01371 final corporate performance improvement advisory april09

8/14/2019 01371 Final Corporate Performance Improvement Advisory April09

1/17

Performance Improvement


2/17


Making change stick

PricewaterhouseCoopers


PricewaterhouseCoopers is the leading provider of advisory services in Ireland, and is ranked rst

for Business Advisory Services Globally (Kennedy Global Consulting Marketplace Report 2008 - 2012).

We work with organisations, of all sizes and across all industries, to help them adapt to their constantly changing

and increasingly complex operating environments. We help our clients by delivering meaningful and commercially

focused business advice that enables them to secure and strengthen competitive advantage.

This publication outlines the services provided by our Performance Improvement Team, which works closely with

our clients to help design, manage and execute lasting change. Combined with our in-depth industry knowledge,

we draw on skills in operations, people, technology and nance to advise and implement lasting change. We help

our clients to build the knowledge necessary to make change effective and sustainable.

We deliver results at times of opportunity, change or crisis by:

listening to clients issues and offering a range of smart choices to consider based on independent and

challenging insights supported by facts and industry benchmarks;

tailoring practical solutions to help clients execute strategy and then enable their people to run it; and

connecting the experience of our global networks in people, processes, nance and technology to deliver and

embed lasting change.

To discuss how we can help you and your organisation, please feel free to contact us or any of our colleagues

listed in this publication.

Ciaran Kelly

Partner

+353 1 792 6408

[email protected]

Garrett Cronin

Partner

+353 1 792 8807

[email protected]

Technology Consulting

I need advice on our IT

Strategy & planning, evaluation

& selection of IT systems and

advice on IT procurement.

Project & Change Management

I need an industry focused application of

leading project management and change

methods, including Six Sigma, Prince 2,

PMBOK.

Costs

I need to better understand our

cost base and target areas for cost

reduction

Transformation

I need to fundamentally change the

way my organisation operates in

order to become more cost effective,

customer-centric and adaptable to

change, while improving service, and

maximising capabilities of my people.

Supply Chain Management

There is not a seamless channel

from demand management &

forecasting to warehouse processes

and from inventory management to

distribution.

Working Capital

Management

There are weaknesses in our

internal systems which give

rise to collection, payment &

inventory issues.

IT Security & Data Protection

I need to know the data confidentiality,

integrity and availability risks within my

organisation. I need to know if we are

compliant with Data Protection Acts.

Shared Services & Outsourcing

I need advice on the development of a

shared services centre from business

case design to migration.

I need advice on the outsourcing of

services, from strategic assessment

to provider selection and from location

selection to contractual agreements.

Corporate Performance

Management / MI

I need assistance on the preparation of

budgets, forecasts and margin analysis,

to ensure they are aligned to strategy andlinked to operational performance metrics.


3/17

The role of the business leader today is to drive

the change required to thrive and grow. By its very

nature large scale change of a business is a complex

challenge. The team running the business right now

are typically engaged in the daily operations and the

requirement to meet ongoing operational and nancial

targets. The counsel of a trusted advisor to suggest

alternatives, challenge ideas and support the business

to drive through the change is, in our experience,

invaluable.

Our cross functional teams can provide a range

of support services to manage change within yourorganisation. At its core we recognise that the major

enablers and the signicant challenges to any change

initiative are systems and people. Therefore our teams

are experts on systems and technologies but also

have skills in your industry and can work alongside

your people to identify optimised solutions and design

implementation approaches to ensure that the change

is embedded.

Typical Drivers of Transformational Change

Mergers, Acquisitions and Disposals

Enterprise Wide Cost Reduction

Implementation or replacement of major IT systems

Responses to new regulatory regimes

Introduction of shared services

Outsourcing of business processes

Each of the above can have a profound impact on anorganisation, and needs to be expertly managed to

achieve the desired outcome and avoid catastrophic

failure. PwC specialises in assisting clients deliver

transformational change.

How can we help?

PwC can help you address the key challenges in

undertaking successful transformational change

programmes:-

Ensuring a clear vision of what the programme is to

achieve

Ensuring a comprehensive business case

identifying all of the costs and benets

Identifying the key initiatives required in relation to

people, processes and systems

Developing clear and comprehensive plans

Designing appropriate governance and

management structures for the change programme

Ensuring that the appropriate resource numbers

and mix of skills in Organisation, Change

Management, IT, Finance, HR and other relevant

disciplines are deployed in the programme

Managing the Programme, integrating the activities

across many work streams

Running the Programme Ofce which will

administer the programme

Managing any third party suppliers involved in the

programme

Managing the realisation of the benets projected in

the business case

Supplementing your own resources where required

with appropriate specialists

StrategicDirection Assess Design Implement Operate &

Review

Structure

Process /Service

Facilities

People& Organisation

EnablingTechnology

ChangeManagement

ProgrammeDelivery

Construct

CreateCase for

Changeand scope

initiatives

Definingthe High-level

Blueprintforthe new

organisation and the

CaseforC hange,and

theportfolioof

initiativesthat will

transform the

organisation,while

achievingshort- and

medium-term fiscal

and businessgoals

Detailed

Deign,TOM

and Quick

Wins

Creatingthe detailed

TargetOperating

Modeland plan for

theorganisation (e.g.

new orgstructures,

processes,locations,

sk i l ls, ITetc),whi lst

alsoimplementing

quick wininitiatives

Build new processes

and supportingIT

locations,org

structures,skills etc.,

tosupportnew ways

of working.

