Focusing on a function to further

performance
Case Description
The company
PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) traces its origins back to 1849 and offers auditing,
accounting, and assurance services. The firm provides services up and down the
organizational hierarchy from strategic consulting for financial valuation reporting to
tactical human resources performance assessments, to operational forensics. The firm
also provides professional services across a range of value areas such as business
intelligence, logistics benchmarking, and information security. PwC also has expertise
across sectors such as automotive, hospitality and leisure, entertainment and media,
technology, financial services, real estate, transportation and logistics, and retail.
Throughout its existence, PwC has focused significant attention on demonstrating their
thought leadership in multiple domains. PwC
produces numerous market trend analysis reports
for their clients and at times allows public access to the
same. For instance, in PwCs 17th Annual Global CEO
survey (2014) the firm incorporated a heavy focus on
human resource (HR) challenges. In that survey they
found that although 93% of CEOs reported that their firms
have serious talent management challenges in the
near future a surprising 61% indicated that they have
not taken strategic first steps to address those
challenges. The same report found that only 34% of
CEOs felt that their HR capabilities were wellprepared for those challenges. And the issue was
not reserved to one particular country or region (as
can be seen in the right).
One Clients challenge
One PwC client, a leading global financial services firm with approximately 20 million
customers and more than 10,000 employees worldwide, found that its human capital
management (HCM) system could not keep pace with the complex needs of its rapidly
growing global business. Compensation was a particular concern for the firm, whose
performance-based culture measures compensation based on an employees
contribution to its success. The existing proprietary HCM system was not designed to
measure these results on a global basis, nor could it support a multicurrency employee
compensation approach. The client firm knew that updating the existing
compensation tool would require costly and time consuming coding changesand
ultimately prove inadequate anyway. The firm had two choices: either build a new
solution from scratch or purchase a new HCM system that would meet its needs for
the next 10 years.
PwCs Advisory solution
When the financial services firm engaged PwC to help it plan and implement a
solution, a third option was presented that would enable them to maximize the
investment in existing core HCM system while quickly gaining state-of-the-art
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PwC case (continued)

functionality. Working closely with Oracles HCM professionals, PwC developed a
project plan to implement particular HCM modules using a coexistence approach.
Coexistence enabled the firm to add Fusion HCM Compensation and Talent
Management modules to its existing core HCM system using standardized application
integration interfaces. PwC helped design a roadmap, resolve project issues inherent
in an early adopter program, and redesign and improve the appropriate HR business
processes. Throughout the implementation, PwC worked with the firms managers to
facilitate training and deliver a seamless transfer of knowledge to business users. The
financial services firm was among the first to implement this particular HCM system
coexistence approach, and PwC provided documentation on business requirements,
configurations, business process gap analysis, as well as baseline test scripts and
scenarios. PwC co-designed (with the firms business transformation experts) the
major process change justifications. Initially, PwC, Oracle, and the client firm deployed
pilot Compensation Management and Talent Management modules to a targeted
employee population that included multiple business units and international
employees. Once lessons learned were identified and disseminated, the new
integrated HCM modules were implemented for the remainder of the firms employees
across the globe.
Impact on clients business
The client firm has recognized the following benefits:
Up to a 70 percent reduction in time spent on compensation review process.
The process now takes only three to six weeks, down from 10 weeks
previously.

Ability to more efficiently meet global compensation requirements and ability

to streamline performance ratings and compensation processes.

Empowered managers to make the right compensation decisions based on

key information from embedded dashboards and analytics.

Increased system integration, automation, and workflow to yield process

efficiencies and reduce manual processes.

83 percent of pilot participants agreed to advocate for the tool.

Entering fourth successful cycle of compensation since implementation.

Based on the success of the pilot program for compensation, the firm engaged PwC to
implement additional performance management and goal management modules.
Previously, the firm used a 42-point numeric rating scale for its performance reviews.
As the scale was so large, employees lacked visibility into what their rating meant
relative to their peers, and how their rating scores overtime affected their personal
career. PwC worked with the firm to streamline this process and incorporate a fivepoint scale with qualitative indicators to let them know if they were meeting
or exceeding expectations. The new goal management system allowed the
employees to digitally maintain and update their goals throughout the year,
cultivating a culture of proactive personal development and self-growth. The client
firm is planning to move all of its HR processes to the cloud by implementing the rest
of the Oracles HCM suite of applications.
While the success of efforts like the above were pleasing to PwC leadership, trends
toward more freelance, contract-based talent acquisition, more flexible work
arrangements, and increasing workforce diversity would present new challenges and
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PwC case (continued)

opportunities for clients in the future. What HCM systems could be designed and
implemented to help clients - and their talented professionals thrive and adapt - in the
future?
Sources:
1 Corporate Website, http://www.pwc.com
2 Johnson, Sheryl , PwC (January 2014) A global return for human resources
3 PwC 17th Annual Global CEO Survey (2014)
4 Bloomberg Business Snapshots, Company Overview of PricewaterhouseCoopers
LLP (accessed February 17, 2015)
[Case Questions immediately below]

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PwC case (continued)

Case Questions
1
2

Describe the value proposition for PwC, including the variety of services it
provides and its primary value discipline/strategic focus (two multi-part lists).
Describe six information problems (two at each level) that would help justify the
client firms expense of PwC HR-related professional services. (Reminder: include
explicit treatment of the challenge of addressing the information requirement /
answering the question sustainably).
Describe the HCM systems capabilities that addressed the client firms tactical
and operational information problems.
Currency issues, salary based, how much to pay them. Global footprint, what
system you purchase now has the capability to grow with you as a business.
These are the information problem, we will have additional problems in five
years, we need to project further.
Compensation according to performance
Operational how are they performing, introducing HCM solves that. How to
calculate their performance? What is the value. How to calculate the performance
for overall?
Tactical
Core legacy capabilities, coexistence approach? Would you take that
approach?
Bueisneess rule or policy. Not familiar in changing policy or workflow. Need to
have visualization, but need to know the employee routine. Better job needed at
tactical and strategically level. Human capital development.
What is going on at the work force directory? Why is this important?
Especially for a learning organization
Looking for promotion. Look at projects and contact information, to contact them
to bring projects together. Workforce directory, to allow to look at projects for an
employee to group them together. Repository to figure out the common things or
more detailed information of people in the community.

Describe the two additional features of an HCM system that could better position
the client firm to face the challenges and maximize on the opportunities
referenced at the end of the case?

*customer persepctive
CASE Discussed in class
Focus a lot
A lot in human resource management.
Think about the shifts in the workforce, more international, culture ethnic nationality.
What information problem is inherit in the trend. How do we know the resources?
What is the value proposition?
Come to your business, we want to help you on the three..

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PwC case (continued)

Value proposition (how do they sell themselves) make more money, cost benefit
analysis. Cost benefit will exceed, decrease in risk. Empower employees when
changing environment. PwC be as a thought leader and help you to become better.
Customer intimacyProduct leadershipOperational level to be a problem solver

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