Operating Model and Efficiency
End-to-end operating model redesign: front-office processes (sales, service, customer care), middle office (planning, supply chain, risk) and back office (finance, procurement, HR, IT) to reduce cost, error and cycle time.
The challenge
Disconnected processes between the commercial front and administrative support, manual handoffs and lack of traceability that keep leadership from making decisions with timely information.
Our approach
- End-to-end mapping of the operating model: front, middle and back office
- Redesign of key value chains (Lead to Cash, Order to Delivery, Plan to Produce, Source to Pay, Record to Report, Hire to Retire, Service to Resolution)
- Definition of roles, responsibilities, governance and organizational structure
- Technology enablement, automation and adoption plan
Deliverables
- Documented target operating model (front, middle and back office)
- Process redesign with controls, SLAs and interfaces between areas
- Efficiency case with quantified savings
- Transition and change-management plan
Clean Flow
Friction-free processes, from the first interaction to the last ledger entry.
Every manual handoff between the front and support functions is a recurring cost and a control risk: it is eliminated in the design, not in rework.
End-to-end X-ray
We map the complete value chains — commercial, service, supply chain and administrative support — measuring cycle time, rework, exceptions and cost per transaction.
- End-to-end mapping with system data
- Cost per transaction and FTE
- Map of handoffs, exceptions and rework
Target process design
We redesign each process — from customer contact to accounting close — with embedded controls, clear exception rules and non-duplicated responsibilities between front and back office.
- Target process with controls
- RACI matrix and segregation of duties
- Service agreements between areas
Automation and data
We define what gets automated, what gets standardized, and what requires clean master data so information flows from point of sale to reporting without manual reconciliations.
- Automation roadmap
- Master-data governance
- Target functional architecture
Transition and adoption
We support the migration with a change plan, training and stability measurement before releasing the process.
- Transition plan by wave
- Change-management program
- SLA and performance dashboard
FL·NS methodology path
Sequence of phases, with the analytical focus of each one and the decision point that closes it.
Fig. 1 · Phase flow
Cycle time by end-to-end process
The redesign is measured in cycle days and manual touches removed. The target for each value chain — front, middle and back office — is set against the NS reference base percentiles.
Fig. 3 · Client baseline vs. top sector quartile
Reference ranges behind the framework
Index values from the NS engagement base that we use to calibrate hypotheses and targets before measuring with the client's own data.
of revenue is the average IT budget across industries (≈8% banking, <2% manufacturing and construction)
NS Base · Operating Modeltypical split of the technology portfolio between running the business, growing it, and transforming it
NS Base · Operating ModelO2C, P2P, and R2R processes are compared against the 25th/50th/75th percentiles of the NS reference base
NS Base · Operating ModelFig. 4 · NS reference ranges
Deliverables map
Each deliverable is anchored to the phase where it is produced and validated with the client team.
Fig. 2 · Deliverables by phase
The figures use reference ranges and index values from the NS method, calibrated with our project base and market tracking. Each project's results are reported with the client's actual figures.
Co-led by both partners
José Manuel Noriega and Santiago Noriega
A two-hemisphere mandate: the economics of the decision and the organization's ability to deliver it.
See partner profilesAI as an accelerator in this practice
We use process mining and AI to see the real process — not the documented one — across Lead to Cash, Source to Pay and Hire to Retire.
- Process mining over ERP and HCM logs to surface rework, bottlenecks and hidden variants
- Automated classification of activities by value added and automation potential
- Design of automations and copilots for repetitive back and middle office tasks
- Cost to serve calculated per process with AI-assisted allocation models
We work with data governance, confidentiality controls and human validation on every deliverable: AI accelerates the analysis, it never replaces the decision.
Impact cases
manual errors and reconciliations
Redesign of Record to Report, Order to Cash and Procure to Pay, optimizing the accounting close to four days.
Catalog-sales retailer · Mexico
annual costs
Production cost optimization through S&OP process redesign, delivered to the Finance Department.
Hygiene products company · Peru
financial management model
Redesign of the Finance operating model to increase efficiency and strengthen control mechanisms.
Private hospital · Mexico
technology costs
Redesign of the group-wide IT operating model.
Freight transportation group · Mexico
structure cost
End-to-end operating model redesign post-spin-off: front, middle and back office processes, governance, roles and separation of shared services from the parent company.
Global managed IT infrastructure services provider (spin-off from a technology corporation) · Mexico and Latin America
Insights from this practice
Frameworks and criteria we use on projects, explained in detail.
A four-day accounting close: what has to change
A slow close isn't an accounting problem. It's the monthly bill for process decisions made years earlier.
6 min readOperating modelOrder to Cash: the working capital hidden in the process
Before negotiating a credit line, it's worth checking how many days of cash are trapped between the order and the collection.
5 min readOperating modelAutomating without cementing the mess
Automating a bad process makes it fast and permanent. The right order is to standardize, simplify, and only then automate.
5 min readLet's talk about your specific case
A first conversation is enough to size the opportunity.