The SSOW Impact Awards are back for 2025!

Uniting leaders from Global Business Services & Shared Services teams, these Awards are ANZ leading space to salute success and share the latest advancements sharing the shared services ecosystem. Make sure you are in it to win it - get your entries in - and showcase your work and excellence with the ANZ shared services ecosystem.

For more information on award categories and how you can apply, please visit the awards page!

Honoring the Shared Services Leader of the Year whose visionary leadership drives team success, fosters innovation, and sparks transformative changes within shared services.

SSON's Shared Services & Outsourcing Impact Awards is a globally recognised, annual industry awards ceremony, which honours and celebrates SSC and service delivery teams who have exceeded industry standards in their SS&O initiatives.

Automation can take many forms, movement to workflow technology, self-service system, Robotic Process Automation and even Artificial Intelligence, the options are endless. This award category is focused on the strategic automation methodology that is being used, benefits, and hard improvements that the automation have brought to a shared services organisation.

SSON's Shared Services & Outsourcing Impact Awards is a globally recognized, annual industry awards ceremony, which honors and celebrates SSC and service delivery teams who have exceeded industry standards in their SS&O initiatives.

As shared services look to position themselves as business partners, many are refocusing their strategy to align with that of the business and are increasingly taking a design thinking approach which places the customer as the focus and starting point of everything they do. This category will focus on how business services are using Customer Experience tools – e.g. process and journey mapping, design thinking – to achieve a consistent and seamless experience across all of the touchpoints, for both internal and external customers. It will also concentrate on the strategy, methodology, initiatives which have led to improvements in customer focus and the benefits seen.

SSON's Shared Services & Outsourcing Impact Awards is a globally recognized, annual industry awards ceremony, which honors and celebrates SSC and service delivery teams who have exceeded industry standards in their SS&O initiatives.

Today’s shared services operating models are the engine behind transformation. As companies transform themselves along the key pillars of the 21st Century Enterprise - Customer Engagement, Changing Nature & Value of Assets, Everything-as-a-Service and Workforce of the Future - how are companies successfully leveraging the Business Services operating model to advance the 21st Century Enterprise Operation Model? Alongside any transformation, the ability to manage change as part of your day-to-day operations is crucial to ensure the cultural transformation needed for execution and growth.

This award category is focused on the strategy, improvement methodology, benefits and hard improvements that have been made by shared services organisations along with their ability to navigate through hyper-change.

Process improvement can take many forms: Eliminating waste in operations, eliminating friction points for customers, process redesign as part of six-sigma, innovations in process outcomes or even training related processes. Value creation means delivering shareholder value in terms of either top-line growth, bottom-line improvements or even experience related value. This award category is focused on the strategy, improvement methodology and benefits/hard improvements in process improvement and value creation that have been made by a shared services organisation.

SSON's Shared Services & Outsourcing Impact Awards is a globally recognized, annual industry awards ceremony, which honours and celebrates SSC and service delivery teams who have exceeded industry standards in their SS&O initiatives.

Managing talent effectively is a major challenge at every SSO. Coupled with the digital age now redefining business roles, SS leaders are being asked to expand their existing competencies with in-depth knowledge of technology and analytics, as well as broader leadership and business partnering skills. This award category is focused on the strategy, skill sets, improvement methodology, the rise of digital talent, benefits, and hard improvements that a shared services organisation have made to talent management.

SSON's Shared Services & Outsourcing Impact Awards is a globally recognized, annual industry awards ceremony, which honours and celebrates SSC and service delivery teams who have exceeded industry standards in their SS&O initiatives.

The SSOW 2025 sponsorship prospectus has just been released. Get your copy to learn more about:

• How you can get your solution in front of shared services leaders and executives
• Past SSOW attendees and numbers
• List of solution categories shared services and transformation leaders are looking for
• Sponsorship and Exhibition Packages

Unveiling the Secrets to Shared Services Success in ANZ

Download the 2024 ANZ Market Report for exclusive data, expert insights, and actionable strategies to:

• Navigate key market trends: Cost optimization, Generative AI adoption, and talent focus.
• Benchmark your performance: Gain valuable industry comparisons.
• Make informed decisions: Leverage data-driven insights on market trends, talent, and technology.
• Build a future-proof organization: Discover strategies for talent acquisition, upskilling, and technology adoption.

