Benefits and Business Case Planning and Review

Problem

Organisations invest a considerable amount of time, money, skill and other organisational resources in pursuit of business goals, usually expressed in a Business Case as 'outcomes' and associated 'benefits'.  But most organisations seem disappointed with the outcomes achieved or the benefits realised. 

This partly arises because the level of rigour used to estimate the value of benefits is nowhere near the level of rigour used to estimate the costs of the change initiative or the associated risks.  In fact, a recent survey indicated that '83% of IT directors admit that the cost/benefit analysis supporting proposals to invest in IT are a fiction'.  The 'investment logic' justifying such change initiatives can only be flawed, impacting future management decision making and control. 

Another contributing factor is that while there is intense focus on cost control during the life of the change initiative, in most organisations there is little proactive risk management during the life of the initiative, and almost no focus on the realisation and maintenance of benefits after the change initiative has handed over ongoing responsibility to operational management in business-as-usual mode. Nor is the Business Case revisited as organisational understanding of the proposed changes leads to revised estimates of benefits. 

Solution

The Business Case of a change initiative is the primary organisational control over the asociated investment.  If there is a lack of quality in either the cost, benefit or risk sides of the Business Case, management decision making will be adversely impacted. If these elements of the Business Case are not reviewed and monitored as the change initiative proceeds, the outcomes and benefits will be negatively impacted. 

We apply the guidance provided by the PRINCE2 and MSP management methods, as well as the recently published Management of Value method, as it relates to benefits, the Business Case and benefits realisation, in development or review of the initial Business Case, and to ongoing revision and 'sanity checking' of the Business Case at key milestones in the life of the change initative. 

Please contact us to discuss our approaches to initial and ongoing justification of programmes and projects, and associated benefits realisation monitoring.

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