Corporate services is a key to unseen potential. It can help deliver value creation, prevent value loss and mitigate real risks in the face of increasing competitive, regulatory and sustainability pressures.
But is corporate cervices fulfilling its potential?
A recent KPMG International survey of more than 250 senior executives around the world reveals four major strategic imperatives that are expected to unleash the untapped superpowers of corporate services – design corporate services to support value creation, harness the power of data, radically embrace Gen AI, and incentivize and enable change.
In this report, KPMG professionals share findings from the survey and insights from work with clients across industries that can help build digitally literate, people-centric and value-focused corporate services. In this report, KPMG professionals share findings from the survey and insights from our work with clients across industries to illuminate how enterprises can capitalize on this historic inflection point, creating more value and achieving enduring competitive advantages.
Key themes
Corporate services misses the mark
Despite ongoing performance improvement initiatives, corporate services have not yet unleashed its full potential.
KPMG research reveals 62% of survey respondents say corporate services are “just meeting” the expectations of business partners in terms of quality and efficiency. Only 34% describe corporate services as “effective.”
Re-focus on value creation
Shifting the focus from functional objectives to broader, enterprise goals – and measuring its contribution to value creation and risk management – can help raise the corporate services profile and build trust among leadership.
Almost two-thirds of survey respondents believe alignment between corporate services goals and those of the enterprise “only meets expectations.” Yet, the survey suggests that leaders are in favor of a collective approach to value – even if they haven’t worked out how to achieve this.
Harness the power of data
Corporate services are the natural custodians of data. Yet, the group function is not set up to share timely data, let alone use data to deliver actionable insights. At a time when strategic decision-making demands upon the fast flow and seamless access to data, this can hold companies back.
Only one in 10 survey respondents rating their organization’s digital maturity as “high.” KPMG professionals suggest corporate services streamline data products and resources (i.e., technology, people or processes) to support business and value streams.
Embrace Gen AI
Generative AI can profoundly reshape corporate services. But it will only reach its potential when paired with human expertise and ingenuity.
In the survey, over one-third of respondents say their organization should apply Gen AI rather than reorganize their functions. The move, they anticipate, will increase their value to the organization by seven to 10 percent.
Incentivize change
The survey shows that corporate services’ functional executives are more included to seek improvements within the current, siloed model rather than look for a more connected way forward.
To shift this thinking, corporate services’ leaders – and their teams – should be incentivized to break down inter-functional boundaries, collaborate with other functions and align their goals with those of the wider business.
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