1. The Cost Crunch That Sparked Transformation

The UK property sector has been under pressure. Inflation soared to over 11% in 2022—the highest in 40 years. Service costs rose. Energy bills doubled. Suppliers passed on their increases. Margins across commercial property shrank fast.

At one of the UK’s largest commercial property firms, felt the squeeze. Managing a multi-billion-pound portfolio while balancing investor expectations, tenant satisfaction, and cost control became harder every quarter.

Faced with spiraling service charge costs and growing operational waste, they set a bold target: cut £20 million in five years—without cutting service quality.

This wasn’t about trimming a little fat. It meant rethinking how the business worked from the inside out.

That’s where I came in. What followed was a full-scale business improvement programme. We reviewed, reworked, and rebuilt the core processes behind everything from insurance claims to service charge billing.

The result?
£20 million saved. A new operating model. Faster processes. Fewer errors. Better control.

Let me show you how we did it.

2. The Brief: A £20M Mandate and No Time to Waste

They didn’t want cuts. It wanted smart savings.

The brief was clear:
Reduce £20 million in service charge costs over five years.
No shortcuts. No dipping in service standards. No hollow wins.

This wasn’t about layoffs or budget freezes. It was about changing how the business worked—permanently. The mission was to find waste, fix broken processes, and redesign how services were delivered across the entire portfolio.

To do this, they launched an internal transformation programme called Enterprise.

The goal?

• Cut waste.
• Simplify operations.
• Embed continuous improvement.

Enterprise wasn’t just a buzzword project. It had teeth.
The executive team backed it fully, and the expectation was real delivery—measurable savings, lasting change, and a more efficient business.

That meant bringing in new thinking, Lean Six Sigma tools, and a sharp focus on process.

There was no room for delay. Inflation was rising, tenants were watching, and costs needed controlling—fast.

So, we got to work.

3. Lifting the Hood: Where the Problems Hid

Before fixing anything, we had to understand what was broken.

We started with a diagnostic deep dive across their service operations. This included:

• Process mapping: Every step, every task, every handoff—mapped using BPMN.
• Value stream analysis: Focused on identifying where time, money, and effort were being wasted.
• Voice of the customer: We spoke with centre managers, finance teams, third-party providers, and tenants to understand their pain points and frustrations.

What we found was eye-opening:

1. Bloated Insurance Claim Write-Offs

The claims process was fragmented and manual. Claims sat idle, missed deadlines, or lacked documentation—leading to automatic write-offs. We found over £300,000 in potential recoveries lost each year due to these failures.

2. Invisible Revenue Leaks in Residential Charges

The Section 20 process—used to recover costs from leaseholders—didn’t even exist formally. As a result, we were missing income through poor invoicing, incorrect data, and missed billing opportunities, leading to £750,000 in annual losses.

3. Bottlenecks in Service Charge Workflows

Deadlines were unclear. Teams worked in silos. Communication gaps between site managers and finance delayed reconciliations. This created payment delays, errors, and budget overruns.

4. Training Gaps Across Third-Party Vendors

Vendors handled large parts of their operations, but training was inconsistent. Some teams followed Lean practices; others didn’t. This led to rework, duplication, and varied service quality across sites.

These weren’t surface-level issues. They were deep, systemic gaps in how the business operated.

Fixing them required more than tweaks—it called for full process reform.

4. Fixing the Foundation: Redesigning Core Processes

Once we exposed the issues, we didn’t patch them—we rebuilt the engine.

Insurance Claims: Plugging a £300K Hole

The old system wrote off claims by default if they weren’t processed on time or lacked info.
We mapped the full process in BPMN, identified the choke points, and introduced new controls:

• Clear routing and ownership at each stage
• Automatic alerts before claim expiry
• Standard templates for documentation

This stopped the silent losses. £300,000 was recovered—and we locked in the fix to prevent future leaks.

Residential Section 20: Recovering £750K from Thin Air

This process didn’t exist. Leaseholder charges were handled inconsistently—or not at all.

