Firmwide / Corporate Functions / Corporate Functions

Corporate Functions

BCG Expand’s Corporate Functions benchmarking gives Finance, HR, Risk, and Compliance leaders a fact-based view of efficiency, spend allocation, and service effectiveness.

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The Challenge

  • ✔ Rising cost-to-serve across enabling functions, with spend outpacing business growth
  • ✔Limited transparency into true cost drivers within Finance, HR, Risk, and Compliance
  • ✔Fragmented ownership across regions and shared-service hubs leading to inefficiencies and duplicated activity

How we can help

Functional Cost Benchmarking

We perform detailed cost analysis by business line and subfunction to identify structural inefficiencies and measure cost intensity against peers.

Spend Allocation Analysis

Our benchmarking provides visibility into cost distribution across enabling functions, helping leaders prioritise cost-control actions and align budgets with business growth.

Client success stories

€250m+ corporate function cost opportunities identified after benchmarking Finance, Risk, HR, and Compliance cost-to-income ratios and technology spend against peer institutions
$45m+ cost opportunity in Risk, by streamlining NFR control frameworks, as well as improving workforce composition and seniority
0-25% reset of technology run and change cost targets enabled through peer benchmarking of cost allocation, spend mix, and performance across corporate functions

Case Studies

Leading European Bank

Enabled the executive team to quantify and prioritise cost and productivity opportunities across Finance, HR, Risk, and Compliance by benchmarking cost-to-income ratios and technology spend against peer institutions. The analysis established a fact-based cost baseline, supporting executive decisions on cost reduction and reinvestment priorities.

Global Investment Bank

Reset technology run and change cost targets across Risk and Finance by benchmarking cost allocation, spend mix, and performance against peer institutions. The peer comparison provided an objective basis for cost control and investment prioritisation without increasing overall spend.

The Challenge

  • ✔ Duplicated roles and fragmented accountability across regions
  • ✔Unbalanced resourcing models, including over-reliance on external contractors
  • ✔Lack of alignment between cost per head, function performance, and service quality

How we can help

Resourcing & Operating Model Strategy

We assess workforce composition, span of control, seniority mix, and location strategy across corporate function technology teams. Benchmarking employee, contractor, and outsourced models enables institutions to optimise cost, resilience, and delivery effectiveness while reducing over-reliance on external resources.

Organisational Alignment

We compare organisational models against peer norms to highlight duplication, rationalise management layers, and strengthen functional governance.

Delivery Model & Location Strategy

We benchmark delivery models across onshore, nearshore, and offshore locations to assess cost, productivity, and resilience. Peer comparison highlights opportunities to rebalance internal and external delivery, reduce dependency on contractors, and strengthen sustainable in-house capability.

Client success stories

100+ corporate function roles relocated after benchmarking highlighted cost-per-head and productivity gaps across onshore, nearshore, and offshore locations
£180m+ workforce cost efficiency opportunity identified by benchmarking employee, contractor, and outsourced delivery models against peers across corporate functions
$75m+ reduction in external dependency enabled by benchmarking seniority mix, contractor usage, and workforce composition versus peer institutions

Case Studies

Global Investment Bank

Streamlined middle-office structures by removing 1–5 management layers, achieving a 20% productivity uplift and clearer accountability across support functions.

Tier-1 Global Bank

Re-engineered support functions and optimised onshore/offshore resourcing, reducing external-workforce dependency by over 30% while strengthening control frameworks.

Large Regional Bank

Optimised corporate function resourcing by benchmarking location strategy, seniority mix, and contractor usage. The analysis supported a redesign of the operating model that reduced external dependency while improving cost per head and span of control.

The Challenge

  • ✔ Limited visibility into technology costs and application usage across enabling functions
  • ✔Fragmented systems reduce process automation and reporting efficiency

How we can help

Functional Technology Benchmarking

We assess IT and non-IT spend, application usage, and digital-enablement maturity to identify efficiency opportunities and prioritise automation investments.

Continuous Improvement Framework

Our tailored dashboards provide ongoing visibility into performance metrics and benchmarks, ensuring accountability and measurable outcomes.

Application Estate & Architecture

Effectiveness We benchmark application portfolios, platform age, architectural coherence, and vendor concentration against peers to identify complexity, duplication, and technology debt. Peer insights inform rationalisation and modernisation priorities that improve control, resilience, and delivery effectiveness.

Client success stories

20-30% application estate simplification targeted when peer benchmarking revealed above-average number of applications, ageing platforms, and excessive vendor reliance across technology supporting the corporate functions
£250m+ technology efficiency opportunity identified through benchmarking application estate complexity, duplication, and vendor concentration versus peers
$100m+ improved control and delivery effectiveness enabled by application rationalisation and vendor reliance reduction across corporate functions
25%+ reduction in application utilisation supported by benchmarking application age, change effectiveness, and platform duplication against peer institutions

Case Studies

Tier-1 Universal Bank

Improved delivery efficiency and operational resilience by benchmarking application estate complexity, vendor reliance, and change effectiveness across corporate functions. Peer comparison highlighted excessive application sprawl and ageing platforms, enabling targeted rationalisation and a shift toward more sustainable in-house delivery models.

Global Investment Bank

Assessed application estate effectiveness across Risk and Finance by benchmarking application count, platform age, vendor concentration, and change performance against peers. Insights informed application rationalisation and investment prioritisation decisions, improving control and delivery effectiveness without increasing overall spend.

Leading European Bank

Provided a fact-based assessment of corporate function technology health by benchmarking application duplication, architectural consistency, and vendor reliance versus peer institutions. The analysis informed modernisation decisions that improved transparency and reduced complexity across the technology estate.

Large Regional Bank

Diagnosed barriers to efficient technology delivery by benchmarking application lifecycle maturity and dependency on third-party platforms across corporate functions. Findings enabled targeted simplification initiatives that strengthened ownership, reduced operational friction, and improved overall technology effectiveness.

"Thank you for the fantastic work.”

CEO and Management Board, Leading European Bank

“The benchmarking provided a level of transparency we’d never had before. It’s enabled us to make smarter, faster decisions across Finance and HR.”

Head of Corporate Functions Global Bank

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