OPERATIONS

Operations (Ops) is what POWER calls its support or “back-office” functions. It’s a team of teams with a shared responsibility: To keep the firm safe and enable earnings growth.

For 2021, Ops anticipated a year of transition as teams worked hard on key initiatives for POWER’s future. What the division did not expect was how big a role COVID would still play.

flexible work styles For example,

Ops assumed travel and training costs would return to pre-COVID levels by July. But high infection rates pushed our plan, and many of our clients’ plans, to start re-opening offices into summer. Then the delta variant hit. The result: about 80% of POWER continued to work from home (WFH) for the remainder of the year Our WFH experience proved we could transition to a more flexible workforce though. So, Ops drove the adoption of 4 new “work styles” that ranged from full office to full WFH and two options in between. Fewer team members in our offices reduces POWER’s real-estate footprint, but it also requires a reimagining of our workspaces. With help from a third-party consultant, this design process was kicked off with an employee survey to help identify what we value most in the workplace.

POWER everywhere POWER

Everywhere is the ability to work outside of an office without sacrificing functionality. To achieve this vision, we realized that a new IT infrastructure was required. So, an architecture for Regional Data Centers (RDC) was designed to optimize data transfer rates. In 2021, Ops IT built an RDC lab, loaded it with critical business applications, and successfully tested it. And while the MC approved moving forward, COVID-related supply chain issues pushed equipment deliveries out. When it fully comes online in 2023, RDC will be POWER’s second largest investment ever. dynamics ERP Another transition in progress is POWER’s move to Dynamics ERP. The combined implementation team includes both Ops and production experts, and at times approaches 100 people. For 2021, POWER went live with the HR module for Open Enrollment. However, the bulk of the year’s work was still behind the scenes as full functionality will not be delivered until later in 2022. This key initiative helps POWER streamline business processes, gain better business insights, and supports our purpose to Build Success.

CEO transition An unplanned CEO departure midyear led to the Board appointing POWER’s CAO to fill the vacancy. Everyone in Ops stepped up to the challenge of continuing to execute their business plans and make critical decisions without a full-time CAO. It was the division’s finest hour in many ways. Cost avoidance associated with another year of WFH contributed to the division beating its plan for its three key measures of performance. Its overarching goal—to scale more slowly than the firm, while providing the same or greater level of service—was achieved. Even though COVID continued to be a threat, Ops steadfastly stayed true to its mission to protect POWER and support ongoing investment in our future.