Understand in detail

therequirements to

implementthese

across theorganisation

Implementingthe

portfolioof group-wide

and organisation-wide

initiatives,pro-actively

ensuringbenefits are

tracked and realised,

addressingany

shortfalls(i.e. portfolio

leakage)

Operatethe

transformed

organisation,deliver

thebenefits, and

instigateacultureof

continuous

improvement

Build thenew

ways of

workingand

design rollout

Rolloutnew

ways of

workingand

ensure

benefits arerealised

Operatenew

organisation

and implement

continuous

improvement

Transformation

Major Retailer de-merges and

creates new organisation on target

Our client was a major Irish retailer. The client was involved in a complete transformation of their business as a resultof the acquisition by a new management team of the core business from a legacy parent organisation. The PwC teamworked closely with the client delivering a complete set of new systems from ePOS through to back ofce and nancialsystems.

In addition PwC assisted the new management team in the development of a resource plan and structure for the new ITsupport organisation, the design of new business processes, contract negotiation and the recruitment of new staff. ThePwC support ensured that the project and the overall transaction was completed successfully and on time.

Large scale business

transformation requires

the alignment of people,

systems and processes

usually in a compressed

timeframe

Ciarn Kelly

(Partner)

[email protected]

01 792 6408

Garrett Cronin

(Partner)

[email protected]

01 792 8807

David McGee

(Director)

[email protected]

01 792 8785

For further information:


4/17

Sustainable Cost Reduction

With economic growth now faltering and the impact of

the credit crunch spreading from nancial institutions

and property to dampen market and consumer

condence, company executives are under increasing

pressure to maintain and improve shareholder returns.

With limited scope in the near term for revenue growth,

focus is on cost reduction to deliver value. However,

executives are conscious of the need to embed

sustainable cost reductions within their business as

opposed to short term measures which may damage

long-term growth.

Our Cost Reduction team focuses on identifying andvalidating sustainable cost reduction opportunities

for our clients and supporting them, as appropriate in

implementing these changes. Our focus is enterprise

wide focusing on such aspects as procurement; IT;

treasury; supply chain; sales administration; nance,

etc.

Cost Reduction Approach

Our approach to cost reduction is outlined below. It

should be noted that as part of the spend analysis

phase, we not only focus on i dentifying cost reduction

drivers, we also focus on cost management and control

which reects on the cost culture within organisations.

How can we help?

PwCs consultants have signicant commercial

experience in driving performance improvement

initiatives across multiple industries. We offer a exible

approach to cost reduction that enables clients focus

on known areas of concern or on enterprise wide

operations. The services we provide include:

Identifying cost drivers

Benchmarking performance against peer groups

Challenging cost management and controlframework

Establishing KPIs that are aligned to corporate

strategy

Simplifying and standardising business practices

Structuring shared services and outsourcing

arrangement for Finance, IT, Treasury, Logistics,

Operations, etc

Adapting IT to support business needs

Embedding a culture of continuous improvement

within organisations

The current global environment

creates a new imperative for

companies in all sectors

to embed exibility

into their cost base

and engender

a culture of cost

control.

Garrett Cronin (Partner)

[email protected]

01 792 8807

Ciarn Kelly(Partner)

[email protected]

01 792 6408


PwC assists FMCG Food

Company in achieving 6m pa

in cost savings

Challenge:This FMCG company had experienced exceptional year-on-year growth with senior management more focusedon acquisitions and indigenous growth than the efciencyand effectiveness of internal operations. PwC wasrequested to identify cost saving opportunities in Finance,

Administration and IT, across the groups Europeanbusiness operations.

Approach:

Having gained a high level understanding of thebusiness, PwC conducted detailed interviews withsenior management in all targeted companies. Metrics

were gathered, business plans reviewed, IT strategyinterrogated and nance and administration operationsmapped and assessed. Performance was benchmarkedagainst best practice, whilst opportunities for centralisationand outsourcing were considered. We also reviewedopportunities for the company to reduce their tax charge.The nal proposals were costed and savings in head-countand operating costs assessed.

Beneft:

PwC identied cost savings of more than 6m perannum (c. 8%). Some of our observations included:leveraging best practice across Group companies;coordinating IT implementations; completing a programof centralisation, which had stalled impacting return oninvestment; accelerating the close process; tailoringbusiness intelligence to Group needs; and leveraginggroup purchasing power. Two separate IT implementationswere immediately deferred and the Group generatedsignicant cost savings from the implementation of PwCrecommendations.

