Information Technology
Business services industry is unlocking Europe's economy
Europe's business services industry reflects a wealth of complementary capabilities across regions, building on scale and diversified network. Western and Northern Europe lead in corporate HQs and high-value digital services, while CEE offers substantial capabilities and growing expertise. This interplay fosters diversification, nearshoring, and cross-border collaboration, enabling countries to leverage unique strengths.
While leading hubs are thriving, smaller ecosystems face talent shortages, infrastructure deficits and diverse regulatory frameworks. This disparity highlights the urgent need for workforce transformation, as availability of skilled professionals is essential for competitiveness, especially in knowledge-intensive business services.
Despite challenges, regional diversity within Europe fosters unique opportunities for specialization and scaling, highlighting the necessity of strategic coordination across contexts.
Europe leads in knowledge-intensive business services exports (52.6% globally) but lags in AI adoption and service platformization. The report outlines a shift from Global Business Services (GBS) to GBS 3.0 and GenBS in response to challenges.
Classic GBS focuses on cost savings via labor arbitrage. GBS 3.0 integrates end-to-end processes with automation, analytics, and cloud, emphasizing value creation. GenBS, powered by generative AI, redefines the sector with hyper-automation and platform-based delivery.
While undergoing their own transformation, business services are now central to profound changes in six industries key for European competitiveness: banking, pharma, automotive, energy, telecom, and aerospace & defense. They drive cross-sector innovation, support R&D, close talent gaps, and embed governance. Rather than trimming costs, they underpin large-scale digital initiatives and help industries reinvent business models.
The ABSL report outlines three scenarios for Europe's business services industry by 2030:
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ABSL Business Services Industry in Europe 2025 report:
Media Contact: anna.jankowska@omc.com
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