Benefits realisation management
Benefits realisation management is a tool which enables Project Managers to get the most from project deliverables and helps maximise the benefits that the ‘users’ get from the completed project. Benefits realisation management also helps to:
- define and deliver project aims and expected project benefits
- deliver services that users want and will use
- keep the project team focused and on the project aims and benefits
Plan and prepare for project handover/rollout
- Identify the scale of changes required to working practices and culture and the tasks and resources required to deliver these changes.
- Ensure resources are available for rollout/change management.
- Encourage the project team to keep an eye on project closure and handover from the start of the project.
Plan and gather measures after the project has closed
- Are services being used? If not, then why not?
- Are users satisfied?
- Is the full potential of the new system/service being realised?
- Are specific benefits being realised? Measure and track benefits against desired values.
- Benchmark before, during and after implementation to assess the impact and value that your project has delivered.
Benefits workshop
The purpose of the benefits work shop is to bring together project stakeholders at the very beginning of the project to undertake an exercise that will:
- identify project aims, benefits, organisational changes and enablers
- lead to the development of benefits mapping
Step one - Aims
- The benefits workshop should start with an exercise to identify the aims of the project ie. what is the project trying to achieve? Are we trying to improve, increase, make more effective?
- How does the project support the Universities aims?
- Set boundaries for the project scope and summaries the main purpose of the project. Project aims are the starting point for benefits realisation management - once we know the purpose of the project we can look at how theses aims can be achieved and the benefits of delivering each aim.
Step two - Benefits
Identify the benefits that must be delivered to achieve the aims identified in step one. These will include operational benefits such as increased efficiency through to more strategic benefits.
Step three - Changes
This exercise should identify the organisational changes that must occur in order for the benefits identified in step two to be realised.
Once the above information has been gathered, a benefits map can be developed.
Benefits map
A benefits map is a visual overview if the information identified during the benefits workshop. We can then work backwards from the identified project aims to identify the benefits that must be delivered in order to achieve them.
Enablers → Changes → Benefits → Aims
