| Ian: The project initially started in, let me think | | | | processes." |
| about this, Feb ‘07, and we had 12 months on | | | | And I think the other thing we've found, like, Dan |
| the project and then went live in July ‘08. | | | | probably had about 20 grievances against him, but |
| We looked at it from a few ways, so what we | | | | there was no consequential management within |
| wanted to do was get experience round the | | | | ITV, so they could give whatever abuse they |
| table; people who'd been through this before. We | | | | wanted, but they were never disciplined for it. So |
| had a solution partner, which was Deloitte: we had | | | | we started escalating things to HR, and saying |
| a build partner which was Capgemini, and then we | | | | "look, we're just not going to tolerate this sort of |
| utilized people within the business so ultimately | | | | behavior towards our staff, or we will start to |
| those people could go on and use that experience | | | | lose them." So they did start listening, and there |
| going forward, and keep that knowledge. | | | | have been a few individuals disciplined for their |
| Louise: We had a business plan in place in terms | | | | abusive and aggressive behavior towards us. |
| of the costs as well, in terms of what we | | | | Audience member: Where was your sponsorship |
| expected it to cost. | | | | coming from? |
| Ian: Yeah - which was blown out of the water, as | | | | Ian: it's a great point - because if you are kicking |
| these things usually are. So yeah, there was an | | | | off on a project like this you really do need the |
| awful lot of planning in there, but you know, | | | | sponsorship from the top. |
| because I was on the project as well, so looking | | | | Louise: The Group FD did sponsor it, didn't he? |
| back at that, did we plan enough? No, I don't think | | | | Ian: He did, yeah. Unfortunately the Group FD's |
| we did. I think in certain areas we got it | | | | now leaving… But… |
| completely wrong, so for example the fact that | | | | Louise: I think the other thing is, people don't |
| we didn't mandate training was the wrong thing to | | | | seem to listen, whether it's the Group FD or the |
| do. We've got basically anybody who joins ITV | | | | CEO. I think there's something like 40 per cent of |
| with the ability to buy, so anyone can raise a | | | | the business actually open the CEO's emails, so if |
| purchase order. Again I think that's completely | | | | they don't listen to him when he sends out an |
| wrong. So we're really struggling there. We're | | | | email, what chance has anybody got further |
| turning the corner, we're starting to get reports | | | | down the line? I don't know if it's just media or if |
| and things like that which help us break down | | | | the BBC find the same, but it is a very odd |
| these barriers, but it has been really difficult. | | | | industry. |
| Audience member: So you're planning as you go | | | | Audience member: Did you expect this kind of |
| along? | | | | resistance when you started the project? |
| Ian: Yeah, absolutely, when I said earlier, we've | | | | Ian: Not at all, not at all. I think as much as we |
| got five change managers at the moment who | | | | tried to mandate everything, everybody was |
| are continually looking at process and procedure. | | | | always looking for a workaround because they're |
| Audience member: Which functions of the | | | | used to their ways of working, they've always |
| organization are you providing services in? | | | | done it this way, and you know ITV's not really |
| Louise: We've got Finance and Payroll, so within | | | | very good at change. It's very red-tape controlled |
| Finance we've got an R2R function, so | | | | if you like, and people just didn't get it. |
| management accounting, back office treasury, | | | | Audience member: If I were to think about a |
| Group finance. We've got a payroll function, we've | | | | bunch of artists and filmmakers and freelancers |
| got an O2C; order to cash function in terms of | | | | and stuff; that's probably the worst nightmare |
| the accounts receivables, we've got an | | | | you can have… So I'm not completely surprised |
| Operational Systems Service Delivery, so | | | | by the reaction. And I was thinking, where would |
| systems side, the servicing side. Obviously the | | | | a sponsor, ahead of time, redress these things - |
| purchase-to-pay, so the Accounts Payable team. | | | | because otherwise you have to through these |
| That's it isn't it? | | | | things, it's funny but it's not so funny… |
| Ian: Yes, five departments. | | | | Louise: That's it. Certainly from Dan's experience, |
| Audience member: Did you deploy any kind of | | | | Dan is the business service centre director. He's |
