Target Operating Model
Strategy only becomes real when the organization is built to deliver it.
A Target Operating Model (TOM) is the blueprint for how an organization will create and deliver value in the future. It translates strategy into concrete choices about processes, people, governance, technology and performance, and makes those choices fit together.
What is a TOM
Seven layers that have to work as one.
Strategy & value proposition
What the function or business must be excellent at, for whom, and which outcomes define success.
Processes
The end-to-end processes that deliver that value, where they start and stop, and which are standardized, automated or differentiated.
Organization & governance
Structure, roles and decision rights. Who owns which outcome, who can approve what, and how issues escalate.
People & capabilities
The skills, capacity and behaviors the future model requires, and how the gap from today will be closed.
Technology & data
Platforms, integrations, data ownership and AI, chosen to serve the process design rather than define it.
Performance management
The KPIs, targets, reviews and incentives that show whether the model is working, and trigger action when it is not.
Location & sourcing
Where work is done and by whom: in-house, shared services, centers of excellence, outsourced partners or automation.
Why it matters
The moments when the operating model decides the outcome.
Most organizations revisit their operating model only when something forces the issue. These are the moments when getting it right matters most, and when leaving it implicit costs the most.
Enterprise transformation
A new strategy, growth ambition or business model needs an organization designed to execute it, not the one built for the last strategy.
ERP and EPM rollouts
New platforms lock in process and control design. Without an agreed TOM, the system ends up replicating today's workarounds.
Mergers, acquisitions and separations
Two operating models must become one, or one must be split, without losing control, talent or momentum.
AI adoption
AI changes who makes decisions, how work flows and which skills matter. Accountability and controls have to be designed in, not added later.
Cost and margin pressure
Sustainable cost reduction comes from redesigning how work is done, not from across-the-board cuts that quietly return.
The value
What a well-designed operating model typically delivers.
The size of the prize depends on the starting point. We do not quote generic benchmarks. We size the value for your organization during the diagnostic, and track it once the model is live.
Lower cost to serve
Less duplication, fewer manual handoffs and clearer sourcing choices. Savings are typically meaningful, and more durable than one-off cuts.
Faster, better decisions
Clear decision rights and trusted data shorten cycle times for planning, approvals and reporting, and reduce escalations.
Higher return on technology
When processes and ownership are agreed first, ERP, EPM and AI investments are adopted as intended, so the business case is far more likely to land.
Stronger control and compliance
Controls, segregation of duties and audit trails are designed into the model rather than retrofitted after an incident.
Clear accountability
Every outcome has an owner, every KPI has a review rhythm, and performance gaps are acted on rather than debated.
Capacity for growth
A model that scales with acquisitions, new markets and new products without proportional increases in headcount or complexity.
The risk of getting it wrong
When the operating model is left implicit, the problems surface later and cost more.
Technology that automates the old model
Platforms are configured around current workarounds, so the investment adds cost without changing how the business works.
Unclear ownership
Decisions stall, accountability blurs between functions, and issues escalate to the executive team by default.
Benefits that never arrive
The business case assumed a new way of working that no one designed, staffed or measured.
Control gaps
New processes, systems and AI tools create blind spots in controls and audit trails that only appear under scrutiny.
Change fatigue and attrition
Repeated reorganizations without a coherent end state erode trust and push key talent to leave.
Cost that creeps back
Savings achieved by cutting rather than redesigning tend to return within a few planning cycles.
How EkaC approaches it
From diagnosis to a model the organization can run.
Senior-led, evidence-based and built around the decisions leadership has to make. Every phase ends in decisions, owners and timeframes, not just a slide deck.
Typically for: CEOs, CFOs, COOs, CIOs and transformation leaders facing a step change in strategy, platforms or scale.
Diagnose
Assess the current model across all seven layers. Separate what is asserted from what is documented and what is observed, and size the value at stake.
Design
Define the target model with leadership: design principles, process ownership, decision rights, capabilities, technology and data, KPIs and sourcing choices.
Roadmap
Sequence the transition into realistic waves, aligned to platform programs, budgets and risk appetite, with a business case and owned benefits.
Mobilize
Stand up governance, a transition office and performance tracking, so the new model is adopted in practice and value is measured, not assumed.
Next step
Is your operating model ready for what comes next?
Start with an Executive Diagnostic. We'll give you a clear view of where your current model will hold, where it will break, and what to fix first.