Have organisational functions outlived their purpose?

In a constantly changing business landscape, where the nature of work is on a constant transformation through automation and the use of AI, traditional organisational functions seem not only outdated, but unable to achieve the agility and adaptability necessary to thrive in today’s business environment.

Functions such as Finance, Human Resources, Information Technology, Supply Chain, have long constituted the foundation for organisations across industries and geographies because they have allowed for expertise to be built and maintained within separate departments in a way that was dependable, standardised and efficient. However, as modern organisations are required to successfully handle complex, multidisciplinary challenges with increased speed and flexibility, it has become imperative to adopt an approach benefitting from integrated functional insights and capabilities.

For instance, high-stakes business undertakings such as mergers and acquisitions (M&A) would benefit from a cross-functional collaboration utilising the expertise of teams of various backgrounds, such as people, finance, technology, and legal, in order to deliver holistic solutions customised to the organisation’s needs and objectives.

Functions under pressure

According to Deloitte’s 2026 Global Human Capital Trends, 66% of C-suite executives acknowledge the importance of moving beyond the boundaries of traditional organisational functions to drive business growth. However, only 7% of these leaders report having addressed this issue successfully in their organisations.

The need to reinvent organisational functions seems to be driven by factors such as the pressure to minimise costs while delivering value with enhanced speed and operational efficiency.

Getting intentional about the future of functions

From our experience leading organisational restructuring and transformation initiatives, most organisations tend to favour minor adjustments, such as introducing dotted-line reporting relationships for certain roles or forming ad-hoc multidisciplinary teams. However, these steps can be counterproductive if they are not accompanied by a long-term strategy facilitating multidisciplinary collaboration across the organisation.

Although each organisation needs to find the right balance between integration and disruption while considering their needs and the level of complexity required, these are some key considerations for rethinking functions:

• Distinguish between “run the business” and “grow the business” activities. “Run the business” activities, although necessary for the smooth operation of an organisation, are often routine processes with predictable outcomes. In contrast, “grow the business” activities, possess strategic significance for the organisation and require a thorough analysis of complex data from an integrated perspective based on each business situation.
• Utilise automation, data integration and AI tools across the organisation to support “run the business” activities affecting various functions, such as analytics, reporting, vendor management, improving efficiency.
• Set shared cross-functional targets regarding “grow the business” activities, for example organisational transformation, M&A, new market entry, product development, that require the collaboration of diverse teams and professionals to achieve the desired business outcomes.
• Encourage leaders to share their expertise across the organisation as well as to develop a broader understanding of other functions through ongoing knowledge sharing and mentoring.
• Reevaluate and redesign current roles, assessing their value to the organisation, defining their associated responsibilities and identifying the contribution of technology to each role.

Looking ahead

As organisations navigate an increasingly complex and fast-paced business environment, reimagining traditional functions is no longer optional but essential. By embracing integrated, cross-functional collaboration and leveraging technology strategically, organisations can unlock new capabilities and create value. Reevaluating and transforming organisational functions is critical, with the future belonging to those who break down traditional silos to build cross-functional, connected and agile teams aligned around shared goals, ensuring sustained success.

Published in knews.kathimerini.com.cy