| quick wins ? | | | | set up various shared service centers in the past, |
| Ian: It's quite funny initially because Dan - you'll | | | | he's been at Diageo, he set up the Marks & |
| know Dan, obviously - his initial reaction was | | | | Spencer service centre, and he said he's never |
| "let's pull up the drawbridge", so Fortress Foley | | | | experienced anything like ITV, and said that he |
| started, didn't it? And at the time we weren't that | | | | could never have envisaged it. |
| engaged with our customer at all, it was just | | | | I think I'd certainly have… The selling of it, I think |
| about trying to get through the processes, and | | | | obviously it was sold as a finance project rather |
| get the transactions correct, so that' s what we | | | | than as a complete cultural change project. I think |
| did for the first three months really. At that point | | | | you need to do the cultural change within the |
| we started to roll out, get engaged, get on the | | | | business. I'd certainly have mandatory training of |
| road, talk to different people, and then we're | | | | staff within the business; I wouldn't give them the |
| talking about the two-way buy-in so you get your | | | | choice. I'd ensure that they all had to have the |
| SLAs, your KPIs. In hindsight we'd have done that | | | | training. I I think I'd have restricted access: rather |
| first. But we were too late in the day. | | | | than having everybody have access to raise POs |
| Louise: I think we've been firefighting for so long, | | | | I think we'd have less users restricting POs. And I |
| haven't we, so we're just now getting out and | | | | think the other thing we've found is we've |
| about in the business, and we need to be getting | | | | basically replicated the past and put it into the |
| out and about in the business, being more visible. | | | | new system, and I think with hindsight we should |
| But we have, we've been firefighting for the | | | | have had a lot more data cleansing and getting it |
| last… | | | | right rather than just transferring it over. In terms |
| Audience member: Was it considered a risk to | | | | of go-live, I think possibly we could have delayed |
| actual scheduling? | | | | the go-live. Because certainly things like data |
| Ian: I think the biggest risk that we got was the | | | | migration, certainly in my area, have caused |
| pushback from our production business. So | | | | massive problems. |
| whatever we tried to do, they always had | | | | Ian: I think the other thing I would have done as |
| answers and were quite vocal about why it | | | | well is have more communication with the |
| wouldn't work. Certainly with certain elements, and | | | | business. Because I think communication through |
| on my side, the purchase-to-pay side, they wrote | | | | the start of project would have been good just |
| seven pages about why purchase-to -pay doesn't | | | | to get that buy-in, and I think that's where we |
| work. There wasn't one comment in there about | | | | lost out big-time. |
| how it could work for them, so that was where - | | | | Louise: I think certainly at the moment we've got |
| if you're looking at broadcast, certainly starting at | | | | the KPIs in place that we‘ve measured from |
| the production side they were really quite vocal | | | | Day 1.… We've discussed SLAs with the |
| about saying "we can't make programs working in | | | | customers in the business. What we've found with |
| this control environment." | | | | SLAs is that they're all there drafted but the |
| Louise: We had the experience where Dan went | | | | customers are reluctant to sign them - I think |
| out on site that day - where did he go that day | | | | because of the two-way thing, so we have |
| when they hadn't been paid? | | | | reverse KPIs in there, so for instance "we'll deliver |
| Ian: Yeah, so we were - what was the program? | | | | all your balance sheet reconciliations but you need |
| We were making a program just over the road | | | | to clear all your outstanding items." And they don't |
| from the main studios, and the basis was that we | | | | like the visibility. It's as if we're uncovering |
| had an awful lot of freelance population that were | | | | something. So we're finding we need to get out |
| being paid weekly, and for a number of different | | | | more into the business. We've been to, in the |
| reasons we hadn't paid any of them. So Dan had | | | | shared service centre we've not been out in the |
| to go over and face off against these guys and | | | | business enough promoting it and because we're |
| he walked into the set past a load of people and | | | | based in Manchester and we've got some |
| sat down in the middle of a room. And eventually | | | | customers in Leeds, some in Manchester, a lot in |