We created a new end-to-end workflow from scratch. Using Lean Six Sigma, we built out:

• A master process covering data validation, billing, and reconciliation
• Checks to catch missing rent and invalid invoices
• Dashboards for tracking collections in real time

Result? £750,000 in revenue recovered, simply by fixing what had been overlooked for years.

Service Charge Revamp: Cutting Chaos, Adding Clarity

The original process for billing and tracking service charges was a mess.
Too many hands, unclear deadlines, mismatched systems.

We ran a series of facilitated workshops with Finance, Property, and Centre Managers. Together, we:

• Re-mapped the entire process
• Moved billing timelines forward
• Improved communication loops
• Integrated better tech for tracking and approvals

What used to take weeks now runs faster, with fewer errors and tighter controls.

The Tools That Made It Work

Across all reforms, we used a consistent toolkit:

• BPMN for process clarity
• Lean Six Sigma for root cause analysis and waste removal
• Workshops to get teams aligned and engaged
• Tech integration to automate, simplify, and control the new workflows

We didn’t just fix processes—we built a new foundation to prevent problems from coming back.

5. Building a New Engine: The Service Operating Model

Fixing individual processes wasn’t enough. We needed a system—something bigger and permanent. That’s where the Service Operating Model came in.

What Is a Service Operating Model?

Think of it as the blueprint for how services are delivered across the business.
It defines:

• Who does what
• How work flows
• What tools and rules guide delivery

It’s the engine behind the scenes—quiet, structured, but critical.

Their operations had grown over time, not by design. Teams worked in silos. Processes varied across sites. Systems didn’t talk to each other. Everyone was busy, but not aligned.

We needed a single, unified model to tie it all together.

How We Built It

This wasn’t a top-down rollout. We co-designed it—with the people who would use it.

• Ran over a dozen cross-functional workshops
• Mapped pain points, workflows, and dependencies
• Aligned on service levels, KPIs, and handovers
• Used live case studies to stress-test the design
• Engaged teams early to reduce resistance and build ownership

Change management wasn’t an afterthought—it was the strategy. We kept communication constant, simplified the message, and showed real wins early.

The Impact

Operational:
Tasks got clearer. Handovers became seamless. Teams stopped duplicating effort.

Cultural:
People knew where they fit in. Silos broke down. The mindset shifted from “just do it” to “do it right.”

Financial:
The new model made cost control part of daily work—not a separate project.
And yes, it helped drive the £20 million in savings.

This wasn’t just process reform. It was a shift in how the business thinks and operates.

6. Multiplying the Impact: Training, Embedding, Sustaining

Fixing processes is one thing. Keeping them fixed—and improving them further—is another.
That’s why we didn’t stop at delivery. We built capability.

Rolling Out the Quality Training Programme

We launched a targeted Lean Six Sigma training programme for third-party vendors—those closest to daily operations but often left out of strategic improvement efforts.

• 20 staff members from facilities and service providers were trained
• The training covered real tools, not theory—DMAIC, root cause analysis, standardisation, mistake-proofing
• Each trainee was required to deliver a live improvement project, coached and reviewed for impact

This wasn’t a classroom exercise. It was hands-on, real-world, and tailored to their actual work.

The Results: Small Teams, Big Wins

Those 20 trained individuals went on to deliver dozens of improvement projects—from waste reduction to faster turnaround times. Some examples:

• Cleaning processes optimised to reduce labour hours
• Response times for tenant issues cut by 40%
• Inventory waste reduced through better stock tracking

They weren’t waiting for HQ anymore. They were identifying and fixing problems on the ground, in real time.

The Multiplier Effect

One central team can only do so much. But when capability is embedded at every level, improvement scales itself.

• More eyes spotting waste
• More hands fixing it
• More people thinking proactively

This created a self-sustaining improvement culture, where efficiency wasn’t a project—it was just how people worked.

The £20M programme didn’t just cut costs. It upskilled people, improved services, and set the foundation for continuous growth.

7. Results: Beyond the Numbers

The £20 million savings was the headline. But the real success was how it was achieved—and what it changed beyond the balance sheet.

