Global Business Services (GBS) has evolved dramatically from its early role as transactional back-office units to becoming strategic enablers of enterprise transformation. The most successful GBS organisations today sit at the intersection of technology, process excellence, and business strategy—helping businesses achieve agility, scalability, and insight at speed.
The evolution of GBS: From efficiency to innovation
Over the past decade, GBS has shifted from a cost-efficiency model to one centred on innovation and value creation. According to the 2024 Deloitte GBS Survey, more than 58% of global GBS organisations now prioritise digital enablement and analytics over cost reduction.
India is at the heart of this transformation, with industry reports indicating that the country currently hosts over 1,500 Global Capability Centers (GCCs) and is poised to cross the 2,000 mark soon. This growth reflects the rapid convergence of cloud, analytics, robotic process automation (RPA), and artificial intelligence (AI) that is reshaping modern business services.
Technology has moved beyond being a passive enabler—it is now a co-architect of GBS success. GBS is no longer limited to transactional efficiency; it has become a key engine of agility and enterprise intelligence.
Technology as the catalyst for collaboration
Technology has dissolved traditional organisational boundaries. Cloud-based platforms, digital workflows, and integrated data ecosystems now enable seamless collaboration across finance, HR, supply chain, and customer operations.
A powerful example comes from a leading global technology company, which deployed a predictive intelligence solution across its global customer support centres in 34 countries, encompassing over 11,000 agents. Using machine learning and natural language processing, the company’s GBS and IT teams co-created a system that identifies potential delays and bottlenecks before they occur—enhancing agent productivity and improving resolution speed.
Similarly, a multinational industrial and automation services provider’s GBS centre in China implemented RPA across finance, HR, and order management functions. The initiative automated high-volume, repetitive tasks, freeing employees to focus on value-adding work and ensuring accuracy and consistency at scale.
These examples illustrate a crucial point: technology alone doesn’t create impact—collaboration does. When GBS and technology teams co-own objectives, align digital roadmaps, and measure outcomes jointly, the results are transformative.
Building the new GBS–tech partnership
The GBS–Tech partnership thrives on three key pillars: shared ownership, skills convergence, and cultural alignment.
Shared ownership – Transformation must be co-owned by both technology and GBS leadership. When IT acts as a strategic partner rather than a service provider, solutions are scalable, relevant, and sustainable. For instance, a global professional services and transformation firm partnered with a client organisation to implement an AI-first GBS transformation—helping unify workflows and improve employee experiences, achieving up to 40% cost reduction in new function deployment (Source: Case study).
Skills convergence – GBS has outgrown its old job description, with digital literacy and data fluency becoming universal GBS skills. SSON’s 2024 report found that while 26% of GBS organisations have established AI Centres of Excellence, 40% still lack a dedicated AI capability—revealing a significant opportunity. The trend is clear: technology professionals must gain business acumen, and GBS professionals must deepen their understanding of digital tools such as automation, analytics, and AI.
Cultural alignment – The most successful GBS–Tech partnerships embrace a culture that values experimentation, rapid learning, and agility. A global retail business services centre attributes its success to a culture of innovation that encourages co-creation across global and technology teams. This approach breaks silos and fuels faster digital adoption.
The future of GBS: Human + digital synergy
The future of GBS lies in human–digital collaboration. As AI and data science capabilities advance, GBS will evolve into a strategic intelligence hub—powering real-time enterprise decision-making through predictive analytics, digital twins, and AI-assisted forecasting.
However, technology will never replace the human essence of business. Judgement, empathy, and relationship-building remain indispensable. As organisations automate more, the key to sustained success will be keeping people at the centre—ensuring that technology amplifies human capability rather than diminishes it.
In my own experience driving automation and AI adoption within a global GBS setup at 7-Eleven Global Solution Center (7-Eleven GSC), we’re seeing the early promise of generative AI to accelerate knowledge synthesis, automate reporting, and support decision-making. The focus is no longer on replacing human effort but on amplifying intelligence and creativity through technology.
Conclusion: Reimagining the enterprise engine
The intersection of technology and GBS is redefining how enterprises operate, compete, and create value. Together, they form an evidence-based, innovation-led model where insights drive execution and agility drives impact.
Organisations that capitalise on this partnership will move beyond process optimisation—they will redefine how value is created. In this new era, collaboration is not just about integration; it’s about alignment. Enterprises that harmonise digital intelligence with human insight will own the future, with GBS continuing to lead as the driving force behind enterprise transformation.