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Are Shared Services Prepared to Add Statutory Reporting, Direct and Indirect Tax into Scope?
Your Shared Services Center / Global Business Services
1.
What is your SSC's service delivery model? (choose one)
Providing in-country services only
Providing regional services
Providing global services
Other (please specify)
2.
Are you operating as a Shared Services Center (SSC) or a Global Business Services (GBS)?
Shared Services Center (SSC)
Global Business Services (GBS)
Other (please specify)
3.
Which region(s) does your SSC serve? (choose all that apply)
North America
Latin America
Europe
Middle East & Africa
Asia Pacific (APAC)
4.
How many countries does your SSC service? (choose one)
1 Country
2-3 Countries
4-5 Countries
>5 Countries
5.
How many entities does your SSC service? (choose one)
Up to 5 Entities
6-10 Entities
11-20 Entities
21-30 Entities
>30 Entities
6.
Where are your company headquarters based?
Afghanistan
Albania
Algeria
Andorra
Angola
Anguilla
Antigua and Barbuda
Argentina
Armenia
Aruba
Australia
Austria
Azerbaijan
The Bahamas
Bahrain
Bangladesh
Barbados
Belarus
Belgium
Belize
Benin
Bermuda
Bhutan
Bolivia
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Botswana
Brazil
Brunei
Bulgaria
Burkina Faso
Burundi
Cambodia
Cameroon
Canada
Cape Verde
Cayman Islands
Central African Republic
Chad
Chile
China
Colombia
Congo
Costa Rica
Cote d'Ivoire
Croatia
Cuba
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark
Djibouti
Dominica
Dominican Republic
Ecuador
Egypt
El Salvador
Eritrea
Estonia
Ethiopia
Falkland Islands
Finland
France
French Polynesia
Gabon
The Gambia
Georgia
Germany
Ghana
Gibraltar
Greece
Greenland
Grenada
Guadeloupe
Guam
Guatemala
Guernsey
Guinea
Guyana
Haiti
Honduras
Hong Kong
Hungary
Iceland
India
Indonesia
Iran
Iraq
Ireland
Israel
Italy
Jamaica
Japan
Jersey
Jordan
Kazakhstan
Kenya
North Korea
South Korea
Kosovo
Kuwait
Kyrgyzstan
Laos
Latvia
Lebanon
Lesotho
Liberia
Libya
Liechtenstein
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Macau
Macedonia
Madagascar
Malawi
Malaysia
Maldives
Mali
Malta
Martinique
Mauritius
Mexico
Moldova
Monaco
Mongolia
Montenegro
Montserrat
Morocco
Mozambique
Myanmar
Namibia
Nepal
Netherlands
Netherlands Antilles
New Caledonia
New Zealand
Nicaragua
Niger
Nigeria
Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
Northern Mariana
Norway
Oman
Pakistan
Palau
Palestine
Panama
Papua New Guinea
Paraguay
Peru
Philippines
Poland
Portugal
Puerto Rico
Qatar
Romania
Russia
Rwanda
Samoa
Saudi Arabia
Senegal
Serbia
Seychelles
Sierra Leone
Singapore
Slovakia
Slovenia
Somalia
Somaliland
South Africa
Spain
Sri Lanka
Sudan
Suriname
Swaziland
Sweden
Switzerland
Syria
Taiwan
Tanzania
Thailand
Togo
Tonga
Trinidad and Tobago
Tunisia
Turkey
Turkmenistan
Turks and Caicos Islands
Uganda
Ukraine
United Arab Emirates
United Kingdom
United States
Uruguay
Uzbekistan
Vatican City
Venezuela
Vietnam
Isle of Man
Yemen
Zambia
7.
How long has your SSC been established? (choose one)
In planning phase
0-3 years
4-6 years
7-10 years
11-20 years
>20 years
8.
What success metrics is your SSC measured on? (choose one / best fit)
Cost
Speed
Quality (minimizing errors)
Level of automation
Customer service / experience
Data analytics / insights
Other (please specify)
9.
What are the most significant areas of change in your SSC’s near-term future? (select all that apply)
Increased use of automation
Increased use of data analytics
Expansion of geographical coverage
Expansion of services scope/processes covered
Shift from transactional towards knowledge-based activity
Reduction of global footprints (centers) as ‘virtual’ Shared Services makes locations less relevant
Other (please specify)
Statutory Reporting and Tax Services Delivery
10.
Do you currently offer the following as a centralized service? (eg, from an SSO)
yes
no
planning to add within 2 years
planning to add within 3-5 years
Indirect tax compliance (VAT, sales tax)
yes
no
planning to add within 2 years
planning to add within 3-5 years
Direct tax compliance (eg tax computations)
yes
no
planning to add within 2 years
planning to add within 3-5 years
Statutory Reporting (eg preparation of accounts)
yes
no
planning to add within 2 years
planning to add within 3-5 years
Legal services
yes
no
planning to add within 2 years
planning to add within 3-5 years
11.
If you have not yet centralized INDIRECT tax compliance (VAT/sales tax), where is this work currently done?
Indirect tax compliance is already centralized
Incountry team
Outsourced to large global tax and accounting firm
Outsourced to local/regional tax and accounting firm
Other (please specify)
12.