Brush up on your knowledge with SSON's comprehensive guide to the most vital acronyms in shared services and Global Business Services (GBS). Whether you are a seasoned professional or a newcomer to the industry, this infographic is your passport to understanding the language of efficiency, collaboration, and innovation.

Don't miss out! Grab your copy of our exclusive infographic now.

Discover the key to organisational success with Nintex. This guide outlines six critical steps to develop a strong process-oriented work culture, emphasizing process documentation and awareness among employees. Learn the essentials of process excellence and explore real-world examples of successful process adoption in leading organizations. A must-read for those aiming to enhance operational efficiency.

As transactions become more streamlined, technology provides transparency, and most solutions offer some kind of analytics, shared services are refocusing on transforming how work gets done: setting their sights on optimization opportunities through both process improvement and workforce optimization. These charts highlight the trends impacting Australian shared services in 2024, and provide valuable insights on strategic priorities for the year ahead.

Take a peek at who's attending the 27th Australasian Shared Services and Outsourcing Week 2024 in Melbourne in May!

Discover cutting-edge strategies with our SSOW 2023 Presentation Pack. Dive into sessions on data-driven organizations, AI's business value, and optimizing SSC processes. Elevate your shared services knowledge now.

So many of the Shared Services Centres in ANZ took the digital leap and emerged stronger than we first faced the pandemic. Our esteemed industry speakers celebrated their achievements in shaping value-generating digital SSC through transformation and scale via inspirational success stories.

Download the 27th SSOW Australasia Post Show Report to see the highlights, attendee profiles, and key topics that were covered during the event.

Australasia’s Business and Shared Services leaders are adapting and rebalancing their operating models and transformation strategies to focus on their people, their customers, their digital effectiveness, and their processes. This interactive report highlights the latest APAC data and trends to help chart the opportunities for continuous value creation and transformation.

Are you looking to take your shared services centre's customer experience to the next level?

Our expert speaker, Sarah Vandersee, General Manager of Queensland Shared Services, shared her insights on driving advanced customer and stakeholder experience in your SSC at the 25th Shared Services and Outsourcing Week Australasia last year. Check out the complimentary presentation to learn:

• How to identify your key customers and stakeholders and understand their expectations
• Key pitfalls to avoid when pursuing an improved customer and stakeholder experience
• How to drive significant business impact through a focus on superior experience 

The Asia Pacific Shared Services and Global Business Services landscape will continue to mature and grow exponentially in 2022. Leveraging data from Asia Pacific respondents in SSON’s State of Industry Survey 2022, this interactive report will uncover the key trends and strategies shaping the APAC region.

This includes diversity and inclusion, health and wellness, skills prioritized, digitization, getting the most out of automation platforms and data analytics to drive end-to-end process optimization, as well as benchmarks from the Top 20 Most Admired SSOs & GBS 2021.

If you have operations across the globe, you’ve likely considered or have already moved to a shared services model to centralise efforts, eliminate the costs of redundant functions, and put resources to better use. You know what shared services can do, but do you know where they can take you?

We gathered insights from experienced shared services leaders and identified four key points when moving to, or evolving, your existing shared services model.

Download the whitepaper to learn why a shared services model for travel, expense and invoice processes can help deliver more value to the business.

In 2020, 60% of ANZ Shared Services are hoping to achieve productivity improvement targets of 8% or more. Improving end to end workflow, continuous improvement and adoption of intelligent automation (IA) have been cited as the top 3 initiatives to achieve this.

This analytics report examines the current IA adoption landscape in ANZ and uncover the challenges faced and the benefits of overcoming them. It will look into:

• IA change management initiatives
• Process mining and also feature the latest automation
• Change management initiatives crucial for successful IA program    
• Finance and HR KPIs for ANZ Shared Services to benchmark themselves against

View the full 15 page report now!

*By downloading this report you agree to having your details passed onto the sponsor who may promote similar products and services related to your area of interest subject to their privacy policy.

71% of Australian decision makers believe employee experience will be one of the most important factors impacting their ability to deliver on key business objectives within the next two years...

Payroll is a fundamental part of any business, but it is often an undervalued and underappreciated function. With the world of work continuously changing, payroll can sometimes be left behind – But as the COVID-19 pandemic ushered in a swift transformation across industries and economies, payroll’s role has become more prominent in helping your people adapt to the new reality and reduce risks at the same time. As we navigate through this disruption, getting pay right can spell the difference between a company that is thriving to one that is merely surviving.

