Global Operating Model & Governance Redesign

Overview

A technology group with 2,400 employees across 15 offices in North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific engaged us following a series of acquisitions that had created a fragmented operating model. Regional leadership operated with significant autonomy, leading to inconsistent processes, duplicated functions, and conflicting priorities that hindered the group's ability to execute its global strategy. Senior leadership recognised that the existing model—effective during organic growth—had become an obstacle to realising synergies across the expanded portfolio.

Approach

We began with an operating model diagnostic assessing how work currently flowed across the organisation—where decisions were made, how information moved between regions, and where handoffs between functions created friction. This revealed that while regional autonomy had initially enabled rapid integration of acquired entities, it had evolved into a structural barrier preventing the group from operating as a unified enterprise.

Working with the executive team, we designed a new operating model based on a Global Business Unit structure with integrated shared services. Key strategic decisions—product roadmap, pricing, major investments—were centralised under corporate leadership, while commercial execution remained regionally accountable. We defined a clear accountability matrix distinguishing between global, regional, and local decision rights across 24 distinct business activities.

Implementation planning established a 12-month transition roadmap with clear milestones, change management support, and communication protocols. We redesigned the performance management system to align individual incentives with both regional and global objectives, preventing the siloed behaviour that had characterised the previous model.