Dating tips

An area which many programmes seem to lack is Benefits Management. This seems a bit silly when the fundamental reason for beginning a programme is to realise benefits through change; whether it's to do things in a new way or to do things that will influence others to change.The Office of Government Commerce (OGC) in the UK has MSP principles which include strong emphasis on Benefits Management (BM) with the following keys stages covered off:BM ProcessBM StrategyIdentifying BenefitsA Quantification of BenefitsThe Benefit ProfilesBenefit ModellingBenefits Realisation PlanA Process to Review Benefit RealisationThe Responsibilities for Benefits ManagementsAs benefits are the result of the change delivered by a programme, these benefits should be used to help direct and make decisions throughout the life of the programme.During the course of our Programme Management roles we will have determined the critical measures and indicators of success and made arrangements to ensure the programme remains appropriate and on track to deliver the intended outcomes and benefits.We should check that:- The planned outcomes remain realistically achievable;- All the planned outcomes are not changed in scope, relationship or value;- The key stakeholders remain committed and confident that outcomes will be achieved when planned;- The plan for achieving outcomes is being pro-actively managed;- The plan is monitored against agreed performance measures/key performance indicators and any problems resolved promptly.Where key benefits have been properly identified, e.g. increased efficiency or more effective service delivery, these benefits should be properly managed in the same way. We should be able to define exactly what a benefit will deliver in a way that can be measured, using realistic timescales, risks and costs. Every benefit must be linked to planned outcomes and every benefit must be assigned to an owner who is responsible and accountable for its eventual realisation.In very large programmes of work, a business change manager will often coordinate the benefits realisation on behalf of the business areas owning those benefits.