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Borderless Executive Search's Andrew Kris Co-Authors "Shared Services, Shared Insights"

PRESS RELEASE:

Brussels, October 12, 2009

“Shared Services – Shared Insights” co-authored by Jean-Marc François and Andrew Kris (see bios below)* has been produced in collaboration with BEARINGPOINT, GDF SUEZ, HSBC France, ADP, BORDERLESS EXECUTIVE SEARCH, and BAKER & MCKENZIE. With contributions from a wide range of leading international corporations experienced in establishing Shared Service Centers for their businesses, “Shared Services – Shared Insights” is presented as a bilingual, English/French edition.

The Shared Services concept originated in the United States at the end of the 1980s. Brought over to Europe by US-based companies at the beginning of the ‘90s, the concept was adapted to suit this complex new environment: country-specific issues, such as language and business methods, differing legal frameworks, and cultural differences. Today, Shared Services are an integral part of the corporate landscape.
 
The book “Shared Services – Shared Insights” portrays the variety of experiences that thirty different companies have had with Shared Services, and offers detailed insights into this organizational model and its benefits, and the prerequisites needed for companies to right-size their objectives.

The 1st key to success: define a clear objective and keep hold of it

Embarking on Shared Services requires, above all else, a clear objective and strong determination while maintaining a pragmatic and flexible approach in the way that planned goals are achieved. It is also necessary to persuade, motivate and achieve real buy-in from internal stakeholders to ensure everyone shares a common vision. Cost reduction should not be the primary motivation; the main reason for implementation should be the standardization of processes and practices.

• “You must be firm about your goals and principles, but flexible in the way you achieve them,” Jérôme Steenbrink, Vice President Integration GDF SUEZ
• “We have a three-year strategy with some rigorous targets for cost savings. In the present economic climate, hitting these targets will be more critical than ever,” Thomas Krug , Head of the A+F Business Line and Chief Financial Officer, Global Shared Services, Siemens
  

2nd key to success: communicate at each stage of the project

Shared Service Centers enable the harmonization of processes and procedures, offering new alternatives for facilitating teamwork. It is necessary to communicate both the objectives and the key milestones of the project, and to maintain open dialogue between those who will be responsible for managing the Center and those who will be using it, right up until the moment that it becomes operational.

• “The CEO has always made it very clear that Avis is going along the Shared Services route,” Managing Director, Budapest Business Support Center, Avis Europe
• “Both before and after its creation, you must communicate, communicate, communicate. Admit and explain your mistakes, clarify and share your action plans, and regularly publicize your successes and improvements,”  Didier Leleu, Directeur Général Affaires Financières, Heineken France
  

3rd key to success: cultivate a service culture that can compete against external alternatives

Shared Services is not just another part of corporate bureaucracy. On the contrary, it must be run as a high-performing unit and should cultivate a real service culture, with a constant goal to operate at a standard superior to that of any external alternative.

• “You build a baseline and then measure performance against it,” Olaf Elbracht, Vice President Accounting, Reporting, Consolidation and Shared Services, UCB
• “A Shared Service Center is an adventure jointly pursued by the center and its customers,” Marc Soulé, Senior VP group control and consolidation, Lafarge

* About the authors:

Andrew Kris
Andrew is a leading commentator, author and sought-after speaker on the worldwide development of executive leadership, talent management, Shared Services and business process outsourcing. He is the co-author of Shared Services: mining for corporate gold and Shared Services and BPO: an executive briefing, both published in English and Mandarin by Pearson. Andrew is an independent advisor on business transformation to the Executive Boards of several international corporations.

As a Director at Borderless Executive Search, an international executive search firm, Andrew is retained to find and attract talented leaders for global businesses in Process and Converting industries, Life Sciences, Food Processing and Environmental Technologies. In 2007, Andrew formally launched Borderless Outsourcing as a practice of Borderless Executive Search. Borderless Outsourcing specializes in retained search for executive teams and functional leaders for corporate Shared Services and Outsourcing initiatives.

Jean-Marc François
Jean-Marc, one of the early pioneers of Shared Services in Europe, is a global specialist in this area, assisting companies all over Europe, North and South America, Asia and the Middle East. His nearly 20 years of experience in the domain began in the early 1990s with the implementation of one of the very first multi-country Shared Service Centers in Europe, for a leading international high-tech company.

After setting up and operating this center for a number of years, he became a Partner at Andersen Business Consulting, then BearingPoint, to successfully develop the EMEA Shared Services Practice and assist companies in their transformation programs.

Jean-Marc has managed or served as Senior Advisor in over a hundred Shared Services and BPO programs worldwide. He also regularly serves as Quality Assurance partner in other engagements.


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