REG - Sage Group PLC - Final Results <Origin Href="QuoteRef">SGE.L</Origin> - Part 4
22/11/2017 07:05
- Part 4: For the preceding part double click ID:nRSV1647Xc
planned growth ambitions
Market IntelligenceSage fails to understand and anticipate changes in the external environment, including customer needs, emerging market trends, competitor strategies and regulatory / legal requirements. Strategic alignment:Customers for Life Sage continues to develop its market intelligence capability in support of a consolidated understanding of market and customer needs, and aligning this with competitive positioning and product development activities. · A Market and Competitive Intelligence team is established, which has Group responsibility for Market Intelligence· Market intelligence surveys are undertaken,
Winning in the Market to identify market opportunities· Brand health surveys are undertaken to understand customer perception of the Sage brand and its products· An approved internal
communications plan is delivered, to share market intelligence and build brand awareness· Market data is provided through a Market Data portal, allowing ease of
access and improved analysis
In progress: · Regular, targeted internal market data communications, which build awareness of the Market Data portal· Ongoing refinement and improvement of
market data through feedback from the business
Competitive Positioning and Product DevelopmentSage is unable to clearly identify the approach to market, or deploy competitive advantage, including product development. The competitive environment in which Sage operates continues to see significant developments.Sage must continually translate market intelligence into effective strategies targeting attractive market segments with appropriate products and continually work to reinforce competitive superiority.During the transition to 'One Sage' products, we continue to manage the local product base and plan and evolve these in line with longer-term aspirations. · A Product Marketing team is in place oversee competitive positioning and product development· A Product Delivery team is in place to develop and deliver
Strategic alignment: products· Sage-wide templates are being used for Battlecards to ensure consistent information is provided· Battlecards are in place for key products in all
Winning in the Market countries, which set out the strengths and weaknesses of competitors and their products· Defined 'customer for life' roadmaps are in place, detailing how products
Capacity for Growth fit together, and any interdependencies· A BattleApp has been released which provides timely information to support the activities of sales channels·
Acquisitions of Fairsail (now Sage People) and Intacct to enhance Sage's product portfolio, and cloud offering
In progress: · Prioritised product development based on 'customer for life' roadmaps· Analysis of product investments is being enhanced to further consider
anticipated return on investment
Business Model Delivery Sage does not successfully deliver a global operating model that supports its growth ambitions. Strategic alignment: Sage continues to embed its global operating model which provides enhanced governance, process harmonisation, efficiencies and scalability. The effective interaction between all parts of the organisation is essential to allow Sage to grow at pace. · The OneSage operating model has been in place from October 2016· A Business Operations Forum is operating, providing governance over project activity in order
Capacity for Growth to support the effective operation and enhancement of the operating model · A formal gating process operates through which all projects must pass, and ensures a
clear purpose and success criteria are established for each · The Programme Management Office (PMO) provides oversight of and reports on project progress and
potential conflicts· Divestiture of Sage Payment Solutions in the US, and structure of an ongoing partnership agreement, consistent with our payments service
strategy
In progress:· Ongoing monitoring and management of projects through the Business Operations Forum, including measuring of success factors
Supporting Control EnvironmentSage's control environment, business processes and technology infrastructure does not support the efficient and effective operation of the business. Strategic alignment: Sage's footprint has developed often through acquisition. Ongoing alignment and rationalisation of these systems and processes, is required to support the 'One Sage' operating model. · Established Global and Regional Risk Committees drive accountability for risk, provide governance, and set the tone-from-the-top· Shared Service Centres are
One SageCapacity for Growth established in Newcastle, Atlanta and Johannesburg enabling the creation of consistent and consolidated systems and processes· Policy Approval Committee in place to
supervise and approve policies within the Sage-wide policy suite· Customer Business Centres (CBCs) are built around core systems to underpin operational consistency
and expansion, including Salesforce CRM and Sage's own X3 for General Ledger activity. As volumes scale, all new customers for CBC supported products are being set-up in
these systems · A Governance, Risk and Compliance technology solution is in place
In progress: · Migration of country General Ledgers onto X3 continues in line with plans· Continuation of the Excellence in Controls initiative to enhance the
supporting control environment across key business processes· Definition and deployment of control frameworks for Shared Service Centres and for Sales as output from
the Excellence in Controls initiative · Implementation of Sage People as a single application to store and manage colleague data
Information Management and Protection (including cyber)Sage fails to adequately understand, manage and protect information. Sage's footprint has developed through a series of acquisitions, each arriving with its own processes, technologies and activities appropriate to a smaller business.Harmonising and rationalising these, as necessary, is required to support the 'One Sage' operating model and to support a business view on all data being held and processed, including management and protection. · Accountability is established within both OneIT and Product Services for all internal and external data being processed by Sage. OneIT and Product Services report
Strategic alignment: to the Chief Information Officer and Chief Product Delivery Officer respectively· A network of Information Security Officers supports the business· Formal
One Sage certification schemes are maintained, across appropriate parts of the business, and include internal and external validation of compliance· Secure coding standards
are in place to design security into new products· A comprehensive information security policy suite is in place, defining the framework within which Sage operates·
Awareness training for Information Management and protection has been rolled-out across the organisation· A new Information Security Risk Management Methodology
has been designed, and deployed across defined critical assets· The Incident Management framework include the rating of incidents and requirements for escalation has
been embedded within all regions · Structured IT internal audit activity is undertaken by Sage Assurance against an agreed plan, and supplemented by ad-hoc activity.
