Powering HR transformation through managed services

Our objective was to design and implement an effective transformation management office (TMO), bringing together a team of experienced specialists to lead and support the organization’s HR transformation. By establishing tailored governance structures, facilitating vendor negotiations, driving integrated planning, and proactively managing risks and financials, we enabled this organization to achieve key transformation milestones efficiently and with confidence.

We supported this organization by providing expertise and capabilities focused on the following key areas:

• Vendor negotiation: Our team facilitated vendor negotiations by leading collaborative workshops to co-develop detailed statements of work with system integration partners. This approach ensured clear expectations and aligned deliverables, while also strengthening accountability across all parties. As a result, it improved collaboration, reduced procurement risks, and accelerated contract execution for the program.
• Governance: We designed governance processes tailored to their federated health care model, ensuring structured decision-making and consistent communication across the program and key stakeholders. As a part of our management of the centralized TMO, we also coordinated senior leadership meetings and drove timely, informed decisions. This governance structure fostered transparency, accelerated issue resolution, and strengthened alignment across all participating organizations.
• Integrated planning: Given the number of teams involved and the complexity of working across different health care organizations, it was critical for the various stakeholders to be aligned. As the TMO managed services team, we drove daily, weekly, and monthly meetings between the program’s complex network of stakeholders, Workday, and the system integrators to define and manage the detailed scope, critical path, and key milestones.
• Risk management: Our team was responsible for the day-to-day execution of the risk and issue management workstream. This involved developing, undertaking, and maintaining the process for identifying key risks and issues and monitoring their resolution. We operated as part of the TMO function to support the proactive assessment and management of challenges so that they could be effectively addressed. For example, the initial program plan didn’t embed critical decisions into the schedule or identify the impact of activity delays on different workstreams. We identified these major dependencies so that they could be proactively managed to limit potential delays. We also created a RAID management framework to standardize how risks, actions, issues, and decisions would be managed by the TMO and to provide guidance on escalation strategies for specific items based on their priority and impact. 
• Financial management and reporting: We led the financial management workstream as part of the TMO function. Our strategic focus was to align activities with the organization’s fiscal structure and financial discipline. As a part of this, we developed a comprehensive financial framework and budget for the program to align with the organization’s transformation objectives and conducted rigorous analyses of actual expenditures and variance trends to ensure accountability and track performance. We also constructed a forward-looking three-year financial plan to support long-term sustainability and inform strategic decision-making. On a regular basis, we facilitated reporting to the responsible government ministry so that they could maintain appropriate oversight and ensure alignment with the program. We also facilitated discussions with ministry stakeholders to manage program costs and shape funding strategies for high impact areas. These discussions helped reinforce the program’s value proposition and secure continued government investment.

The success of our work came down to several factors, including:  

• Our collaborative One Team approach: Given the number of stakeholders involved in the program from across different health care organizations, we focused on establishing trust from the onset. The different stakeholders came to view us as a part of their team—which helped reduce friction and drive success. Throughout our work, we acted as an extension of their team when undertaking activities and engaging with Workday and their other stakeholders. This approach established a strong foundation for moving the transformation forward.

• Our expertise in transformation program governance: Our extensive experience working with public sector organizations on complex, multi-organization, multi-vendor transformation programs and projects helped this organization build the right foundation for their HR transformation program. Right from the get-go, we identified governance gaps and worked with the organization to articulate a governance structure that would bring the right people to the table at the right time to keep the program on track. We also brought our extensive knowledge of the health care regulatory environment and regulations related to data and privacy to bear when establishing the transformation program’s governance and risk management processes. 

• Our deep knowledge of Workday: Our deep experience with implementing Workday meant that we understood what activities were critical to the success of the transformation. We were also able to use insights gained from our alliance with Workday to help this organization through the negotiations process and to assist them with establishing a more collegial relationship with Workday.

• Our focus on the client experience: Our client-centric approach to providing transformation management managed services allowed us to align our work to the unique needs of this organization, their network of health care providers, and the transformation program itself. This approach helped build the trust needed across stakeholders to drive the HR transformation forward. 

• Our dedication to program financial management: Our focus on program financial management—including establishing a robust financial framework and budget for the program and conducting ongoing analysis of actuals and variances—provided a strong foundation for this organization’s leaders to make informed, data-driven decisions throughout the program lifecycle. By developing a forward-looking three-year financial plan, we also provided stakeholders with a clear and actionable view of the program’s fiscal trajectory. This focus on financial stewardship was instrumental for sustaining momentum and long-term support for the transformation.