The COVID-19 pandemic changed the way we look at cash. CEO and CFO responses in the initial stages of the crisis were aimed at survival – freeing up cash and resources to keep the lights on. The pandemic revealed the vital importance of prudent cash and liquidity management. To sustain their businesses during the crisis, companies started looking for opportunities to revamp their technology infrastructures to optimize liquidity and strengthen their balance sheets. Companies that managed cash prudently before the pandemic remained resilient through it, while their less-prepared counterparts faced existential threats, as well as tightening liquidity. Many companies encountered significant working capital challenges during the pandemic, highlighting the need for rigorous process management through the entire cash conversion cycle. In this viewpoint, we focus on working capital and liquidity management and examine key working capital components, the technology vendor landscape, and working capital solutions in order-to-cash, along with digital priorities for working capital optimization. Scope All industries and geographies Contents Drawing insights from our extensive research, we focus in this viewpoint on working capital and liquidity management and address the following topics: Key working capital components The technology vendor landscape and working capital solutions in order-to-cash Digital priorities for working capital optimization Membership(s) Finance and AccountingSourcing and Vendor Management

The Finance and Accounting (F&A) industry remained resilient during the pandemic despite various disruptions and is, in fact, projected to grow significantly over the next few years. With increased openness among organizations to engage with third parties for new F&A initiatives and expanding scope, the market is expected to revert to pre-COVID-19 levels, especially as providers start acting as strategic partners in buyers’ transformation priorities. Buyer expectations are evolving, with rapid shifts in key focus areas and increasing investments in outsourcing judgment-intensive processes, ESG-related initiatives, and support services across Global Business Services (GBS) and shared services operations. Providers are reevaluating their talent strategies and governance/delivery models to cater to new demand themes. The need for robust talent management strategies, along with employee upskilling/reskilling and recruitment activities, is also rising. Alongside, the digital ecosystem is evolving significantly, with heightened digital demand in F&A outsourcing contracts that is likely to accelerate in the coming years. Partnerships and M&As in the space, digital assets orchestration, and Business Process as a Service (BPaaS) offerings are also on the rise. This research provides comprehensive coverage of the Finance and Accounting Outsourcing (FAO) market and analyzes it across aspects including regional variations, buyer adoption trends, growth drivers, and digital trends in F&A. The report will be relevant for stakeholders interested in creating future-ready finance functions for the next normal, including buyers/parent organizations, service providers, GBS organizations, and industry influencers such as investors and industry bodies. Scope All industries and geographies This research leverages our interactions with 28 leading FAO service providers and enterprise stakeholders across locations and industry verticals Contents In this research, we study: Key emerging F&A trends The evolving F&A digital ecosystem FAO market overview FAO buyer trends Service provider landscape in the FAO market Membership(s) Finance and Accounting Sourcing and Vendor Management

Finance and Accounting Outsourcing (FAO) – Service Provider Compendium 2022 provides accurate, comprehensive, and fact-based snapshots of 28 FAO service providers. It offers a detailed profile of each FAO service provider – with a comprehensive study of its services suite, scale of operations, recent developments and investments, technology solutions, and delivery locations – and specifies the provider’s position on the Everest Group PEAK Matrix®. The report also provides insights on the global FAO service provider landscape. Scope Industry: FAO Geographic scope: global Contents Each service provider profile provides the following details: FAO service suite and scale of operations: key leaders, services suite, FTEs, and recent developments and investments FAO client portfolio: major clients and recently announced contracts, as well as FAO revenue split by geography, industry, and buyer size Global FAO delivery locations: details of key delivery locations worldwide FAO technology solutions: brief descriptions of key technology solutions Detailed assessment of FAO capabilities: market success, delivery capability assessment, and remarks on the service provider’s strengths and limitations Membership(s) Finance and Accounting Sourcing and Vendor Management

Despite the pandemic, the global multi-process Finance and Accounting Outsourcing (FAO) market continued to grow at a steady rate of 5-7% in 2020. While transaction volumes and large-scale initiatives, especially in heavily impacted industries, shrank for about two quarters in 2020, huge demand for digitalization, cost takeout / cash unlock, and the need for Business Continuity Planning (BCP), agility, and resiliency drove growth in 2020, a trend which continues in 2021. Increased openness among organizations to engage with third-party Finance and Accounting (F&A) service providers, digital transformation efforts, an increasing number of first-time outsourcers (especially in the SMB and mid-market segment), and rising demand for next-generation technology and high-end F&A work from mature outsourcers is expected to continue to drive market growth in 2021. Some of the key means by which providers are differentiating themselves are end-to-end transformative solutions, combined with domain and industry expertise, a design-thinking approach, transformation frameworks, and next-generation innovative offerings leveraging automation and analytics. This research studies and assesses FAO service providers based on their vision and capabilities, and market impact, and categorizes them as Leaders, Major Contenders, Aspirants, and Star Performers based on their market performance. Scope Geography: global Services: FAO Contents In this research, we focus on: Everest Group’s Services PEAK Matrix® evaluation, a comprehensive assessment of 28 FAO service providers 2021 FAO PEAK Matrix and Star Performers Service provider capability assessment FAO service provider landscape Key strengths and limitations of each FAO service provider Membership(s) Finance and Accounting Sourcing and Vendor Management

