Client

Global enterprise operating across North America and Europe with multiple shared service functions including IT, procurement, finance, and HR.

​

The Situation

Following years of growth, acquisitions, and internal restructuring, the organization’s operating model had become increasingly difficult to manage. Different business units had developed their own processes, service providers, reporting structures, and decision pathways. While these approaches often solved local problems, they gradually created a fragmented operating environment.

​

Leadership began noticing several warning signs:

​

- Decision-making slowed across major initiatives
- Shared services struggled to meet business demands
- Business units increasingly built their own workarounds
- Costs continued to rise without clear improvements in service quality

 

What leadership initially viewed as execution challenges were actually symptoms of something deeper.

The organization had accumulated operating model debt.

​

The Challenge

The complexity had developed gradually and was not tied to a single problem.

Instead, several structural issues had accumulated over time:

​

- Fragmented Service Delivery

- Shared services teams operated differently across regions and business units, creating inconsistent service quality.

- Conflicting Decision Ownership

- Responsibility for key operational decisions was distributed across multiple leaders, slowing progress on important initiatives.

- Duplicate Processes

- Several teams were performing similar functions in parallel without realizing it.

- Local Optimization vs Enterprise Efficiency

- Individual business units had optimized for their own needs rather than the performance of the organization as a whole.

 

While the organization had talented teams and strong leadership, the operating structure itself had become a constraint.

 

The Minus Partners Approach

Rather than introducing another transformation program, Minus Partners focused on removing structural complexity.

​

The engagement focused on three priorities:

​

1. Mapping the Real Operating Model

The formal organizational structure did not fully reflect how work was actually being performed.

Minus Partners conducted interviews across leadership and operational teams to understand:

 

- How services were delivered across business units
- Where decision authority truly existed
- Where processes overlapped or conflicted

​

This created the first comprehensive view of the organization’s true operating model.

​

2. Clarifying Roles and Decision Rights

Many operational delays were caused by unclear ownership.

Leadership worked together to simplify decision pathways by:

- Defining clear service ownership
- Aligning accountability with business outcomes
- Reducing unnecessary approval layers

​

This enabled teams to move forward with greater confidence and speed.

​

3. Simplifying Shared Service Structures

Once the structural issues were understood, leadership redesigned the shared services environment to better support the organization’s strategic priorities.

This included:

​

- Consolidating overlapping functions
- Aligning service delivery models across regions
- Simplifying service management structures

​

The goal was not centralization for its own sake. It was creating an operating model that could scale with the business.

​

The Results

Within the first year, the organization began seeing measurable improvements.

 

- Faster Decision-Making

- Clear ownership reduced delays across strategic initiatives.

- Improved Service Consistency

- Shared services teams were better able to support business units with predictable delivery models.

- Reduced Operational Friction

- Teams spent less time navigating internal processes and more time executing on priorities.

- A Scalable Operating Model

- Leadership gained a structure capable of supporting future growth without adding additional complexity.

 

What This Demonstrates

Operating models rarely become inefficient overnight. They evolve gradually as organizations grow, launch initiatives, acquire companies, and respond to short-term needs.

 

Over time, these layers accumulate into operational debt that slows execution. By identifying and removing those layers, organizations can restore clarity, speed, and alignment across the business.

​

Engagement Outcome

The company moved from a fragmented operating structure to a simplified model aligned with its strategic goals. Leadership regained the ability to move quickly, coordinate across business units, and scale operations without introducing additional complexity.