Build the

cost

roadmapIdentify the

gaps and

opportunities

Analyse current

cost base and

revise budgets

BIP rollout

Continuous

improvement

Performance

management

Pilot(s)

Stabilising

Develop BIPS

pend

analy

sis

,cos

tredu

ctio

nan

dcost

mana

gem

ent

roadmap

Designinitiative

sandd

evelop

th

eB

IP

Cons

truct

BIP

pilot(s)

I mp

lementcosts

trategyandsu

stainbenefits

PwCs four step process to sustainable cost reduction

I. Spend Analysis, Cost Reductionand Cost Management Roadmap

1. Spend analysis to define operational cost drivers& baseline activity levels as well asdiscretionary spend

2. Headcount benchmarking analysis3. Cost management and control

framework gap analysis4. Forensic contracts review to

identify potential leakageopportunities

5. Build go-forward sustainablecost management roadmap

II. Design Initiatives and Developthe Business Improvement Plan (BIP)

1. Stabilisation Execute the immediate actions

to stabilise the key cost controlsand mitigate instructions

2. Create the Business Improvement Plan Using the roadmap from the

Assessment Phase, build the designof each prioritised initiatives

Generate an overall BusinessImprovement Plan incorporating

all initiatives Refine the cost and benefit analysis

IV. Implement Company-Wide Cost

Strategy and Sustain Benefits1. Rollout company-wide cost

strategy2. Continuous Improvement

3. Corporate Performance Management(CPM)

4. Establish incentive mechanisms to drivesustainable improvement

III. Construct the Business Improvement

Plan (BIP)1. Construct and execute the Business

Improvement Plan pilots

2. Incorporate learning into the plan3. Finalise the company-wide rollout plan

PwCs four steps process to sustainable cost reduction


5/17

Shared Services

To survive in todays environment, organisations

need to nd smarter ways to invest in systems,

resources and infrastructure. Clever and well informed

investments can result in competitive advantage

through more efcient processes and lower costs,

driving increased efciency and value for money. To

achieve these ends, organisations are increasingly

consolidating and optimising their technology,

infrastructure and human capital investments into

Shared Service Centres. Shared Services have led to

service delivery improvements and have generated

signicant and recurrent cost savings within a few years

of implementation.

How can you achieve success?

PwC understands from experience what it takes

to make shared services a success and that those

organisations that realise or exceed anticipated benets

have effective:

Senior level sponsorship and support throughout

the project

Business case for change

Governance and accountability

Methodology, supported by a structured approach

that encompasses the entire shared services life

cycle

Stakeholder engagement

People and change management

End-to-end process transformation

Systems and infrastructure support.

How can we help?

PricewaterhouseCoopers have a proven expertise in

preparing business cases for shared services and in

assisting clients with implementation. Consequently

PwC are in a unique position to be able to provide a full

range of services in this area including:

Preparing and/or challenging the business case

for centralisation, getting buy-in from management

team;

Developing the shared service operating model

focusing on people, processes and infrastructure;

Ensuring efcient and effective program

management throughout the project;

Documenting clear agreements on service levels;

Developing an action oriented communications

framework;

Reviewing ongoing operations through the use

of service level agreements and key performance

indicators;

Re-visiting, revising and re-shaping existing

shared service centre operations to meet changing

organisational needs.

Industrial Products Group

develops Global SSC strategy

Challenge:Following the acquisition of a major competitor, this Groupdecided to develop a strategy to implement a global SSCmodel. PwC was requested to support the development ofthis strategy.

Approach:With support from PwC SSC experts globally, PwCsupported the Group develop a global strategy focusedon activities, locations, business case, stafng andorganisation structure. We facilitated multiple site visits to

established SSCs; convinced their management team ofthe benets of shared services; supported them developdetailed resource plans and split of activities between SSCand country; documented and upgraded SSC processes;nalised business plan; and developed implementationproject plan.

Benefts:

Through a structured approach to developing the businesscase, providing a vision and articulating how sharedservices could operate, Group management was convincedof the benets of implementing the SSC structure andsupporting the plans to migrate country operations to SSCoperations. Through benchmarking existing SSC activitieswith global best practice, PwC also identied opportunitiesfor the Group to operate more efciently and effectively.mentation, further services have been successfullyoutsourced.

Garrett Cronin

(Partner)

[email protected]

01 792 8807

Ed French

(Senior Manager)

[email protected]

01 792 8576

For further information:Strategic Benefits

Cost

Savings

Improvements in

Quality and

Customer Service

A Shared Service Centre or BPO

strategy can result in three

different types of benefit

Strategic Benefits

Cost

Savings

Improvements in

Quality and

Customer Service

A Shared Service Centre or BPO

strategy can result in three

different types of benefit


6/17

Corporate Performance

Management

PwCs Corporate Performance Management (CPM)

framework helps companies develop an integrated

CPM approach that supports the design and

implementation of management processes and

systems that drive accountabilities, decision support

and operational execution. Recognising that CPM

efforts typically start as targeted improvement efforts,

we help align CPM efforts to link strategies, metrics and

nancial planning with ongoing operational reporting

and execution.

CPM Best Practice Concepts

Establish clear CPM goals and business

sponsorship upfront

Identify key business drivers to baseline future

planning, reporting and analysis

Develop quick wins with tactical deployment -

keeping longer term vision in mind

Plan for business changes - exibility is a core

requirement

Engage business and functional expertise in

operating model development including the design

of reports and KPIs this is not just a nance

exercise

Address data, quality and integration issues upfront

Standardise and leverage leading CPM and

Business Intelligence tools for nancial planning,

consolidation, reporting and analytics

Utilise prototype driven approach for deployment

How can we help?

Our professionals combine deep nancial, operational,

and analytical expertise to help organisations optimise

planning, align metrics, and leverage existing CPM

and Business Intelligence tools. We have experience

with all of the leading tools including Hyperion/Oracle,SAP, and Cognos and apply our best practice thinking,

CPM accelerators and industry knowledge to help in all

phases of CPM deployment.

