consulting4results Approach and Products PPM

Approach and Products - Programme/Project Management and Benefits Realisation

This page describes how we can help you and lists the typical products/deliverables you can expect on a consulting assignment.

Approach

1) Programme management ‘health check’. Most organisations have a portfolio of projects which need to be controlled as a programme. If interdependencies are not identified and pro-actively managed costly overruns could result and some planned benefits may not be realised. The health check covers all aspects of your programme – planning, dependency management, governance, reporting, documentation, risk management, stakeholder management, and benefits management – and examines them against best practice. The output is a ‘health check’ report with recommendations.

2) Design business case sign-off process

This would cover the process for commissioning, managing and approving business cases. This can then be used to help you make those hard choices and make sure that you maximise the return on your investment

3) Design infrastructure and processes

Infrastructure would include elements like the projects in a portfolio, governance structures, programme/project management office [PMO]. Processes cover management, reporting and decision-making

4) Create documents/tools

Depending on the scale of the work, you will need a variety of programme and project tools and documents; too many to list here, but they include:

Business case
Blueprint for change
Initiation document
Programme/project-level Balanced Scorecard and associated performance indicators and/or progress reports
Risk Register and Issues Log
Stakeholder management plan
Communication plan
Detailed milestone plans

You might also need the following benefits-related tools and documents:

Business case
Benefits management and realisation strategy
Benefits realisation plan
Benefit profiles
Benefits map
Benefits management and realisation reports

5) Systematic quantification of benefits

A range of structured techniques and methods are used to quantify benefits such as: process mapping and modelling; value chain analysis; Systems Thinking; benefits mapping; and model offices

Two of the most important activities that underpin the robustness of the Business [benefits] Case are systematic quantification of benefits and benefits mapping:

a. Systematic quantification. The ‘wet finger in the air’ approach is fraught with danger. There are a range of techniques that can be used to identify and quantify benefits - for example:

Technology demonstrations (so that people affected by the change can see what the technology can do for them)

Process mapping and modelling and activity analysis

Systems Thinking (to identify and capture dynamic cause and effect relationships between enablers, subsequent changes and benefits)

Model Offices (staff affected by the change do a virtual walk through of the new ways of working - ‘a day in the life of‘)

Benchmarking (using like-for-like processes)

b. Benefits Mapping - similar to Systems Thinking, this maps the relationship between changes enabled by projects, benefits, and programme/project outcomes that have already been identified as part of a quantification process. The ‘benefits map’ can be used to:

Clarify the difference between a genuine benefit and a feature of a new IT system (often confused)

Separate out intermediate and final benefits

Help to apportion benefits to enablers (projects) thus reducing the risk of double counting

Create a balanced set of programme/project level performance indicators

Communicate to people what the change is all about

Assign accountability to individuals

6) ‘Critical Friend’ advice

You can call me in on an ad hoc basis (normally facilitated by a call-off contract) to provide advice and guidance

7) Training

There are several off-the-shelf training courses available covering programme/project management and benefits realisation. Please see the training page on this website for more information

8) Post-Delivery Evaluation

It is a good idea to conduct a formal review of your programme/project once it is finished, not just in terms of benefits realised against plan but lessons learned

Products

Here are typical products/deliverables you can expect from a Programme/Project Management and Benefits Realisation assignment:

1. Health check report and recommendations

2. Business case management and sign-off process

3. Infrastructure and processes

4. Documents and tools

5. Documented profiles capturing quantification benefits

6. Post programme/project evaluation report

7. Demonstrable and measurable skills transfer

8. Training courses

If you have any questions, or would like to discuss how we might be able to help you, please send an e-mail to:

info@consulting4results.co.uk