Scope
Advisory - Operating Model Design
Industry
Technology
introduction
7SS undertook a procurement operating model review over a rapid 7-week period to assess the current state. They then designed a future operating model for a £600m business and supported the implementation until steady state was achieved.
Business Challenge
The client was a provider of retail and wholesale local and national telecommunications services with an annual revenue of £600m and 4000 employees. The company’s strategy was to divest its national business, leaving only the wholesale and retail part of the business.
Our client was a provider of retail and wholesale local and national telecommunications services and mobiles services. Annual revenue of £600m and 4000 employees.
In 2021, the strategy of the business was to divest its national business leaving just the wholesale and retail part of the business.
7 Step Solutions was engaged to lead the procurement workstream of the divestment and with this design a future state procurement operating model, due to there being ad-hoc retrospective procurement activity within the business. This meant a focus on people, process and technology to support the future operating model.
Our solution
7SS took a structured, data-led approach to define the as-is state and identify improvement opportunities. Spend, contracts, and policies were analysed to establish a clear baseline, then validated through interviews with key buyers to understand real-world processes and capability. The findings were benchmarked against best practice to develop sourcing strategies by category, and a delivery roadmap was created to prioritise actions by ease and benefit — forming the foundation for implementation.
Current Functional “As Is” State Assessment
Confirmed functional transformation targets. Reviewed & assessed current organisation model to provide a view of the as-is versus good practice.
Agreed design principles to guide the design and evaluation of draft models.
Defined future “To-Be” Functional Target Operating Model
Identified options for Target Operating Model & pros and cons of each.
Agreed target structure & design options along with risks and challenges with each model.
Impact Assessment
Undertook impact assessment to understand the impact of recommendations on current organisation in terms of roles, responsibilities, staffing numbers, skills needed and location, engage HR and validate people impact. The team assessed no. and cost of new roles, no. of likely exits.
Design Transition Roadmap
- Established sequence and timing of transition – agreed transitional phases/structures as appropriate. In addition, the team provided detailed, tangible steps the team should follow in order to transition the organisation between current and future model
Outcomes
This comprehensive transformation was executed in three disciplined phases, beginning with a swift 4-week Maturity Assessment to diagnose the client’s existing model and commercial structures. We then moved through a focused 3-week Design Phase to finalise the Target Operating Model. Our team concluded by leading the initial 12-week Implementation, delivering the impact assessment and roadmap for the new, commercially focused structure.
Phase 1: Maturity Assessment
(4 weeks)
Understand, review & assess current organisation model to provide a clear picture of how the organisation currently operates – what works well and what could be improved.
Understand processes & governance, headcount & cost structures, locations/geography, key suppliers.
Phase 2: Design
(3 weeks)
Agree transformation targets and guiding principles.
Identify key options for Target Operating Model & implications of each.
Agree target structure & design.
Phase 3
(12 Weeks)
Undertake impact assessment and design roadmap
Led the initial implementation