As enterprises move from digital experimentation to transformation at scale, Global Business Services (GBS) and Global Capability Centres (GCCs) are being redefined.
Once seen as cost-saving functions, GBS units are now emerging as strategic enablers of enterprise innovation. A recent EdgeVerve report developed in collaboration with SSON, unpacks how a unified AI platform can help organisations break from piecemeal AI initiatives to drive full-scale, value-centric change.
From Fragmented AI Initiatives to Strategic Platforms
A key insight from the report is that fragmented AI efforts, although easier to implement, rarely scale. However, many GCCs and GBS units remain entrenched in outdated paradigms, with legacy service models focused on cost still dominating.
According to the survey, 65% of GBS organisations are still in the early stages of AI adoption, while 51% are using function-specific AI applications. These projects are often driven by a conservative and incremental mindset, optimising what already exists rather than redesigning for the future.
Meanwhile, 77% of such organisations plan to implement AI within the next year, signalling a clear strategic priority and an exciting opportunity.
“The biggest shift comes from the top down, where [executives] look at it strategically end to end,” Manzur Ali, AVP and head of GBS solutions at EdgeVerve, said. “Incremental gains rarely scale. GBS leaders are missing the power of delivering improvements end-to-end across their business processes,” he added.
A unified AI platform enables real-time visibility, process orchestration and end-to-end collaboration across departments. Traditionally, front and mid-office operations have consumed the majority of enterprise budgets while operating in isolation from back-office functions, creating inefficiencies and blind spots. By aligning front, mid, and back-office processes on a unified platform, organisations move toward a “Central Office” model, achieving full visibility across customer journeys and business functions.
As Sathish Kumar EV, senior director at EdgeVerve, put it, “Traditional back-office teams are often confined to a single geography. A unified platform breaks this constraint, enabling on-demand access to skills across locations.”
The Case for Agentic AI
The report also tracks the emergence of agentic AI, a new class of intelligent systems capable of autonomous planning, decision-making and execution. Unlike traditional automation or generative AI, agentic AI systems operate with minimal human input, executing tasks by understanding objectives and sourcing data in a contextual manner.
It’s important to note that Agentic AI marks a significant evolution and shouldn’t be perceived as an improvement to the erstwhile automation technologies like RPA, etc.
“Agentic AI is not RPA++. It is a megatrend and much bigger than generative AI,” Praveen Kombial, global sales head at EdgeVerve, said. “Imagine an AI ecosystem autonomously identifying a facility defect, soliciting vendor quotes and initiating repair without any human involvement. This is not the future; this is now.”
Despite its promise, challenges around data readiness, governance and integration persist.
Vladimiro Ferreira, head of automation CoE at SEG Automotive and SSON thought-leader, noted, “Agentic AI is indeed a game-changer when it is rolled out on a solid foundation. Deploying agentic AI without quality data is like building your house on quicksand.”
This underscores the report’s central argument: platform-led transformation is a prerequisite for scaling AI initiatives across the enterprise.. A unified platform anchors the data infrastructure, integration capabilities and implementation of responsible AI needed for scalable, secure deployment.
Building a Scalable AI-First Model
The report lays out a five-step roadmap for GBS leaders looking to move beyond pilots. It includes choosing the right model, setting clear goals, preparing the data layer, scaling responsibly and focusing on ROI and long-term value.
Case studies in the report showcase successful large-scale implementations enabled by the platform approach. For instance, a global bank used EdgeVerve’s AI Next platform to initiate over 95 transformation projects, saving over a million hours. A manufacturing firm cleared a million contract lines with 100% accuracy, while a logistics firm boosted automation coverage from 10% to 70%.
The Path Forward
The report presents a clear case that the next wave of transformation in GBS will be driven not by more tools, but by deeper integration and innovation.
“If you want people to be democratically building applications, as long as it is on one common stack, then at least you know that you have built the right controls,” Praveen Kombial noted.
Beyond Incremental Gains offers a practical and strategic view of what comes next. It reframes AI not as a toolset, but as an operating model, one that is platform-led, Agentic AI-powered and built to scale.Download the full report here.
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