The Financial Wins

• £300,000 recovered from insurance claims by fixing broken workflows.
• £750,000 gained through a brand-new residential billing process.
• Cost leaks identified and closed across dozens of functions.
• Service charge operations streamlined, reducing rework and admin hours.

But money was just the start.

The Real Wins

1. Faster, Smoother Billing Cycles

Payment timelines were moved forward. Approval chains shortened. Tracking improved.
What once took weeks now took days—with fewer errors and less chasing.

2. Fewer Complaints

By improving communication and fixing root issues, tenant complaints dropped.
No more missed deadlines. No more surprise charges.

3. Better Morale, Less Firefighting

Teams stopped reacting and started planning.
Work was clearer. Roles were better defined.
People weren’t just doing the job—they were improving it.

“We’re no longer stuck in firefighting mode. We finally have breathing space.”
— Company site manager, post-programme feedback

4. A Cultural Shift

Before: Process change was top-down, slow, and painful.
After: Teams at all levels were solving problems, owning improvements, and sharing what worked.

That’s what made the change stick. Not just big savings, but a business that works smarter—every day.

8. Lessons Learned: What You Can Steal from Our Playbook

This wasn’t luck. It was structure, mindset, and discipline. If you’re facing rising costs or messy operations, here’s what worked—and what you can steal.

1. Don’t Skip Discovery. Map Before You Move.

Too many businesses jump into solutions without understanding the problem.
We started with process mapping, root cause analysis, and voice of the customer. That exposed the real issues—not just the symptoms.

Tip: If you can’t explain how your process works on one page, you don’t understand it well enough to fix it.

2. Fix Process Before You Add Tech

Technology won’t save a broken process. It’ll just make the chaos run faster.
We cleaned up workflows, simplified approvals, and reduced waste before bringing in new tools.

Tip: Tech should support a process—not define it.

3. Build Internal Capability—Don’t Outsource the Brain

We didn’t just run projects. We trained people.
20 third-party staff delivered their own Lean Six Sigma projects. That created a multiplier effect—more improvement, less dependency.

Tip: One trained staff member can deliver 10x returns. Invest in people.

4. Executive Backing Is Non-Negotiable

The programme worked because leadership backed it—loudly and consistently.
We had clear targets, visible support, and decision-makers in the room.

Tip: If execs aren’t behind it, the programme will stall. Full stop.

No gimmicks. No shortcuts. Just structure, ownership, and discipline.
That’s the playbook. And it works.

9. Looking Ahead: From Surviving to Scaling

The £20M programme wasn’t the finish line—it was the foundation.

By redesigning processes, building internal capability, and aligning teams around a single operating model, they moved from cost-cutting mode to continuous improvement mode.

The business didn’t just survive inflation and rising costs—it came out stronger, leaner, and more resilient.

Now, with scalable systems, trained staff, and a new service model in place, the company is positioned to grow—without the growing pains.

Questions for Your Business

• Where are your hidden inefficiencies?
• What manual processes are draining time and money?
• Are your teams fixing problems—or just working around them?
• Do you have the tools to change—or just the pressure to survive?

If you’re not asking these questions, you’re probably leaving value on the table.

Fixing operations isn’t a cost—it’s an investment.
And the return? More control, more agility, and more breathing room to focus on what matters next.

10. Next Step

If you’re an executive, ops lead, or cost owner—ask yourself one thing:

Are you solving the right problems, or just paying for them?

Most organisations have cost buried in plain sight—manual work, duplicated effort, poor data, broken processes. It’s not always obvious, but it adds up. Fast.

We proved that with the right approach, those hidden costs can become savings—and not by cutting corners.

Want to Do the Same?

If you’re serious about tackling operational waste and building a leaner, smarter business, I can help.

👉 Book a free 30-minute consultation
Let’s discuss your challenges and identify where the biggest wins might be hiding.

👉 Download the Cost Review Checklist
A practical guide to spot inefficiencies, map your processes, and find quick wins.
(No jargon. Just useful, actionable steps.)

The savings are there. You just have to look.

Let’s find them.