Key advice for ALBs
Moving to a shared service
The Government Shared Services Strategy (GSSS) sets out a vision where Arm’s-length Bodies (ALBs) deliver services more efficiently, using consistent processes and smarter technology. At the heart of this vision is NOVA: the UK government’s functional reference model for finance, HR, commercial, and grants management.
NOVA is not just a collection of process maps. It is a comprehensive blueprint, offering standardised processes, data definitions, performance metrics, and best practices to guide how government organisations design and run their back-office functions. With more than 750 detailed process flows, over 600 core data standards, and thousands of glossary terms, NOVA establishes a common benchmark for all organisations to follow.
Consider a common process like procure-to-pay. In many ALBs today, invoices might be emailed to managers, coded by hand, and entered separately into multiple systems. NOVA, however, defines a streamlined and automated alternative, with standard approval points and consistent data fields.
Without mapping the ‘as-is’ process first, the true scale of change, along with the associated risks, costs, and training needs, remains hidden.
That is why the first step towards NOVA-aligned shared services is a thorough understanding of your current landscape: knowing your ‘as-is’ state.
Knowing your ‘as-is’
This is more than just documenting workflows. It’s a deep understanding of how your organisation does things now: the people, the systems, the processes, the constraints. It should include:
- Process mapping end-to-end
Describe every step – who does what, in what order, with what approvals or hand-offs - Identifying pain points and inefficiencies
Look out for bottlenecks, manual workarounds, duplication, or compliance gaps - Compliance and policy alignment
Ensure that what you do now meets regulatory and policy requirements; and to see where there may be gaps - Technology and feeder systems
What systems feed into your core operations now? Are they fit for purpose and compatible with your future platform? - Organisational interfaces and ownership
Who owns which process? What are the roles, responsibilities, data flows, hand-offs, and which parts are unique to your ALB?
Defining your current landscape is not optional
You may be tempted to dive straight into planning your future state: NOVA, shared services, new ERP system. But skipping your current situation means you’ll be working blind, and that carries risks.
- Hidden complexity and change impact
If your existing processes are customised or manual, the difference between now and NOVA could be large. Without knowing these gaps ahead of time, the migration effort, cost, and risk all increase - Compressed timelines = higher risk
Doing the ‘as-is’ work during migration leaves you little margin for error. Things could get overlooked and compliance exposed - Wasted effort and cost
Without a clear base you can duplicate work or design solutions that don’t align, meaning rework and delays. - Poor stakeholder buy-in
Change is always harder if people don’t understand why it’s necessary. Having a map of the current state, including pain points, makes it easier to build the case for change, to show value, and to bring your people on the journey early.
Five key components of a good review
To be worthwhile the review should be structured, grounded in evidence, and feed directly into planning. At Civiteq we believe ‘good’ comprises:
- Detailed end-to-end process maps
Including all key steps, decision points, owners, input sources and outputs. For example, how an invoice enters your system, gets approved, processed, and finally paid. - System and technology landscape map
What are your feeder systems and third-party tools? Which ones will GSSS replace or subsume? Which ones must remain? How will they interface with new platforms? - Data flows, hand-offs and ownership
Understanding where data enters, how it moves, who owns it, where it’s stored, and where risks lie (duplication, incomplete data, delays) - Gap analysis vs NOVA and best practice
Once you have the ‘as-is’, compare it to NOVA standards and sector best practices. Identify what matches, what’s missing, what needs adaptation, and what’s unique to your ALB’s mission or structure - Identifying change impacts and readiness
What skills, training or behaviour changes will be needed? What teams or individuals will be affected? Where will internal resistance or dependencies lie?
Getting started with a review
You don’t have to map every single process across the organisation from day one. Strategic prioritisation helps.
- Start with functions that are high volume or high risk
E.g. procure-to-pay, hire-to-retire, invoice processing. These are likely to reveal gaps, and improvements here tend to deliver noticeable value - Capture the ‘feeder systems’
Any system, software, or tool that sits upstream or downstream of core functions. Even if GSSS replaces some systems, knowing the full ecosystem is important - Engage staff across job levels
Process owners, front-line users, administrative and support functions. They often know what doesn’t work but is hidden - Invest in tools and visualisation
Process mapping software, system architecture diagrams and even starting from simple workshops and interviews.
What to expect
Depending on size, complexity, and current maturity, in our experience an ‘as-is’ review can take between 8 weeks (for a single high-impact stream) up to 3-6 months for a broader, end-to-end review. Whilst it’s not fast, the time spent now is repaid many times over during migration and post-migration performance.
Setting up for successful migration
Having a robust ‘as-is’ doesn’t just help with planning. It accelerates your move to shared services by:
- Allowing informed decisions about what to change, what to keep, and what to retire
- Enabling smoother alignment with NOVA standards, because you already know where your non-standard or unique processes sit
- Helping you design training, roles and responsibilities, and access with clarity
- Reducing surprises during migration – fewer “we didn’t know this process existed” moments
Working with a partner
You can start this now. And you may have the resources in-house to do the work. However, we understand that doing this alone while maintaining business-as-usual can be challenging. By working with an experienced partner, you will get:
- Proven methodologies for process reviews and gap analyses to expedite delivery
- Benchmarking data – what others are doing in similar ALBs or government organisations – what works, what doesn’t
- Expertise in change management – help with stakeholder engagement, transition and training
- Technical knowledge – system architecture, integration, security, and ERP/feeder system compatibility
Conclusion
If you want your move to shared services under GSSS to succeed, with minimal disruption and sustainable improvement, you need a solid foundation; and defining your ‘as-is’ state is that essential first step.
By mapping current processes, understanding your systems, pinpointing where you are today vs where NOVA needs you to be, and engaging with those who live the processes daily, you set yourself up to make better decisions, reduce risk, control cost, and make the sustained journey of change more manageable.
At Civiteq, we help ALBs with their readiness for GSSS. We can undertake ‘as-is’ reviews, align your organisation with NOVA, anticipate change impact, and plan for a smoother journey to shared services.
Read how we’ve helped a Government department with their preparation for a shared service.
Get in touch or book a meeting with our Account Manager, Tom Roseveare, to discuss your preparations for a move to a shared service.