Centralisation isn't ideal for all companies and yet, decentralised companies can be at a disadvantage compared to their centralised peers, in terms of cash management and margins. The answer, according to REL's Gerhard Urbasch, is to build a culture that values cash.

He writes: “It isn’t easy, but it can work – and has the advantage of going with the grain of the company’s culture instead of against it. Ultimately the company achieves the mature working capital processes it needs to compete in the global marketplace, without destroying the nimbleness that drove its earlier success.”

Urbasch goes through a six-point approach to developing such a culture and then discusses how companies can sustain the change: “Typically, this is done in three ways: through an upgrade of the transactional working capital, development of a working capital council and creation of a shared services centre (SSC) for finance.”

Read more in the full article here.

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CTMfile take: This article will be refreshing for corporate treasurers who are sick of hearing about the benefits of centralisation.