Creating a benefits realisation culture

The benefits realisation process sheds light on this “black box” by demonstrating the cause and effect relationship between deliverables, competence development, behavioural change, benefits realisation and the purpose of the project.

When Nykredit as well as many other organisations move directly from purpose to deliverables, it means that:

• The benefits are rarely clearly defined, and it is therefore not possible to follow up on them.
• It is unclear what change in behaviour is needed to realise the benefits.
• Deliverables that do not contribute to the realisation of benefits are produced.

In Nykredit’s case, the dialogue in both projects and steering committees did not focus on benefits, but rather on deliverables and issue handling.

A shared view on value creation

Nykredit took its first major step towards the realisation of project benefits by creating a shared view of the value creation. This was done by opening “the black box” and exposing the content of the benefits realisation process, which made it clear that it was the change in behaviour in the business and not in the deliverables that were the drivers of the projects’ benefits realisation.

This shared view on value creation provided the basis for the benefitsdriven business case, and at the same time it established the foundation of effective follow-up on benefits during and after the project.

To Nykredit, as well as to other organisations working with benefits realisation, it is first and foremost a change in mindset from production of deliverables to realisation of benefits. This is reflected, in particular, in the management of projects, where management is as least as focused on the realisation of new opportunities for realising benefits and of behavioural change as on classic delivery and supplier management.

Benefits realisation and implementation

Even though Nykredit succeeded in changing its mindset, it is important to stress that this does not mean that the existing project foundation should be discarded. Benefits realisation is based on classic project management (the upper part of the circle) and is a supplement to classic portfolio management governance and, not least, project culture.

Realisation of the benefits potential

Since the implementation of the benefits realisation process, Nykredit has doubled its benefits realisation. In addition, the method has created transparency and credibility in terms of realising the benefits on which the strategy is built, which has given the organisation a much clearer view of what is important and why.