CPM Assessments and Roadmaps

Measures and Metrics Alignment

Operating Model Development

Management and Operational Reporting

Budgeting and Forecasting Improvement

Driver-based and Rolling Forecasts

Dashboards and Scorecards

Business Analytics and Business Intelligence

CPM Best Practices and Benchmarks

CPM System Selection and Rollout

Data Architecture and Management

Change Management

Reward and Compensation

Retail Bank delivers new

suite of KPIs and appropriate

systems infrastructure

PwC was engaged with a major retail bank to providean independent review of the quality and relevance ofcurrent Management Information (MI) produced to meetinternal and external stakeholder information requirements,including governance and key controls. In addition, PwCbenchmarked the bank against industry best practice MIand KPIs to identify gaps, quick wins and gain insights intobest practice MI governance, process, technology andorganisational arrangements.

The process involved reviewing their information strategyrequirements through Senior stakeholder interviewsand workshops. As part of this, PwC provided specicrecommendations on the;

a. Establishment of an MI Governance Infrastructure that

sets policy, tracks initiatives and involves bank widerepresentation;

b. Best in class key performance indicators that the bankshould consider employing; and,

c. Organisation and Technology Infrastructure that thebank should implement to produce the required MI thatis both exible and scalable.

The analysis of data is no longer

enough to provide a competitive

advantage the winners are

those who can understand

the data and change their

organisations as a result of it

ALIGN

Strategy Plan

CPM

ALIGN

Strategy Plan

CPM

HRMarketingSalesOperationsFinance HRMarketingSalesOperationsFinance

Our CPM methodology starts with an

integrated CPM roadmap to guide

decisions and link CPM efforts to focus

on the business benets and overall

return.


[email protected]

01 792 8807

Ed French (Senior Manager)

[email protected]

01 792 8576



7/17

IT Advisory

IT is a vital and integral part of all businesses, and for

many it represents a signicant proportion of operating

costs. Management needs to be condent that:

IT spend is optimised to provide value for money;

IT service is resourced in the most cost and time

efcient manner;

IT service is proactive and responsive to business

needs ;

IT projects are achieving results, delivering

expected benets and being completed on time

and within budget; and

IT Operations are being managed in a way that

ensures reliability and security, and minimises risks

to the business

Some concerns voiced by senior management

about IT

How can we help?

PwC can assist you in ensuring successful cost-

effective IT services. We have a large local team of

highly experienced and qualied consultants who

provide IT advice and support to clients in areas such

as:-

Benchmarking your IT Service against best-in-class

and identifying improvement opportunities

Developing business-focused IT strategies and

plans

Specifying and selecting systems to meet your

business needs (HR, Finance, CRM, Payroll)

Putting in place appropriate IT governance,

policies, procedures and standards

Undertaking reviews and health checks on IT

projects

Managing the realisation of benets from IT

Managing IT business risk and compliance

Assessing sourcing and outsourcing strategies

Coaching and training your staff in best practice

approaches to IT projects and service delivery

PwC can also provide temporary IT resources to

supplement your own inhouse skills in the areas of

IT service management, project management and

business analysis.

Strategic support to IT

Function in a major hospital

PwC performed a review of IT Effectiveness Strategy in amajor Irish hospital. The IT Department within the hospitalhas 50 people and a budget of circa 4 million per annum.Our work included interviewing senior management,obtaining information concerning the business strategyof the hospital and performing a gap analysis with the ITdepartment. Our projects have included:

IT Governance assisted the hospital to establish an IToversight committee, involving members of the IT unitand hospital senior management team;

Quality Review of IT function - led a team involved inthe review of the IT function of the hospital, drawing on

recognised standards such as COBIT and ITIL;

IT Project reviews - provided input into review of majorIT projects, including Nurse Roster System, TheatreManagement System and Infrastructure upgrade;

IT Procurement - provided advice in relation to theselection and procurement for IT capital investments

PwCs goal is to make change stick. We achieve this

primarily by ensuring the transfer of knowledge and skills toyour staff so that they can take over when our consultantsleave.

An IT strategy is a planning

document that explains

how information technology

should be utilised as part

of an organisations overall

business strategy

Were spending more and more on IT but it all

seems to be invested on keeping the show on the

road

We thought systems were integrated, but whenever

we look for new reports it costs too much and takes

too long, apparently because the information resides

in different systems and in different forms

Why do our IT projects always take longer and cost

more than planned?

Do we really need that many IT staff what do they

all do?

Were not happy with our third party suppliers but it

seems we have no realistic alternative

Ciarn Kelly

(Partner)

[email protected]

01 792 6408

Carol Murphy

(Senior Manager)

[email protected]

01 792 8262

Kieran Morgan

(Senior Manager)

[email protected]

01 792 8632


High-level IT

Environment Review

IT Culture and SkillAnalysis

IT Organisation Analysis

Software DevelopmentMaturity Assessment

Application Inventory

IT Infrastructure Analysis

Business Value of

Application Systems


8/17

Todays organisations rely on information for the

effective and efcient operation of their business.

Information is a key business enabler that allows

organisations to collaborate with their customers and

business partners to securely conduct business. As

a result IT and security organisations are now being

asked to play two pivotal roles:- to provide a secure,

well-controlled IT environment to improve business

performance; and, to assist the organisation in

strategically and tactically addressing its governance,

risk and compliance requirements.

