The links effect

Over the past decade the HR shared services model has gained ground - whether in public-sector organisations clubbing together to take advantage of economies of scale, or in multinationals seeking to standardise processes. But it is not easy to implement, especially where service is shared over several organisations or countries. How do managers overcome the inevitable boundary problems?

The public sector
Shared service centres have been slow to take root in UK public-sector HR functions, with many organisations doubtful about the benefits. But financial constraints mean there is more pressure than ever to adopt at least this leg of the Ulrich model. Governments of all hues will look at the back-office cost savings to be gained through economies of scale as too good an opportunity to miss. This trend started several years ago with the publication of the Gershon review into public-sector efficiency and will intensify, following April’s budget announcement to make further savings in back-office, procurement and property running costs, rising to £9 billion by 2013-14.