Record-to-Report (R2R) is a complex F&A process area that not only provides critical insights into a company’s strategic, financial, and operational business performance to relevant stakeholders, but is also the custodian of all organizational data. As CFOs and finance teams work toward becoming strategic advisors to the business, many are short on time and resources when managing their R2R processes manually. They often struggle with disparate data, manual spreadsheets, localized processes, and multiple legacy systems that lack automated processes. Even for companies that have digitized their data, lack of proper information-sharing leads to poor process visibility and limits the ability to generate holistic insights. In today’s competitive business environment, amid market and economic volatility and a changing regulatory environment, complexities for the R2R function are growing. Hence, finance leaders are under increasing pressure from internal and external stakeholders to address these pain points through increased and efficient technology intervention. In this report, we discuss the R2R technology landscape and embedded next-generation technologies such as RPA, advanced analytics, and blockchain, as well as their role in future-proofing the R2R function. We also examine the major R2R technology categories – treasury management systems, financial controls & automation suites, Corporate Performance Management (CPM), and business intelligence & analytics. Scope: All industries and geographies Contents: Drawing insights from our extensive research, this study addresses the following topics: The current R2R landscape and challenges within R2R R2R technology framework, key categories, and embedded advanced technologies Emerging themes and key adoption criteria in R2R R2R BPO market trends and evolving talent considerations Membership(s)Finance and Accounting Sourcing and Vendor Management

As organizations transition to a post-pandemic world, they are leveraging superior customer experience as a differentiator and an engine for growth. Organizations are also recognizing that, along with the customer, the agent is a pivotal component of Customer Experience (CX). In fact, the two are inextricably linked – a good agent experience consistently leads to a good customer experience and vice versa. But in a world of finite resources and competing priorities, the agent experience is often ignored and existing efforts are not enough to improve agents’ overall satisfaction with their experience at work. With the augmented role of customer service agents at the center of a seamless CX model, organizations have started to recognize the tangible benefits of enhancing the agent journey. They have started working toward improving agent experience by addressing agents’ pain points, eliminating skill gaps, and providing them the tools they need to succeed in order to ensure consistent, engaging customer experiences that drive positive business and talent outcomes, long-term sustainable growth, and brand equity. In this viewpoint, we examine the connection between agent and customer experience, including its broader business impact. We recommend that organizations should work with an agent-centric mindset and thoughtfully deploy technology and restructure business processes to prioritize agents’ physical and mental well-being. Scope: All industries and geographies Contents: In this viewpoint, we answer the following questions: What is agent experience, and how does it impact customer experience and the broader business? What workplace challenges do agents face, and what are the key drivers of agent experience and engagement? What measures should companies take to improve agent experience? Membership(s) Customer Experience Management (CXM) Services, including Contact Center Outsourcing Sourcing and Vendor Management

This report is available only to Outsourcing Excellence members. For information on membership or purchase, please contact us Finance & Accounting (F&A) is one of the most important organizational functions that plays a key role in managing ongoing activities such as monetary transactions, ensuring tax and regulatory compliance, and supporting the business in future planning through working capital management, financial planning and analysis, risk management, and corporate development and strategy. This category strategy template is ready-to-use, with editable frameworks for internal assessment and detailed industry and market category overviews to assist category managers, procurement professionals, and CPOs in creating an informed category strategy for F&A.   A category strategy is a planning document that helps define what needs to be done to drive effective management of category spend. The creation of this plan requires close collaboration between procurement and business to define internal needs and category objectives and drive the development of a category action plan. Multiple tools and techniques, such as total cost modeling, make vs. buy assessment, buyer profile assessment, and supply market analysis, are used for this process. Best-in-class procurement organizations effectively leverage such tools and techniques to drive continuous improvements in their categories. The template can be customized by category managers with internal category information, such as spend, suppliers, and subcategory overview. The category manager can also use industry and market insights provided in this template to build a strong supply base understanding. The goal of a category strategy is to create an action plan for effective category management, and this template provides the requisite tools, frameworks, and information to create a robust strategy. Scope All industries and geographies Category in focus: F&A Contents In this category strategy, we provide templates based on a four-step process to assist the creation of a category strategy: Define internal needs: defining category maturity and objectives, creating a buyer profile to gauge current state of the supply base and predict future demand, and total cost modeling Understand the market: building an understanding of the industry and supply base by evaluating market elements such as market trends, key suppliers, major delivery locations, pricing trends, performance benchmarks, and category risks Determine sourcing strategy: deciding in-house versus outsourced model for the category and identifying best practices and value levers to drive category efficiency Create action plan: identifying and prioritizing projects and driving them toward execution