Your key Business Challenges in relation to IT

Security

Do you want to open your IT infrastructure to

employees, customers and business partners

to securely conduct business while ensuring the

protection of your information assets?

Are you concerned about the impact of information

loss?

Can you respond to todays complex security

breaches, reduce the risk of business disruptions

and meet your compliance objectives?

Do you struggle to demonstrate value for money

or justify expenditure from information security

investments?

Are you challenged by business requirements to

integrate new developments and technologies

securely?

At the heart of PricewaterhouseCoopers vision is a

detailed and comprehensive view of security, the...

Enterprise Security Business Model (ESBM).

The ESBM shows the process by which the value of

security is identied, created, captured and sustained

within your organisation. It is our vi ew of end-to-

end security and reects our belief in empowering

our clients to meet their security-related objectives,

to provide a secure, well-controlled IT environment

and address their governance, risk and compliance

requirements.

How can we help?

PricewaterhouseCooperss Advisory professionals have

real-world experience in helping companies integrate

people, process and technology. With our deep

industry knowledge and our experience with the critical

issues of security, privacy and compliance, we have the

expertise to help organisations implement and maintain

a secure and high-performance business infrastructure,

focused on:

IT Security Strategy, Policies and Standards

Infrastructure, Networks and Applications Security

Penetration Testing

Identity and Access Management

Outsourced IT Security Management

IT Risk Management

Data Protection Compliance

IT Security Incident Response

IT Contingency Planning

IT Security & Data Protection

Information security strategy

developed for major

Government Department

Challenge:The client was looking to improve the way informationsecurity was organised within their organisation andto establish an enterprise-wide Information Security

Architecture.

Approach:Our team was engaged to design a vision for InformationSecurity for our client. This included the development ofa Security Strategy, an Information Security Architectureand a roadmap for the implementation of the Security

Architecture.

Benefts:

Increased awareness of the underlying principles, andimportance, of Information Security;

Establishment of a clear strategy for InformationSecurity;

Establishment of clear organisational structurefor Information Security with dened roles and

responsibilities; Establishment of greater business involvement in the

Information Security process;

Increased visibility for Management on majorInformation Security risks; and,

Clear benets realisation from Information Securityinvestments.

Information is one of the most valuable

assets an organisation possesses.

The aim of Information Security is to

design and implement the right processes

to preserve the condentiality, integrity

and availability of information.

Ciarn Kelly

(Partner)

[email protected]

01 792 6408

Kieran Mongan

(Senior Manager)

[email protected]

01-792 8632

Liam McKenna

(Senior Manager)

[email protected]

01-792 8897



9/17

Project & Change Management

A successful project requires a combination of

good planning, organisation, resource and benets

management and to achieve the organisations goals or

objectives.

PwC provides expertise in traditional project

management methodologies such as PMBOK, Prince2,

and the Six Sigma process improvement methodology.

PwC Expertise

PricewaterhouseCoopers experience has identied

six pillars of project excellence, which if managed

effectively will improve the likelihood of a successful

project delivery. The six pillars include:

We also have extensive Project Management training

and certication in methodologies such as PMBOK and

PRINCE2.

PMBOK (Project Management Body of

Knowledge) is the project management

methodology published by the Project Management

Institute (PMI), the worlds leading organisation for

the project management profession.

The PRINCE2 methodology is a widely accepted

project management standard that is published

by the UK governments Ofce of Government

Commerce.

The Six Sigma process improvement methodology can

assist organisations to bring about strategic change.

Leading global organisations have used Six Sigma

to improve existing processes and build new ones to

strengthen internal and external client relationships.

Benets to Clients

Formal project management methodologies and Six

Sigma bring many benets to clients, such as:

Realisation of project objectives to perform

project(s) at low risk, with high quality in a minimum

of time and cost

Use of established frameworks and processes that

help control and manage risks associated with

large-scale projects

Drives project management excellence including aclear focus on milestones, ownership, co-ordination

and escalation of issues for resolution

Six Sigma encourages continuous improvement of

existing processes and design of new processes

How can we help?

PwC can help clients to achieve their target benets

on time and within budget by providing qualied

resources with relevant experience. We help to assess

and transform gaps in processes, technology and/

or resources. Specically we provide the following

services to our clients:

Advise on Best Practices in all aspects of program

and project management

Provision of Program Management Ofce (PMO)

Increase performance by improving the efciency

and effectiveness of key business processes using

Six Sigma

Project Management and Six Sigma Training

Project Health Checks

We are independent of our clients business and

industry sector, enabling us to deal objectively with

relationship issues. Many client solutions require

international resources, which we provide from our

local centres of excellence around the world. Our

deep understanding of projects across all i ndustries

means we can effectively manage the deliverables and

enhance the value resulting from complex and difcult

change programmes.

Utility Group improves customer

service while reducing costs

Facing a new regulatory regime, this company recognised the need to implement robust operational processes to ensurethey complied with regulatory requirements, whilst also operating to best in class performance levels.

Using a Six Sigma based process review methodology, we adopted a four step approach to addressing our clientsrequirements i.e. dene & measure, analyse, improve & implement and control. Control and business processweaknesses identied were agreed with the client and action plans dened assigning ownership and timelines for eachindividual recommendation.

