Benefits Management: Ensure change delivers value

Benefits are defined as the measurable improvement from change, which is perceived as positive by one or more stakeholders, and which contributes to organizational (including strategic) objectives.

They typically include: increasing revenue; reducing costs; meeting a legal/regulatory requirement or maintaining current systems; and making a measurable contribution

to achieving strategic/organizational objectives or reducing risks to their achievement.

Change initiatives can result in dis-benefits and erosion of benefits over time. These are defined as the measurable result of a change, perceived as negative by one or more stakeholders, which detracts from one or more strategic or organizational objectives. Some benefits are unanticipated and emerge as the initiative is developed, deployed or implemented. These are termed emergent benefits.

Benefits Management is defined as the identification, quantification, analysis, planning, tracking, realization and optimization of benefits. Benefits management seeks to optimize benefits realization by ensuring:

1. Forecast benefits are complete (ie all sources of potential value are identified) and realizable – so managing benefits is built on the solid foundations of realistic forecasts.

2. Forecast benefits are realized in practice by ensuring that the required enabling, business and behavioural change takes place.

3. Benefits are realized as early as possible and are sustained for as long as possible.

4. Emergent benefits are captured and leveraged (and any dis-benefits are

   minimized).

5. The above can be demonstrated – not just as part of the framework of

   accountability, but also so that the organization learns what works as a basis

   for continuous improvement.

Key success characteristics of effective benefits management:

1. Active: rather than passive tracking against forecast, the focus is on an active search for benefits, with ongoing participative stakeholder engagement.

2. Evidence-based: forecasts and processes are driven by evidence about what works rather than assumptions and advocacy.

3. Transparent: based on open and honest forecasting and reporting, and a ‘clear line of sight’ from strategic objectives to benefits forecast and realized.

4. Benefits-led: focusing less on the activities undertaken to realize benefits and more on the actual realization of those benefits, ie just as we expect change initiatives to be benefits-led, so too should benefits management be focused on what difference it is making.

5. Forward-looking: with an emphasis on learning and continuous improvement, rather than backward-looking attribution of blame.

6. Managed across the full business change life cycle: extending from benefits identification and quantification, through planning, to realization and capturing and applying lessons learned.

   
   

Benefits Management Processes: identify and quantify; value and appraise; plan; realize; and review. These processes are sequential and iterative amongst themselves. The effectiveness of these processes is dependent on seven principles:

1. Align benefits with strategy

2. Start with the end in mind with benefits-led rather than activity-centred change.

3. Utilize successful delivery methods to implement the enabling and business changes on which benefits realization is dependent.

4. Integrate benefits with performance management

5. Manage benefits from a portfolio perspective

6. Apply effective governance

7. Develop a value culture

Excerpt from (Managing benefits: Ensuring change delivers value from the Effective Change Manager's Handbook)