Moving to shared services is a priority for many governments these days. Sharing services can be a powerful aid in satisfying two big mandates common in the public sector today: lowering costs and improving efficiency. By sharing services across numerous agencies, organizations can achieve economies of scale that weren't possible before.

It works when it's done well. But that's not an easy task. There are numerous obstacles to deal with, and setting up shared services can be a complex process. What are the obstacles? How can they be overcome? The answers range from the simple to the complex, depending on what services are being shared and by whom.

The obstacles come in many forms. They can be political, cultural, financial, business-related, operational, transitional - just to name a few. What's the most common obstacle to setting up shared services? Human beings, particularly their resistance to change.

Even if it's not the most efficient way, people often are attached to the processes they've been using. That can be a problem. "It becomes much more of an emotional dialog, rather than a business dialog," said Doug Robinson, executive director of the National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO).

Robinson has a unique perspective. He has run shared services units in the past, and in his current role at NASCIO, he still studies the process and interacts with state CIOs who are implementing shared services.

Follow the Leader

Much of the resistance is a fear of losing control. In general, organizations are more comfortable relying on agencies within their own organization to deliver services. The thought of getting services elsewhere can be unappealing.

The best way to push through the resistance is to have a strong leader making a solid business case. "You have to have an evangelist. You definitely have to have strong leadership," said Robinson.

That goes for everything from getting funding - another major obstacle - to seeing the process through to the end. Sometimes a grand vision is communicated, but then the effort gets bogged down in the issues that inevitably come up.

The leader has to get everyone on board. "You've got to convince them and make a strong business case that it makes sense for them to abandon their individual efforts and join a shared services environment," Robinson said.

If it doesn't make sense, people won't buy into it, and it won't happen. So agencies need to choose wisely when deciding what services to share. Whether e-mail, IT infrastructure or HR processes, for example, it must be well suited to economies of scale. It should bring value to customers and make financial sense for all involved.

During the planning process, it helps to include those people who are doing the work today. Often, they are reassigned to new jobs or have new duties after the transition. It makes sense to have them involved in the planning process. Many agencies have found that employees benefit from the change; it frees them up from repetitive tasks, and lets them focus on other valuable work.

Setting up shared services takes good planning, clear objectives and a realistic timeline. Without those, it can get messy and expensive to make the transition to shared services. Some have run into problems by not budgeting enough for IT, for example.

Agreements Are Crucial

It also helps to get everyone on the same page. "We run into varying definitions of how states describe shared services and how they implement it," said Robinson. "That's problematic in itself, because it causes issues related to the governance model, the financial model and the sustainability."

Obstacles also can arise once the shared services are in place. The customer and provider can disagree on