In this session, panellist will dive into:

• The impact of payroll to your overall business health What getting pay right means for employee engagement and wellness
• The risks of non-compliance to legislation
• How to help payroll teams manage the process even in the midst of a crisis
• The benefits of outsourcing payroll for business continuity
  

The report by written in partnership with IQPC Connect and Energy Action grew out of an executive roundtable which gathered energy and sustainability executives from Woolworths, BP, Auspost, AMP Capital, Downer and more in November of 2020.

Discussions deep-dived into the challenges of achieving Net Zero, following new global commitments to reach Net-Zero emissions by 2050, to support others on the same path

This paper touches upon 5 key areas:

• The evolving state of corporate responsibility surrounding sustainability
• Understanding and overcoming the energy trilemma – balancing energy security, cost and least carbon emissions to achieve Net Zero
• Challenges in creating a cohesive decarbonisation strategy
• Strategies and challenges on the path to achieving Net zero
• Use case examples of progressing towards Net Zero: UNSW’s consortium with Energy Action

Looking to better manage back-office processes, higher education providers are opting to set up Shared Services Centres as a more effective and efficient means of running their operations.

To better understand the benefits of shared services in higher education we explore the growing movement toward shared services, including how the model fits within the unique mission, and various attributes of the higher education environment.

Featuring insights and perspectives from Yale University as well as three Australian universities, the University of Southern Queensland, Monash University and Western Sydney University, we explore the strategies that helped them transform their shared services and allowed them to drive cost savings and operational efficiency.

Fill out the below to read the 34 page playbook to learn more! 

How do you become a Top Performing HR Service?

HR services has emerged from the back office to play a significant role in supporting CEOs’ strategic imperative to optimize human resources.

In its new role, HR services is no longer just about effective recruiting and career management, but about developing and supporting talent, ensuring it’s productive, and providing the framework and tools to create improved value-add for the business.

In line with operational excellence guidelines, the modern HR solution leverages strengths and knowledge where these are needed and diverts activities to self-service or automation where that serves the purpose best.

One out of five HR services have pulled ahead, providing valuable problem-solving and analytic capabilities. These "Top Performing" HR services stand out on the basis of significantly higher performance metrics, and operate at lower staffing ratios, cost and response time.

Top Performers have 10 characteristics in common that determine their success, as listed in this report. The report also includes case studies from Turner Broadcasting System, on how to leverage competency assessments as a basis for developing new field HR roles; The World Bank, on how to employ technology to improve HR service delivery; and HCA Healthcare, on how tiered services are driving operational excellence.

For executives in search of a more effective HR model, this report presents a valuable guide on how and where to focus their efforts.

“It is now estimated that over 80% of Fortune 500 companies have implemented some form of shared services in their US operations.” - Deloitte

Today’s organizations are on the march to enhance their shared service centers (SSCs), or move to a large-scale global services model to gain further efficiencies and standardization across locations and activities. 

If you’re part of the 80%, then like them, you’re probably not all the way to achieving the full range of potential benefits. Our latest report looks into doing just that.

Download the report to discover how to unlock greater value from your SSC and learn about:

• Digitization Comes to Shared Services 
• Spotlight on SSCs: Fast Facts 
• 4 Signs That You’re Ready For a Shared Services Upgrade 
• 5 Technologies to Improve SSC Performance 
• 7 Strategies to Enhance SSC Performance Maturity
• SunTrust’s Journey to Improved SSC Efficiency

With over 120,000 members, the Shared Services & Outsourcing Network (SSON) is the largest and most established community of shared services and outsourcing professionals in the world.

Discover the Key Trends Shaping the Future of GBS in 2024

Global Business Services (GBS) is no longer just a support function - it’s at the core of enterprise strategy. From driving digital transformation to enabling agility and innovation, GBS has become a critical force shaping the future of business. In this comprehensive report, we uncover the trends, data, and insights that defined GBS in 2024 - and provide a forward-looking perspective for 2025. Based on exclusive findings from our State of Industry research, this report highlights the pivotal shifts redefining GBS across technology, talent, data, and strategy.

