How We Helped Global HR Leadership Identify What Was Broken in HR Ops in Bulgaria, and How to Fix It*
* Client name withheld due to strict confidentiality requirements.
How a global BPO leader regained clarity and a path forward during a high-risk workforce transformation.
In just a few months, People Success Team helped a global BPO leader stabilise HR operations, reduce compliance risk, restore employee trust, and lay the foundation for a future-ready People function, all while navigating a major workforce transformation and without disrupting ongoing business operations.
This case study focuses on the first milestone of our partnership: a People Impact Assessment that gave leadership full visibility into what was broken inside HR operations in Bulgaria, and a clear, actionable roadmap to fix it.
Client Snapshot
Global leader in customer experience services
Profile
Industry: Business Process Outsourcing (BPO)
HQ: California, USA
Global Presence: Multi-country operations
Employees: 100,000+ worldwide
Impacted location
Office: Sofia, Bulgaria
Employees: Planned reduction from ~1,200 to ~400
Our Mission
Objective: Provide senior leadership with:
- clarity on the real state of HR operations, risks, and capacity
- a practical, decision-ready roadmap to stabilise and transform HR during a critical business transition.
Solution: People Impact Assessment (HR Audit)
Engagement Duration: 5 weeks
The Challenge
The Global Head of HR contacted us to gain a deeper understanding of what was actually happening within the Bulgarian HR operations.
The information she had about the situation there was:
Lack of employee trust
- Emails and inquiries to HR were going unanswered.
- Employees openly questioned HR’s role, value, and presence.
HR team capacity and performance issues
- HR team complained of being understaffed and overwhelmed.
- Significant administrative and documentation backlogs, which created compliance risk.
Payroll Errors
- Salary mistakes are reported every month.
- Payroll blamed incomplete or incorrect HR data.
Growing Compliance Risk
- Fragmented HR data.
- Poor documentation.
- Limited focus on legally required processes.
All of this unfolded while the office was undergoing a major workforce reduction from 1,200 to 400 employees within 4–6 months. In a BPO environment, such fluctuations are common, but when HR is weak, the risk multiplies rapidly.
Business Context at Engagement Start
Headcount: ~1,200 employees
Transformation: Reduction to ~400 within 4–6 months
HR Scope: Compliance and administration only
HR Ratio: 1 HR per 250 employees
HR Team Reality:
- 1 HR Manager on notice period
- 1 HR Administrator
- 1 HR Business Partner returning from 2-year maternity leave
- 1 HR Business Partner about to start 1-year maternity leave
Payroll Team Reality:
- Local: 1 Payroll Specialist who just started (1 month ago)
- Global Center of Excellence: 1 Payroll Manager
On paper, the structure looked viable but in reality, they were failing.
What we did: People Impact Assessment
Our Approach: Radical clarity, zero assumptions.
What truly sets People Success Team apart is their focus on process improvement and optimization. They conducted a thorough analysis of our HR and payroll functions, identified inefficiencies, and provided actionable recommendations that significantly streamlined our operations.
Dorotheya G., Senior Operations Manager
We conducted a deep, operationally grounded diagnostic based on facts, behaviour, and real workflows:
1. Role & Workload Mapping
- One-to-one interviews with every HR team member
- Mapped:
- Actual work performed (not job descriptions)
- Dropped or unmanaged responsibilities
- Duplication of effort
- Non-value-adding tasks
- Critical activities HR should have been doing, but couldn’t
2. Full HR Process & Policy Review
- Comprehensive review of the internal HR Handbook
- Assessed all policies and procedures against:
- Bulgarian labour law
- Global corporate standards
- Day-to-day execution
- Identified critical gaps between documented processes and reality
3. 360° Stakeholder Intelligence
To understand the breakdown in trust, we gathered structured feedback from:
- Site Director
- Operations and Team Managers
- Employees
This revealed where, why, and how HR trsut was broken.
4. Real-Time HR Operations Monitoring
This provided objective data, not perceptions.
- Embedded into the shared HR inbox (hr@company.com)
- Analysed:
- Inquiry volume and themes
- Response times
- Accuracy, consistency, and tone
- Shadow the HR team in important meetings
5. Payroll Shadowing
- Shadowed HR and Payroll during the full payroll cycle
- Identified:
- Exact origin of payroll errors
- Data handoff failures
- Breakdown points between HR, Payroll, and Business
What we delivered
We provided visibility, confidence, and a way forward.
Redefined the HR Manager profile:
- 50% strategic / 50% hands-on
- Strong compliance and operational expertise
Redesigned task distribution to ensure:
- Clear ownership
- Accountability
- Balanced workloads
Detailed role and responsibility mapping:
- Current state vs. plan for the future
- HR and Payroll alignment
A compliance assessment outlining:
- Current risk exposure
- Immediate corrective actions
- Long-term stabilisation steps
The 12-Month HR Transformation Roadmap
Instead of theory, we delivered a practical, 3-phased roadmap built around 3 focus areas:
People
Processes
Systems and tools
Strategic Objectives:
Build a capable, resilient, future-ready HR team
Restore HR credibility and visibility
Ensure knowledge transfer and continuity
Improve HR–Payroll collaboration
Restore payroll accuracy
Achieve full legal compliance
Stabilise and clean HR data
Eliminate backlogs and prevent recurrence
Business Impact
Working with People Success Team helped us bring clarity and structure to our HR and payroll operations. We saw immediate improvements in task organisation and priority setting.
Philippe T., Site Director
Immediate Results:
Leadership gained full visibility and decision-ready insights.
Payroll accuracy improved in the very next payroll cycle.
Within 6 Months:
Administrative backlog has been significantly reduced.
~90% compliance achieved.
HR credibility was restored within 3 months under the new HR Manager and our support as Fractional HR.
Scalable HR foundation established, ready for future growth or contraction.
Partnership Expansion
Due to the success of the assessment, the client extended the partnership to include:
Fractional HR: Led the implementation of the transformation roadmap for 6 months until the new HR Manager was fully onboarded.
Talent Acquisition: End-to-end support in hiring the right HR Manager.
Temporary Payroll Support:
Executed payroll during the transition between internal payroll departure and new vendor onboarding.
Coordinated HR, Business, and Payroll for a seamless handover.
Looking to Fix or Transform Your HR Function?
If your leadership team lacks clarity, confidence, or control over HR operations, especially during growth or change, our People Impact Assessment is the fastest way to regain it.
Let us be part of your success story
We invite you to get in touch with us and let us be your partners in achieving your business goals. Your success story is waiting to be written, and we’re here to help you craft it.
From our knowledge hub
What Is Fractional HR, And When Does a Business Need It?
What Is Fractional HR, And When Does a Business Need It?
Getting Started with Fractional HR: The Comprehensive Guide for CEO
This guide addresses common concerns, outlines benefits, and walks you through how to get started.
Bulgarian Employment Guide
The employment legislation is closely linked to the labor laws of the European Union but still has some specifics. We have summarised the answers to the most common questions you may have.