Adoption of a project management methodology ensured practical and feasible solutions were dened, implemented andrealisation of benets accurately measured and tracked. Benets achieved included increased operational capacity,enhanced customer service and reduced costs which were realised through elimination of ineffective process activity fromtargeted processes.

Many project successes can be attributed to

the presence of formal project management

and change management programmes to

ensure that people commit to the project and

the organisational and process changes it will

bring once implemented.

Darren DArcy

(Senior Manager)

[email protected]

01 - 792 8532

Emma Hanley

(Senior Manager)

[email protected]

01 792 8562


Six pillars of

project excellent

Team is highperforming

Risks aremanaged

Scope is realistic

and managed

Stakeholdersare committed

Work and

schedule arepredictable

Business benets

are realised


10/17

Supply Chain Management

Successful companies are underpinned by an effective

supply chain management which gets the right product,

to the right customers at the right place, time and cost.

Organisations who recognise the strategic importance

of their Supply Chain, reap the operational, cost

reduction and revenue enhancing benets.

With the ever increasing pressure on management to

reduce costs whilst simultaneously striving for best-

in-class performance, executives are increasingly

looking to their supply chain to deliver more cost

competitiveness and more efcient and effective ways

to get products to market. By managing the supply

chain strategically, organisations can proactively

capture and create value within their businesses.

Our experience at PwC has shown that most

companies continue to isolate elements of cost and

service and do not consider the full extent of their

supply chain. This results in savings and efciencies

being achieved in one area of the business, but with

knock-on costs and/or lags elsewhere in the supply

chain.

Instead of operating as a collection of separate

business units, a well managed supply chain should

link suppliers, manufacturers, distributors, retailers

and customers into one integrated channel that

operates - and communicates - seamlessly. This

allows for complete transparency on cost and process

improvements.

Benets to Clients

The benets which may accrue to companies who

focus on optimising their supply chain can include:

Increased protability through reduced costs;

Reduced working capital levels;

Full utilisation of available technology;

Reduced capital investment requirement with

positive impacts on nancing costs;

Tax efcient distribution models;

Improved business processes; and

Enhanced customer relationships and service levels

ultimately creating greater shareholder value.

How can we help?

At PwC we work with our clients to address all aspects

and key market drivers of competitive pressures in

the supply chain. We approach the supply chain as

a set of integrated operating activities and work with

companies to:

Identifythe key value links in their supply chain, i.e.

link suppliers, manufacturers and customers etc.

into one integrated channel;

Evaluate and re-engineer their processes in both

their internal and external relationship points on the

supply chain;

Leverage the impact of technology on supply chain

demands;

Examine all aspects of the supply chain from

forecasting, production planning, manufacturing,

stock control, through to sales order processing

and logistics;

Applytechnology and supply chain best practice

to support the automation and optimisation of key

processes.

Benchmark existing performance with industry

peers using PwC Global Best Practices

Healthcare Logistics Authority

successfully re-engineers to

deliver new customer service

level targets

Challenge:Following the establishment of this Healthcare Authority,management sought to engage a supply chain advisor tosupport the design and implementation of leading edgelogistics practices and processes across its organisation.PwC has been retained since the inception of this Authorityto provide expert advice on all aspects relating to logistics.

Approach:Leveraging PwC Global Best Practices, PwC globalexpertise in Healthcare, supply chain and particularlylogistics, PwC has supported the Authority undertake aseries of design and implementation related initiativeswhich include: design and implementation of a nationalnetwork of distribution centres and new arrangements forreplenishment at ward level as well as advisory support toimplement computer systems.

Benefts:

Despite the complexity of the operating environment, theAuthority has achieved excellence in terms of delivering tocustomer service level targets outlined in original businesscases. In addition PwC support has enabled the Authoritydevelop the internal supply chain arrangements in otherhealth entities to ensure that the benets of the enhancedsupply chain are achieved at the coal face.

The effective and efcient

management of the end to end

process of inbound and outbound

supply chain is a major cost but

also a major opportunity for superior

service for organisations

Garrett Cronin

(Partner)

[email protected]

01 792 8807

Richard Jackson

(Senior Manager)

[email protected]

01 792 7461



11/17

Outsourcing

International Media Group

exceeds target savings through

outsourcing

Challenge:Faced with increasing shareholder pressure to improvecost and performance metrics, the client decided toconsider outsourcing as a cost efcient option. Not havingexperience in outsourcing arrangements and concernedabout being dictated to by established service providers,they retained PwC to provide independent advice on theimplementation.

Approach:

PwC identied appropriate outsource service providers andprepared a Request for Proposal incorporating key metrics

for success. PwC supported the client in assessing and

evaluating bids and then worked with the client in framingthe contract ensuring commercial considerations were

embedded in the contract through well dened service level

agreements.

Benefts:

The client now has focused service providers providingprofessional support to their internal management and

telesales customers. Key performance metrics are being

achieved and cost savings have exceeded expectations.

Outsourcing can deliver cost savings to the

bottom line it can also create an intangible

benet of freeing your organisation from the

distraction of non core activities

Why do companies outsource?