Findings are reported to management and the Audit and Risk Committee
In progress: · Information Security is being aligned with the existing Governance structures (Global and Regional Risk Committees), to establish clear
accountability· Deployment of the Information Security Risk Management Methodology more widely across business critical assets· The Data Governance Committee
provides direction around data and Data Protection, and our response to GDPR
Regulatory and Legal FrameworkSage does not understand and operate within the applicable regulatory and legal framework. Sage's services operate within a complex regulatory and legal environment. Monitoring this evolving regulatory and legal environment enables timely and appropriate steps to ensure ongoing compliance. · All legal resources across Sage report directly to the General Counsel and Company Secretary· Legal services use internal and external resources to monitor
Strategic alignment: planned and realised changes in legislation· All product contracts are reviewed and approved through Legal Services· A suite of policies is in place which
One Sage supports key legislation, including Data Protection and anti-bribery· A Code of Conduct is in place across the business which provides clarity over how colleagues
are expected to behave. Completion of Code of Conduct training is mandatory for colleagues, and confirmation of understanding is recorded and monitored· Sage
Compliance function has been created to re-enforce the drive towards a 100% compliance culture· Whistleblowing and Incident Management Policies and procedures are in
place, which ensure appropriate treatment of identified events, and management visibility
In progress: · Data Governance Committee providing direction around upcoming General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR)
Sage BrandSage does not deliver clear and consistent branding to the market. Following several years of acquisition, work continues to develop and harmonise the Sage brand. Whilst it is well recognised and trusted by customers in many core markets, brand awareness remains inconsistent.A clear and consistent brand enables customers to understand Sage values. · A Brand team is in place which has overall responsibility for developing the Sage Brand· All countries must comply with Sage's Brand Governance and Brand
Strategic alignment: Guidelines, which are designed to execute the Sage Masterbrand Strategy. The timeframes for compliance of all products are defined, and any exceptions must be approved
One Sage through the Brand team· A Digital Asset Management (DAM) tool is in place which workflows requests and approvals, and acts as a single information repository·
The Brand Library is used as a repository for branded assets, and any exceptions from brand guidelines are reported to the Chief Marketing Officer· Ongoing reviews
of customer experience are performed (Net Promoter Scores), and output is reviewed across both countries and products to identify variance, and develop improvement plans·
Sage Summits were completed across eight cities during 2017 (Paris, Berlin, Johannesburg, Melbourne, London, Madrid, Atlanta and Toronto) · A Brand awareness
campaign is in place to improve Brand recognition· The Sage Foundation is operating across Sage, aligned with our values and behaviours
In progress: · A Compliance Programme is being rolled out, to assess and educate on compliance with Brand Governance and Brand Guidelines· Rebranding of
products
Partners and Alliances Sage fails to identify, build, enable and maintain appropriate partnerships and alliances. Strategic alignment: There are instances where leveraging partnerships and alliances can support the growth ambitions of Sage.The governance and control around engagement and use must be defined, as well as management of the ecosystem. · A Partner and Alliances team is established to oversee the selection and management of Sage's partners and alliances, including accountability for active
Revolutionise Business management of relationships· Definitions are in place to ensure clarity and consistency over partners and alliances, to enable appropriate and consistent management
of these arrangements· All contracts for partners and alliances require approval through legal services · Defined legal provisions are required for inclusion
in contracts. Any variance in provisions must be recorded as part of the formal contract approval process
In progress:· Deployment of revised Sage Partner Programme in line with plan
Third Party RelianceSage does not understand and manage its third party ecosystem. Several Sage customer service offerings are delivered or supported using third parties, whilst Sage remains accountable for quality of performance.The third party ecosystem must be understood and effectively managed, in order to limit Sage's exposure. · A Procurement function ensures key controls are applied in the selection and on-boarding of third parties· The Procurement function supports the business with
Strategic alignment: the selection of third parties and negotiation of contracts· Legal resources are used in contract negotiation· A Procurement Lifecycle Policy and Procedures are
Revolutionise Business defined, agreed and published. These contain clear roles and responsibilities for colleagues and align with existing processes, including investment approval
In progress: · All colleague training developed, to enhance colleague understanding and support process· Automation of procurement requests is being developed
in Service Now, to simplify colleague experience
There are instances where leveraging partnerships and alliances can support the growth ambitions of Sage.The governance and
control around engagement and use must be defined, as well as management of the ecosystem.
· A Partner and Alliances team is established to oversee the selection and management of Sage's partners and
alliances, including accountability for active management of relationships· Definitions are in place to ensure clarity
and consistency over partners and alliances, to enable appropriate and consistent management of these arrangements·
All contracts for partners and alliances require approval through legal services · Defined legal provisions are
required for inclusion in contracts. Any variance in provisions must be recorded as part of the formal contract approval
process
In progress:· Deployment of revised Sage Partner Programme in line with plan
Third Party RelianceSage does not understand and manage its third party ecosystem.
Strategic alignment:
Revolutionise Business
Several Sage customer service offerings are delivered or supported using third parties, whilst Sage remains accountable for
quality of performance.The third party ecosystem must be understood and effectively managed, in order to limit Sage's
exposure.
· A Procurement function ensures key controls are applied in the selection and on-boarding of third parties· The
Procurement function supports the business with the selection of third parties and negotiation of contracts· Legal
resources are used in contract negotiation· A Procurement Lifecycle Policy and Procedures are defined, agreed and
published. These contain clear roles and responsibilities for colleagues and align
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