Making a positive impact on preparations for Shared Services Strategy

Background

This central government department is already on a cloud-based ERP system that is one of the four major platforms the government put forward as options for their Shared Services Strategy. The aim of the strategy is for ‘clusters’ of government departments to share their back-office functions. 

Our project brief and goals

The client wanted our support to ensure it was fully prepared for the transformation. So, they sought our expertise to: 

• Assess their existing technical landscape against where they’d like to be in the new shared service 

• Provide cyber security support 

• Build a comprehensive data strategy  

• Provide PMO (project management office) support 

Our approach

We understand the Shared Services Strategy and the challenges it presents to different departments within central government. 

Our work for the client started with as-is process analysis to identify and evaluate their current processes. Our consultants then compared this with the benefits the client wants to achieve under the shared service. We also used our expertise in cyber security to ensure security readiness for the transition. 

With the data strategy, our focus was on ensuring that when the client goes live, they have a better model for the future.  

We crafted a forward-looking data strategy by: 

• Analysing data quality  

• Running workshops with stakeholders to evaluate the current landscape 

• Determining the one source of truth for different data elements 

• Looking at how the data will be managed 

Plus, we’re continuing to provide PMO support for the client. 

The biggest challenge

When our work with the client began, the selected platform hadn’t been announced, so we were effectively planning for the unknown. 

But the value we brought was that our data strategy was platform agnostic. Our focus was on getting the data strategy right, irrespective of any specific platform. 

Outcomes and benefits

Our consultants put in place robust foundations to ensure the government department was fully prepared for the next stage in the transformation process. They have the reassurance that essential groundwork, like cyber security and data strategy, is safely in place. 

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