If you have not yet centralized INDIRECT tax compliance (VAT/sales tax), what is holding you back? (choose 1-5 options)
Indirect tax compliance is already centralized
Concerns around attrition/retention of relevant and qualified talent in the SSC
Concerns around attrition/retention of relevant and qualified talent in incountry teams
Uncertainty relating to cost structure/savings
Perception of increased risk due to lack of in-depth knowledge of local requirements
Lack of transparency into process delivery/ status
Language skills not covered in SSC
Apprehension around a non-local center having awareness and applying timely updates
Low degree of confidence in SSC reliably meeting all regulatory deadlines
Other (please specify)
13.
If you have not yet centralized DIRECT tax compliance, where is this work currently done?
Direct tax compliance is already centralized
Incountry team
Outsourced to large global tax and accounting firm
Outsourced to local/regional tax and accounting firm
Other (please specify)
14.
If you have not yet centralized DIRECT tax compliance (eg tax computations), what is holding you back? (choose 1-5 options)
Direct tax compliance is already centralized
Concerns around attrition/retention of relevant and qualified talent in SSC
Concerns around attrition/retention of relevant and qualified talent in incountry teams
Uncertainty relating to cost structure/savings
Perception of increased risk due to lack of in-depth knowledge of local tax requirements
Lack of transparency into process delivery/ status
Language skills not covered in SSC
Apprehension around a non-local center having awareness and applying timely updates
Low degree of confidence in SSC reliably meeting all regulatory deadlines
Other (please specify)
15.
If you have not yet centralized STATUTORY REPORTING (eg preparation of accounts) where is this work currently done?
Statutory Reporting is already centralized
Incountry team
Outsourced to large global tax and accounting firm
Outsourced to local/regional tax and accounting firm
Other (please specify)
16.
If you have not yet centralized STATUTORY REPORTING (eg, preparation of accounts), what is holding you back? (choose 1-5 options)
Statutory reporting is already centralized
Concerns around attrition/retention of relevant and qualified talent in SSC
Concerns around attrition/retention of relevant and qualified talent in incountry teams
Uncertainty relating to cost structure/savings
Perception of increased risk due to lack of in-depth knowledge of local tax requirements
Lack of transparency into process delivery/ status
Language skills not covered in SSC
Apprehension around a non-local centre having awareness and applying timely updates
Low degree of confidence in SSC reliably meeting all regulatory deadlines
Other (please specify)
Tax Services
–
Strategy
17.
If you have centralized TAX (direct/indirect), what are the top 3 challenges facing the centralized team? (choose top 3 answers)
Increased scrutiny from tax authorities
Managing compliance across multiple jurisdictions
Need for increased efficiency / cost controls
Need for increased efficiency / internal processes or workflow
Managing tax data
Reducing Effective Tax Rate
Keeping up with new regulations and processes
Recruiting and keeping qualified staff
Security / data privacy issues
Implementing tax technology and transformation projects
Other (please specify)
18.
What stage is your organization at regarding centralizing the INDIRECT TAX process?
Already centralized (eg, via Shared Services)
Aiming to centralize in the next 12 months
Aiming to centralize in the next 2-3 years
Aiming to centralize in the next 4-5 years
No plans to centralize at present
19.
What stage is your organization at regarding centralizing the DIRECT TAX process?
Already centralized (eg, via Shared Services)
Aiming to centralize in the next 12 months
Aiming to centralize in the next 2-3 years
Aiming to centralize in the next 4-5 years
No plans to centralize at present
20.
How would you describe your current adoption of tax technology? (choose one)
Advanced (most processes are covered by tax technology)
Intermediate (some areas using tax solutions, but we still have manual processes and spreadsheets)
Basic (mainly reliant on manual processes and spreadsheets)
Outsourced (most of our tax compliance is outsourced)
21.
Do you see tax technology as strategic to the success of your tax department? (choose one)
Yes – and we have a tax strategy/roadmap
Yes – but we don’t have a tax strategy/roadmap
No – we can still be effective with manual processes and spreadsheets
N/A / Don’t know
22.
Which of the following tax technology solutions have you already implemented? (check all that apply)
Tax provision
Direct tax compliance
Indirect tax (e.g. VAT, Sales Tax, GST) compliance solutions
Digital Tax Reporting (e.g. SAF-T)
Country-by-country reporting
Transfer pricing documentation
Tax workflow management
Tax data management
Tax analytics
Other (please specify)
23.
When looking to invest in new tax technology which criteria are most important (select all that apply)
Integrated tax technology platform from one vendor
Certified by our chosen ERP provider
Meeting high data security standards and/or be approved by our Information Security & Technology group
Depth of coverage in the jurisdictions in which we operate
Other (please specify)
Impact of Covid-19
24.
Has Covid-19’s impact on your business reporting capability resulted in plans to accelerate centralization / automation?
yes, accelerate centralization
yes, accelerate automation
no
N/A
Statutory Reporting
yes, accelerate centralization
yes, accelerate automation
no
N/A
Indirect tax
yes, accelerate centralization
yes, accelerate automation
no
N/A
Direct tax
yes, accelerate centralization
yes, accelerate automation
no
N/A
25.
How has Covid-19's impact influenced plans to move towards a VIRTUAL versus as-is SSC model?
no plans to shift to a virtual SSC model (staying as is)
yes, planning to shift to a virtual SSC model
Clear
26.
Would you be interested in a demo of SSON's data analytics resource on comparative location data – including talent availability, number of shared services/BPOs, cost of center operations, salary comparisons, and benchmark metrics?
Yes
No
If yes, please list your work email address below
