Global industrial company operating across 50+ countries.

Faced with the urgent need to deliver significant cost efficiencies across its support functions, our client’s HR organization had to act quickly. Fragmented core processes across 50+ countries had eroded internal customer satisfaction, while inconsistent employee experiences damaged HR’s global credibility. The critical challenge was to achieve sustainable savings while transforming HR into a fit-for-purpose and high-value partner to the business.

We partnered with the HR Leadership Team to develop a HR operating model that is tailored to their complex footprint. The HR function shifted from regionally siloed delivery to a matrix HR service model. Specialized Centers of Competence—covering Total Rewards, Learning, and HRIS—were established to drive global strategies consistently across all regions. Talent Acquisition was centralized under global leadership to accelerate execution of the enterprise-wide talent agenda. Dedicated HR Operations teams were created in each region, enabling HR Business Partners to focus on higher-value strategic work. Clear roles and responsibilities were defined, standardized process frameworks were introduced, and new ways of working were embedded to foster stronger collaboration and accountability across the organization.

The transformation significantly reduced the total cost of HR while equipping the function to scale seamlessly with the client’s growth ambitions. HR expertise was strengthened through specialized competencies, and clear roles with aligned processes ensured consistently high-quality employee experience across all locations. These changes elevated HR’s reputation from a transactional function to a strategic business partner, fully aligned with the enterprise agenda.