| these guys started to walk back in and they | | | | London, we've got them all over the country, so |
| were sort of walking in with baseball bats and | | | | we need to be more visible and now hand over |
| things, you know… So Dan being the man he | | | | the operation to the next level of managers, and |
| is, he managed to sweet-talk them round, you | | | | for us to go out and actually sell it, and really get |
| know, and we did manage to pay everyone, but | | | | to the bottom of some of the issues. |
| yeah, it's been interesting. | | | | Audience member: I'm just wondering if you can |
| Audience member: Were your customers ever | | | | put your finger on a particular point in time that |
| able to form a group to articulate what they | | | | you could put your finger on or one event that |
| thought they needed, or was it all negative? | | | | helped you turn the corner? |
| Louise: It was all negative, the majority of the | | | | Louise: I think when we went business-as-usual at |
| customers out there in the business were | | | | the end of March. Year-end was hell, you know, |
| negative, there was the odd FD or finance | | | | December, year-end, the audit, lots of long hours |
| controller that was good and did have a few | | | | worked, and I think the end of March we actually |
| positive words to say, but the majority were | | | | did see the light at the end of the tunnel, we'd |
| negative, it's like Ian said, a list of: "how and why | | | | turned the corner and declared business as usual |
| we can't do it" but no realistic solutions in terms | | | | at the end of March, and the volume of emails |
| of "if you did it like this it would really help us". | | | | reduced, the volume of calls reduced, the abuse |
| They didn't deal in facts; it was all noise. | | | | did reduce… |
| Audience member: So given those comments, did | | | | Ian: Thankfully, yeah… I think the other thing |
| you end up adapting any of your processes to | | | | from me about when it started to reduce was |
| the s of the business? | | | | probably the beginning of March for me, on the |
| Ian: It's not about adapting the processes; it's | | | | basis that the number of questions that were |
| about adapting and changing the mindset of the | | | | being escalated up to me were reducing, and also |
| business. So we know the controls we've got in | | | | when the questions did arrive, we'd done |
| place work, and so the focus has to be from the | | | | everything from our side correctly, and then it's |
| other side, so when you're planning a production | | | | usually the business that's done something |
| you know months in advance where you're going | | | | incorrectly as the result of a non-payment. |
| to be shooting, what your location is, and it's just | | | | This article was first published on the Shared |
| changing the mindset. So if they plan correctly | | | | Services & Outsourcing Network (SSON); |
| know - and that's what we're working with them | | | | read it here |
| on - if they plan it correctly they can build | | | | About The Shared Services & Outsourcing |
| everything through the systems and get | | | | Network (SSON) |
| everything done and achieve what they need. | | | | SSON is the largest and most established |
| Louise: I think that's one of the things: the staff | | | | community of shared services and outsourcing |
| had to be really bold and thick-skinned, because in | | | | professionals, with over 25,000 members. |
| terms of the abuse they got, they couldn't just | | | | SSON provides the roof under which key industry |
| roll over, they had to get them to comply with | | | | experts and organizations share their experience, |
| the processes, otherwise they'd never comply. | | | | knowledge and tools, and practitioner peers |
| Now we've got, what, 80% of the business | | | | connect with other all over the world, both face |
| raising POs? So I think if we'd have said "don't | | | | to face and online. |
| worry, carry on doing what you're doing, don't | | | | SSON focuses on developing its members through |
| raise POs," I think we'd never have got to where | | | | providing training, tools, and networking |
| we are. So we have had to be strict, and say, | | | | opportunities. SSON staff works from international |
| "look, if you want them paying, you have to raise | | | | offices in New York, London, Singapore, Sydney, |
| a PO." I think there is an element of standing your | | | | Berlin and Dubai to research current trends and |
| ground, saying "look, it may have been like that | | | | developments in shared services. |
| for 20 years, but we've got processes, we've got | | | | For more information visit the Shared Services |
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