The threat of COVID-19 has caused unprecedented global disruption, requiring businesses to reassess their priorities. At such a time, CFOs are supporting their businesses in navigating an environment characterized by extreme uncertainty. At the same time, they recognize the need to develop a long-term strategy to enable their businesses to remain relevant and viable. These growing challenges also necessitate leverage of next-generation technology and greater level of support from service providers in delivering analytics and insights in the next normal. Since the ability to drive better insights depends on the quality of data, F&A service providers are also expanding capabilities into data management and data governance/security. Despite the short-term disruptions due to the pandemic, the Finance and Accounting Outsourcing (FAO) market is expected to grow at a steady rate, driven by increased openness among organizations to engage with third-party service providers. Scope expansion, an increasing number of first-time outsourcers, and rising demand for next-generation technologies and high-end F&A work from mature outsourcers are expected to further drive this growth. This report assesses the impact of COVID-19 on F&A and the role of digital in future-proofing finance, with a focus on data and analytics. It also provides an overview of the FAO market, buyer trends, and the service provider landscape in 2019. The report will be relevant for a broad set of stakeholders interested in creating future-ready finance functions for the next normal, including buyers / parent organizations, service providers, GBS organizations, and industry influencers (e.g., investors and industry bodies). Scope All industries and geographies This research leverages our interactions with 25 leading FAO service providers and enterprise stakeholders across locations and industry verticals Contents In this research, we study the following topics: COVID-19’s impact and the role of digital in future-proofing finance Data & Analytics (D&A) in F&A FAO market overview FAO buyer trends FAO service provider landscape Membership(s)Finance and Accounting Sourcing and Vendor Management

The COVID-19 crisis has led to a marked shift in how work is carried out. As the coronavirus pandemic spread globally in early 2020 and governments ordered nationwide shutdowns, companies swiftly began to move their employees to the Work From Home (WFH) model. Over the past few months, it has proved viable and even advantageous in many respects. In a post-COVID-19 scenario, we expect WFH to emerge as an imperative for many organizations. In fact, organizations are cognizant of the impending challenges for the long-term scaled adoption of WFH and are focusing on targeted measures to enable effective WFH, making fundamental changes to their working models. This report takes a deep dive into the key aspects related to WFH, concerns and best practices regarding remote working, and the implications of industry developments during COVID-19 on future delivery and locations strategies, such as key changes to delivery portfolios, shoring mix, and locations decisions. The report will be relevant for a broad set of stakeholders interested in integrating WFH in the services delivery model, including buyers / parent organizations, service providers, GBS organizations, and industry influencers (e.g., investors and industry bodies). Scope All industries and geographies This research leverages our survey and interactions with 200+ service provider executives and enterprise / Global Business Services (GBS) / shared services stakeholders across locations and industry verticals. Contents In this research, we study the following topics: Impact of COVID-19 on outsourcing and global services Growing significance and adoption of the WFH model Key concerns regarding ongoing and long-term WFH adoption Key action steps for operationalizing WFH with respect to work mix, technology infrastructure, real estate, talent models, performance management practices, and overall risk mitigation Impact on delivery and locations strategies Membership(s) Market Vista™ Sourcing and Vendor Management

With the COVID-19 pandemic hitting China in late 2019 and the rest of the world in early 2020, economies across the globe came to a standstill. Customer experience took a hit, as organizations responded to social distancing and lockdown measures implemented around the world. This report studies the impact of COVID-19 on the Customer Experience Management (CXM) market, initial reactions and measures put in place by buyers and service providers, and capability enhancement measures such as the Work-At-Home-Agent (WAHA) model and cloud-based contact centers. Further, we study adoption trends in the CXM market and the impact of COVID-19 on the market’s growth projections, as well as enterprises’ changing outlook toward CX outsourcing. Scope Industries: All Geography: Global Contents In this study, we present: An overview of COVID-19’s impact on the CXM industry Growing significance and adoption of the WAHA model Digital workforce enablement measures Key CX outsourcing trends following COVID-19 Growth projections and adoption trends in the CXM market Membership(s) Customer Experience Management (CXM) Services, including Contact Center Outsourcing Sourcing and Vendor Management