The number and size of outsourcing deals in Ireland

has grown in recent years. In the past this growth

has primarily been due to an increased emphasis on

reducing costs, however in a recent Global Outsourcing

survey conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers the top

ve reasons given by respondents for entering into an

outsourcing arrangement were:

Lower Costs

Access to talent

Others can do the job better

Increased business model exibility

Improved customer relationships

However, while the benets of outsourcing can often be

substantial, the risk of failure remains high due mainly

to poorly designed and documented arrangements

between buyers and suppliers. Other common barriers

to outsourcing include:

Difculties in proving the cost benet

Preference to use in-house employees

Lack of skills to manage the outsourcing

relationship

Need to clean up operations before outsourcing

How can we help?

At PwC our teams draw upon skills in nance,

regulation, risk, tax, people, operations and technology

to devise, deliver and embed lasting change. We can

provide clients with advice and insights into the drivers,

benets, risks and pitfalls associated with outsourcing.

We can further assist clients by:

Acting as independent advisors on all issues

associated with the outsourcing of services;

Focusing on assessing the strategic t, cost /

benet analysis and driving out cost and service

benets for the company;

Supporting the commercial and legal negotiations

with the selected outsource partner;

Advising buyers of outsourcing services on the

planning, design and management of successful

outsourcing arrangements;

Identifying and selecting outsource service

providers based on criteria that are objective and

veriable;

Designing the Service Level Agreement, Key

Performance Indicators and Service Credit models

for inclusion in the contract; and

Supporting the transition of services to the service

provider.


[email protected]

01 792 8807

Ciarn Kelly(Partner)

[email protected]

01 792 6408



12/17

Working Capital Management

In the current credit crunch environment, the mantra

must be Cash is King. And the issue isnt just

associated with the cost of funds; the recoverability of

receivables, the certainty of supply, the effectiveness

of procurement, the streamlining of processes and

the culture of ownership and accountability are all key

components in effectively managing cash.

Our Working Capital Management (WCM) team

focuses on releasing cash from all areas of the

business and in particular focuses clients on reducing

the ratio of receivables to sales; inventory to cost of

sales and increasing the ratio of payables to spend.In addition, we support our clients improve the

transparency surrounding cash management, ensuring

the group wide management of cash is coordinated

and controlled.

Who should focus on WCM?

Whether impacted by liquidity requirements or the need

for more efcient and effective WCM, the dynamic

nature of competitive business dictates that business

needs adapt regularly. Consequently every company

can benet from a regular review of the strategic focus

and operational processes surrounding WCM.

Reducing working capital is most effective when

all associated processes (procurement, payables,

invoicing, collection, inventory management etc.) are

understood and aligned and best i n class approaches

are adopted. However the benets derived from

reducing working capital should not be viewed as

simply a short term gain. Implementing procedures to

embed best practices across the organisation ensures

the benets are not only sustained, but the quality of

customer service is enhanced.

How can we help?

Our consultants have worked with leading

organisations in measuring, analysing and improving

existing strategies and processes to signicantly

reduce working capital levels, releasing cash for

businesses to invest internally or externally. We work

with clients to:

Benchmark existing performance with industry

peers

Identify best practices

Establish KPIs aligned to corporate strategy

Leverage IT to support business needs

Identify opportunity for improved pricing and terms

Implement global procurement structures

Reduce inventory obsolescence and bad debts

Implement strategic programs

Implementing shared services and outsourcing

solutions to deliver efciencies

Multi-National Engineering

Group reduces Working Capital

by 30% in 18 months

Challenge:

Following the merger of two multi-national engineeringgroups, the generation of cash from working capital wasdeemed a strategic priority. We were requested to identifyopportunities to reduce working capital and supportimplementation of certain key initiatives.

Approach:

Having gained a high level understanding of the business, anumber of approaches were designed to release cash fromreceivables, inventory and payables. These included thedevelopment of a common taxonomy for measuring and

reporting upon working capital elements; the introductionof an incentive scheme to motivate country management toimplement sustained solutions; the introduction of centralinventory control and management; the negotiation ofimproved terms with suppliers based on global spend; theappointment of new logistics partners; the renegotiation ofterms with customers; the introduction of best practicesgoverning receivables management; the shortening of the

supply chain, etc.

Beneft:

Working Capital was reduced by 30% within 18 months,supporting the reduction in Group debt by more than 50%.More importantly, these reduced levels of working capitalwere sustained.

All companies, regardless of their

current state of health, can benet from

tighter control over working capital


[email protected]

01 792 8807

Stephen Kinsella (Manager)

[email protected]

01 792 8847


Typical Problem

Pressure on margins as a result of

intensied competition in globalised

markets

Unsatisfactory cash ow performance in

recent years

Expensive acquisitions resulting in

excessive debt and depressed prots

Shortage of capital to nance growth

Effects of active WCM

Permanent reduction in funds tied up in

working capital

Unlocking of capital for strategic

investments

Increase in protability

Optimisation of business processes through

identication of working capital drivers

Protection of Liquidity


13/17

Thought Leadership

Technology Forecast Winter 2009

This issue of Technology Forecast explores the future of enterprise

applications and their role in creating a foundation for agility i n an

era of accelerating change. PwC offers a three layer framework and

rationale for extending the capabilities of enterprise applications

further into management of the business to bridge the gap between

strategy and operations by balancing standardisation with exibility

to deliver signicant competitive advantage in the pursuit of higher

performance, agile strategies, and agile behaviour.

