The headquarters of a pharmaceutical company faced serious financial challenges after a costly merger, prompting the need for cost-cutting measures.
In this case we explore the efforts of a global pharmaceutical company’s IT department to cut costs aggressively and regain financial stability following a merger. The IT team recognized the use of numerous costly software services with uncertainty about their necessity or suitability for the company’s needs. This led to the initiation of an analysis of the service portfolio to identify potential cost savings and optimize service management.
The primary goal was to identify opportunities for cost reduction through the optimization of service level agreements (SLAs) and the elimination of unnecessary services. The head of IT decided to conduct a comprehensive analysis of the service portfolio involving all IT team members due to the extensive number of services in use.
To facilitate the analysis and equip the IT team with the necessary skills, the company engaged Innova Solutions, a specialized consultancy firm. Innova Solutions designed a tailor-made workshop on Service Management, aimed at enabling each member of the IT team to assess the requirements of business users and evaluate each of the SLAs. The workshop aimed to foster a cost-conscious mindset and identify potential areas for savings.
The Service Management workshop proved to be a transformative experience for the IT team, as they had never previously considered this approach to cost control. By leveraging the knowledge gained from the workshop, the company successfully reduced the cost of services by 40% in both 2019 and 2020. This achievement demonstrated the effectiveness of the analysis in identifying areas for optimization, streamlining service usage, and ultimately contributing to the company’s financial recovery.
Through a strategic focus on service management and the implementation of an analysis-driven approach, the pharmaceutical company’s IT department successfully reduced costs and contributed to the company’s overall financial stability. This highlights the importance of regular service portfolio assessments and the value of fostering a cost-conscious culture within the IT team. By continuously evaluating service needs and optimizing SLAs, organizations can achieve significant cost savings while ensuring the efficient allocation of resources.
