A $100 billion company without a finance department

Accounting. Finance. Human resources. Information technology.

All four of these areas are vital for multimillion-dollar companies to function, but Cemex, as Fast Company reports, outsourced those functions last year to IBM as part of a 10-year, $1 billion contract.

“What were once just outsourcing firms are now increasingly able to serve as business partners and collaborators who are able to take entire functions off your hands so you can specialize further on what really gives you an advantage,” writes Fast Company’s Kaihan Krippendorff. “[Cemex] is becoming a radically different kind of organization, carving out what does not contribute directly to its competitive advantage, freeing itself to focus more fully on what makes it competitive. Imagine, a $100 billion company that doesn’t run a finance department!”

Learn more about Cemex’s deal at www.fastcompany.com.