Technology Forecast Fall 2008

Do more with less. Be more innovative. Manage continuous change.

Anticipate market shifts. Bias investment toward differentiation.

Standardise wherever possible to reduce costs. Deliver value

from acquisitions. Make information a strategic weapon. Create a

sustainable infrastructure. Be more agile.

Global CEO Survey 2009

The 12th Annual PwC Global CEO Survey examines how CEOs

perceive the business environment in which they are operating.

Despite the downturn, people issues remain a critical challenge for

the CEO concerns include attracting key talent, integrating younger

employees and providing attractive career paths.

Ireland:CEO Pulse Survey 2009

The views of Irish business leaders on the current economic and

operating environment. Includes insights into their key people

concerns.

Convergence monitor: Personal mobility (Jan 2009)

This is the third in a series of global surveys aimed at understanding

preferences and interest to buy and use various converged services.

Personal mobility focuses on which devices and applications people

are using today, how they are using them, and what they would like

to have in the future. We look at the changes driving and enabling

personal mobility, and the resulting challenges faced by service

providers, equipment manufacturers and application developers.

Outsourcing Comes of Age: The Rise of Collaborative

Partnering

This study explores one of the key issues raised by CEOs in the

PricewaterhouseCoopers Global CEO Survey, and reects insights on

outsourcing gathered from executives of both outsourcing customers

and providers representing 19 countries across several continents.

The study nds that while outsourcing remains a critical element of

the corporate strategic mix, success in todays complex outsourcing

marketplace is contingent on new dynamics, specically the customer

and service provider relationship.


14/17

IT Cost Reduction Playbook

The objective of this IT Cost Reduction Playbook is to provide you

with a practical, step-by-step guide for achieving rapid, radical and

sustainable IT cost improvements. The tried and true approaches and

techniques discussed in this Playbook are meant to provide a starting

point for delivering real and sustainable IT cost improvements today in

a meaningful way.

Data Loss Prevention: Keeping sensitive data out of the

wrong hands*

This paper offers insights into an effective solution to organisations

who are looking to provide transparency over data usage, controls

over sensitive data, and reduction in the likelihood and costs of data

breaches.

Establishing unied procedures for gathering and documenting data

reduces the need to ask the same questions of the same people. Data

Loss Prevention solutions play an integral part in determining where

data truly is and, thus, where companies need to position resources to

conform to their chosen approach.

Technology Forecast Summer 2008

Have you reached the point where you turn on your laptop rst thing

in the morning while silently thinking, I hope nothing else has blown

up overnight? Do you long for the days when the challenges you

faced, while signicant, were episodic and you were able to really

concentrate on dealing with them without a host of other distractions?

The PricewaterhouseCoopers Security Atlas Guidebook.

This guide is organised according to ve disciplines. The ve CISO

disciplines - assess, analyse, strategise, align and Communicate -

go to the heart of what it means to transform security and, through

security, aspects of business performance, compliance and risk

management. Each discipline initiates a chapter within the guide and

forms the basis for a set of actionable tips, suggestions and ideas

intended to help you develop a security strategy that is repeatable,

reportable and ultimately transforming.


15/17

PwC Performance Improvement

David McGeeDirector

+353 1 792 8785

[email protected]

Pat KelleherDirector

+353 1 792 7118

[email protected]

Garrett CroninPartner

+353 1 792 8807

[email protected]

Ciaran KellyPartner

+353 1 792 6408

[email protected]

Emma HanleySenior Manager

+353 1 792 8653

[email protected]

Ed FrenchSenior Manager

+353 1 792 8576

[email protected]

Deirdre FarrellySenior Manager

+353 1 792 6706

[email protected]

Darren DArcySenior Manager

+353 1 792 8532

[email protected]

Liam McKennaSenior Manager

+353 1 792 8897

[email protected]

Richard JacksonSenior Manager

+353 1 792 7461

[email protected]

Kieran MonganSenior Manager

+353 1 792 8632

[email protected]

Carol MurphySenior Manager

+353 1 792 8262

[email protected]

Corporate Finance

Aidan WalshPartner

+353 1 792 [email protected]

David TynanPartner+353 1 792 6582

[email protected]

Transaction Services

Paul TuitePartner


Denis OConnorPartner+353 1 792 6288

[email protected]

John CaseyPartner+353 1 792 6893

[email protected]

Brian Bergin

Partner+353 1 792 [email protected]

Recovery, Insolvency &

Forensic ServicesBilly ORiordan

Partner+353 1 792 8592

[email protected]

Business Strategy

Ann OConnellPartner


Dervla McCormackPartner+353 1 792 8520

[email protected]

Process Assurance

Mike SullivanPartner


Bob SemplePartner+353 1 792 6434

[email protected]

Robin MenziesPartner+353 1 792 8553

[email protected]

Richard Day

Partner+353 1 792 [email protected]

PwC Advisory Services


16/17


17/17

pwc.com/ie 2009 PricewaterhouseCoopers. All rights reserved. PricewaterhouseCoopers refers to the

network of member rms of PricewaterhouseCoopers International Limited, each of which is

a separate and independent legal entity. PricewaterhouseCoopers, One Spencer Dock, North

Name2008 WINNER

01371 final corporate performance improvement advisory april09

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