BBC teams up with TCS for finance and payroll transformation
The BBC has once again turned to the consulting industry for support with transforming its internal operations. Tata Consultancy Services has been selected as a strategic partner, helping the national broadcaster to update its finance, accounting and payroll functions in a multi-year deal.
“We are pleased to be selected by the BBC as their partner to transform their finance and payroll function. TCS’ digital capabilities and domain expertise will help them achieve their business objectives while building greater agility and resilience in their operations,” said Amit Kapur, Country Head, UK and Ireland, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS). “This partnership will strengthen TCS' position as a leader in delivering transformative business services to the media and entertainment industry.”
In recent years, the BBC has worked with a range of professional services firms, as it looks to strengthen its service as the UK’s state broadcaster. Croner was previously tasked with consulting to help the BBC close its gender pay gap, while the institution tapped Bain & Company for a strategic review as it prepared for job cuts in 2022. Elsewhere, PwC was recently commissioned to examine the BBC’s broader social impact, finding that it contributes as much as 11% of the total creative employment in some areas of Britain.
The latest advisory firm to help the BBC, TCS is an IT services and consulting organisation that has been partnering with many of the world’s largest businesses – including Jaguar Land Rover and JetBlue – in their transformation journeys. Its multi-year partnership with the BBC will see TCS leverage its contextual knowledge, proprietary platforms, partner ecosystem and future-ready talent pool to power the broadcaster’s media business model reimagination and drive growth.
The partnership will entail managing individual processes across strategic as well as transactional finance operations, embedding digital technologies in them to improve efficiency, process velocity and process outcomes. TCS will also provide application management and change delivery services for the broadcaster’s application estate supporting the finance, procurement, and HR functions.
The move comes as the BBC continues to try and find efficiency savings, with the broadcaster’s future and funding both looking uncertain. In 2022, Director General Tim Davie announced 1,000 jobs will be slashed across the public-funded part of the corporation. In March 2023, this was followed by the announcement the corporation would cut back on 1,000 hours of new TV programming, in a further bid to save money. The broadcaster made about 12,500 "originated hours" in 2022.
