel continuous, manageable, and invisible to the customer.