IA greatly expands the arsenal of capabilities that can be applied to improving the efficiency and effectiveness of business operations. As an industry organizer, analyst, and catalyst; SSON has been watching with interest as smart people and companies find new and better ways to drive ever greater efficiency and effectiveness into operations.

In the second SSON IA market report of 2021, read on to learn more about the big ideas, recent history, case studies, company and customer perspectives and a bit about the future in the transformative power of intelligent automation.

Over 42 pages, this report covers...

• The five IA trends shaping shared services right now: Intelligent Document Processing, AI, Robotic Process Automation, Business Process Automation, Natural Language Processing, Generation and Understanding
• Survey results from SSON's Intelligent Automation Market Report Survey (Q4 2021)
• How digital labor is changing corporate operating models at an unprecedented pace

The pandemic put a spotlight on manual invoice processing and paper plagued workflows.

Shared Services teams found themselves thrust into remote work with operations that still relied on paper-based processes executed with manual workflows and handoffs. When office doors started to close, documents remained locked inside and new deliveries stacked up in mail collection areas of unattended offices. Working from home became mainstream overnight. Laptops were fired up and so were a host of concerns about how documents and data would be captured, stored, and shared.

The question lies, how has work been redesigned?

Find out in this report, reflecting key findings from SSON's Global State of AP Automation Survey in partnership with ABBYY. Industry case studies and subject matter expert interviews are included to provide a reference on how to apply learnings from the results.

Download this report to find out more.

The Wollongong CBD is undergoing a rapid transformation, with several new office developments changing the face of the city's office market. This commercial development uplift, plus Wollongong’s distinctive business benefits, has positioned the city as a legitimate, alternate CBD location for companies considering options for a new satellite office, shared services centre or to expand operations.

Download our free resource – the Wollongong Office Market Prospectus – to learn more about new commercial office spaces recently completed or underway in the Wollongong CBD.

Typically, Shared Services Center (SSCs) automation initiatives have been undertaken to reduce costs and improve efficiency.

This whitepaper explores how analytics, robotics, next-gen cloud computing, cybersecurity, and evolving budget tools will shape tomorrow’s organizations

Procurement and finance departments can reduce wasteful spending and improve processes if they both use a single purchase-to-pay (P2P)\ solution. The challenges in both procurement and finance are similar, and they work with the same supplier base, but in many instances disparate systems prevent them from collaborating effectively.

With vast amounts of data flowing through the procurement and finance departments every day, procure-to-pay (P2P) professionals are in a unique position to deliver critical information to the enterprise, if only they can unlock, aggregate, organize and analyze the data.

Learn about these Top 15 process attributes that will help you undertake proper and accurate process analysis to identify inefficiencies. To learn more about PRIME BPM, click here

Being agile will help you respond swiftly to global political and economical changes, where being productive will make you profitable and efficient while addressing these changes.

Learn how to be productive and agile to beat the competition and drive the customer and employee satisfaction in this eBook from PRIME BPM. To learn more about PRIME BPM, click here

This interactive report showcases the different strategies, goals, and challenges faced by Shared Services of various maturity levels in ANZ. Key takeaways include:

• Although the multifunctional operating model is the most popular across all maturity levels, the functional services differ along the maturity curve.
• Outsourcing is still significant for SSCs that are just starting up, but less so for mature centres.
• Majority of SSCs are still starting out in their IA journey and have a positive experience thus far.
• Less mature SSCs are focusing more on leadership skills, while mature SSCs are looking into attracting and retaining innovative talent.

Ahead of the 22^nd Australasian Shared Services and Outsourcing Week 2019 we explore the strategies harnessed by two Australian universities – the University of Southern Queensland, and Western Sydney University – that helped them transform their shared services and allowed them to drive cost savings and operational efficiency. 

Ahead of Shared Services and Outsourcing Week 2019 we chat to Adrian Iaiza, Robotic Process Automation and Operational Excellence Lead at insurers, TAL Australia. Adrian explores the opportunities and challenges of prototyping, implementing and deploying robotic process automation within your shared service operations.  

Using Open Orbit’s Expertise Automation platform – HSBC users were able to complete analysis of their back- office operations. This was completed in 75% less time (4 weeks instead of the usual 3 – 4 months). Users guided by Open Orbit’s algorithm were able to suggest a few pivotal changes to IT systems and to staff training that resulted in HSBC doubling mortgage processing capacity.

For more details you can download the full case study.