CPG shared services are at an inflection point: Time to reimagine and reinvent

Two decades ago, shared services revolutionized how consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies managed back-office operations. The goal was clear: standardize and improve processes, drive efficiencies, and implement a “follow the sun” model to support global operations seamlessly.

Shared services centers or global business services (GBS) combine business functions like financial services, HR solutions and services, IT helpdesks, purchasing, marketing solutions into central hubs, often offshore. These hubs have traditionally been more cost-effective, consistent, and controllable. For years, this model has delivered measurable benefits in cost, compliance, and control. But today, CPG shared services are at a critical inflection point.

The expectations have evolved from simply running efficiently to enabling agility, continuous improvement for value, customer experience, and minimum human touchpoints. Shared services are no longer viewed as back-office utilities; they’re becoming frontline enablers of business value.

What the next era demands

Modern CPG businesses need shared services that can do more than process transactions. Today’s needs revolve around:

1. Learning and evolving from every interaction

Customer interactions, payment disputes, supplier queries each touchpoint is a chance to improve the system. Shared services must move from static SOPs and SLAs to dynamic, learning first ecosystems. For example, every new employee onboarding experience should be viewed for improvement opportunities.  

2. An automation-first mindset

Two decades ago, shared services went through process standardization. This is a great starting point. Every process should be looked at in terms of what to automate, what to semi-automate, and what to have a human in the loop.  Manual work is no longer the baseline. Intelligent automation using AI must be baked into the DNA of every process, not as an overlay, but as the operating model.

3. Efficiencies across service lines, not just within

Today, most shared services are organized into functional silos, such as finance, HR, IT, and Marketing. The next 10%–15% of efficiency gains will come from cross-functional orchestration, for example, between finance and supply chain. To achieve this, shared services need to break down these silos and establish horizontal visibility across all functions.

4. 24/7 real-time resolution

“Follow the sun” traditionally meant that someone was always awake somewhere, allowing companies to set up service centers globally for cost efficiency. Now, with AI agents, this concept can be achieved at a 10x level. AI provides a force that never sleeps, offering not just responses but resolutions powered by real-time data and intelligent workflows.

How WRITER will power the next evolution of global business services

WRITER agentic AI is positioned to help shared services step into their next phase. Business and IT working together to rethink workflows and bring the best generative AI and functional expertise.

WRITER agentic AI offers GBS not just speed, but also smarter and more flexible resource efficiencies. With WRITER, shared services can make three bold shifts:

1. From offshoring to nearshoring 

It’s no longer about the lowest-cost geography — it’s about expertise, agility, and cultural alignment. Teams and technology should be placed where they add the most value, not just where they cost the least. Take the accounts payable process as an example: the lion-share of invoices are legitimate and require no human intervention. Some may need human approval, and very few may require analysis before payment. When you hire experts to do the value-added work, the rest can be automated. 

2. From rate cards to resolution quality or first-touch successes

SLA compliance is now a given. The real differentiator lies in the quality of resolution, first touch success, and the ability to handle complexity with finesse. WRITER empowers these outcomes with intelligence and context. 

3. From manual processes to standardized, intelligent workflows

With WRITER, functional experts can reimagine and build workflows that incorporate embedded intelligence and transparency, adapting rapidly to business shifts and user feedback. A process in WRITER isn’t static — it facilitates market differences, exception handling, and a human in the loop.

How WRITER makes it real

• Functional experts + technology: WRITER enables business subject-matter experts (SMEs) to collaborate with tech teams to rebuild core workflows. This is a game-changer. Previously, SMEs were merely “approvers” of tech builds. Now, they’re part of the building process, bringing agility and reducing the need for large IT staff or vendor spend.
  
• Crawl, walk, run approach: Every big-bang transformation begins with small steps. Start transforming parts of your workflow, prove their value, and then scale rapidly across geographies and service lines. WRITER already provides prebuilt agents designed for CPG processes as a starting point. From there, companies can use the WRITER Agent Builder to develop custom agents tailored to their unique workflows and expand across business lines.
  
• Enterprise-grade security and transparency: WRITER offers the controls and auditability required by GBS with no compromise. WRITER is one of the few companies to successfully achieve certifications for security, privacy, and responsible AI under ISO/IEC 27001, 27701, and 42001.

Shared services models today have delivered results and savings, but they have reached a peak in maturity with flat or diminishing value.  The next generation of shared services will deliver resilience, continuous improvements, and customer value. Achieving this next chapter requires a different mindset, a new operating model, and an advanced platform.

Let’s stop viewing shared services as cost centers. Instead, let’s build them into value creators by prioritizing expertise over the lowest costs, quality over artificial SLAs, and agility over rigid processes.

Interested in learning more? Please reach out.