The challenge
While assessing how best to optimize its shared services operation, including accounting, HR, IT, and engineering functions, Caterpillar Inc. identified a need to expand and re-engineer its global footprint. The organization sought help in assessing a set of countries and identifying potential candidate locations for a new shared services center in the Central/Eastern European and Commonwealth of Independent States region.

Our solution
Caterpillar and Cushman & Wakefield’s Business Consulting team identified 28 locations within 10 countries for investigation. Each location was evaluated on economic, non-economic and risk considerations to determine which locations had merit for further analysis. The decision framework was guided utilizing a scoring and management preferences methodology to determine which locations best met Caterpillar’s strategic objectives.

The results
Locations of interest in Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and Russia were identified for further investigation. Detailed due diligence and field investigations will be performed for the finalist candidate locations.