i
B enefits Planning
Florence N ightingale
Yo u a s k m e w hy I d o n o t
w r i te s o m e t h i n g. . . . I t h i n k
o n e’s fe e l i n g s wa s te t h e m-
s e l ve s i n wo rd s, t h e y o u g ht
a l l to b e d i s t i l l e d i nto a c -
t i o n s a n d i nto a c t i o n s
w h i c h b r i n g re s u l t s
Business Benefits Planning by Royston Morgan is licensed under a Creative
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ii
Benefits Planning
Content s
A B e n e f i t is aValue 1
B e n e f i t s M anagement 2
Pl a n n i n g 3
E m b e d d e d in change 4
I nvo l ve Stakeholders 5
E n a b l e r s and Objec tives 6
Fe at u re s to B enefits 7
H i g h Le vel Objec tives 8
Th e B e n e fits M ap 9
E x a m p l e M ap 10
S c a l i n g B enefits 11
Ta n gi b l e and I ntangibles 12
B e n e f i t Planning 13
Pl a n D o Check Ac t 14
H ow c a n we help? 15
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B e n e f i t s Pl a n n i n g iii
B enefits Planning is about
Stating timescales of how benefits are delivered
The cost benefit analysis of benefits
Who has ownership and responsiblility for benefits
Implementation of the changes to realise the benefits
Monitoring delivery of benefits ensuring processes are
crystallised and change embedded
Checking against the plan and taking corrective actions

A B e n e f i t i s a Va l u e 1
Suppliers o f g o o d s a n d
ser vices w i l l o f te n d e -
scr ibe the i r p ro d u c t
features a s a b e n e f i t :
B
e n efits management star ts with the business
c a s e which is the descr iption of the reason for
t h e projec t and the rationale for under tak ing the
a c t i v i t y. Without a sufficient business case a projec t
o r a c t i v i t y should not be star ted as there is no basis
fo r ex p e n ding resources and effor t on something that
w i l l n o t br ing the organization anything.
O n e of the most impor tant par ts of the business
c a s e i s t he statement of the expec ted benefits – what
va l u e t h e ac tivit y is expec ted to deliver – senior man-
a g e m e nt must agree to this as they alone are responsi-
b l e i f t h e ac tivit y does not deliver what was expec ted.
A benef i t i s w h at i s p e rc e i ve d by a sta ke h o l d e r as the value to be delivered
f ro m a p ro j e c t o r a c t i v ity

B e n e f i t s M a n a g e m e nt 2
B
e n efits management aims to ensure that the ben-
e f i ts descr ibed in the business case are realised.
M a ny projec ts although they complete success-
f u l l y i n p rojec t management ter ms ac tually fail to deliv-
e r a ny o f t he initial benefits that launched the initiative.
I n p ar t this explains the reluc tance and c ynicism
t h at s e n i or management can have when confronted
w i t h ye t another initiative that promises hundreds
o f t h o u s ands of dollars in savings, increased reve -
n u e o r more customers for example. Cynicism bor ne
o f t h e exper ience of hundreds of similar pleadings
f ro m s t a f fers that have come to naught and projec t ’s
l a u n c h e d that have promised benefits that in the end
h ave f a i l ed to mater ialise.
Ev i dence show ’s that the major it y of projec ts
( we l l ove r 60%) in such diverse areas as IT, O utsourcing
a n d B P R fail to deliver any discer nable improvement.
I t s h o u l d not be forgotten that the whole pur pose of
t h e p ro j ec t or initiative was to deliver something of
va l u e a n d if this does not occ ur then the projec t has
f a i l e d.
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Pl a n n i n g 3
P
l a nning for benefit begins at a ver y ear ly stage
o f a projec t and benefits management itself
s t ar ts pr ior to the ac tual wor k commencing -
co nt i n u i ng throughout the lifetime of an ac tivit y and
we l l b e yond the end. Processes and procedures need
to b e i n place to freeze in the n ew ways of wor k ing and
to c r ys t allize the benefits creation c ycle and as such
t h e s e a c tivities of ten ex tend well beyond the projec t
co m p l e t ion and af ter the tea m has been dispersed.

Embedded in change 4
Scope the Plan for the Deliver the
Benefits delivery of the Benefits
benefits
T
h e basic benefit management c ycle
covers the: identification and profiling,
p l a nning and deliver y of benefits and
b ro a d l y parallels the ac tivit y deliver y c ycle.
At e a c h stage dur ing the deliver y the busi -
n e s s c a s e and the benefits p lan will be re -
v i s i te d a nd revised. Accordingly the benefits
p l a n n i n g process becomes an embedded
p a r t o f t he change process even as far as the
p ro ce s s e s and procedures needed to deliver
t h e ex p ec ted benefits that sur vive projec t
c l o s u re.
Planning and Implementing Business
agreeing the the Change Improvements
Change project and freezing
change
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I nvo l ve St a k e h o l d e r s 5
O
n e of the key things to do to reduce the
c hance of rejec tion of the change is to involve Peers
t h e people affec ted by the projec t and in the
Other The public
professiona
ls
d e l i ve r y of the benefits. Communication is insuffi - Training
institutions Parents and
Employees Funders
Identified
Care staff
c i e nt i n most cases as this looks like ‘ telling’. D ur ing for DT carers
key workers
Teachers Trustees
t h e b e n e fits analysis the change’s required to deliver Newly Teaching
Donors
t h e i m p rovements are identified along with where
qualified support
DT’s staff
The team
t h e i m p rovement will happen. Another way to look at Charity
commission
t h i s i s to car r y out a stakeholder char t analysis in a Taxpayer
Roundabout
Our fee
payers
Stakeholders
wo r k s h o p environment and to deduce how they will Supervisors
and Sesame
j u d g e s u ccess of the projec t and suppor t us through
therapists funding
charities
Drama and
t h e p ro cess and accordingly also sketch out what Bank
professiona
l BADTH
Social
Workers
t h e y w i l l see as benefits from the process that must Parents
siblings
families
Health
b e d e l i vered.
Other Own Visitors
service partners National Cornerston
Refugee
providers families bodies s.a. e house
Services
NHS
Other Local
Children authorities
Medical
services

E n a b l e r s a n d O b j e c t i ve s 6
T
h e process of der iving a benefit map begins at
t h e end outcomes required and the enablers and
co n siders how enablers deliver outcome objec -
t i ve s a n d what is required to deliver an outcome. The
p ro ce s s t reats the enabler feature (such as a func tion
i n a n I T s ystem) to the outcome objec tive as a casual
c h a i n s u c h that the nex t in the chain follows on from
i t s p re d e cessor.
E n a b ler Advantage B enefit Change Gain O u tco m e O b j e c t i ve
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Fe at u re s to B e n e f i t s 7
Staff side
agree
Revise Check SLA Data Load
A
grade Bank agency Mf
c a usual diagram is created dur ing a wor kshop. structure Policy rates
Th is meeting will be attended by a cross sec tion Right grade
Transparen Correct Control
o f the implementation team including supplier to right
t allocation payments agency
post
re p re s e ntatives to suppor t feature breakdown and to
b r i n g i n their exper tise from similar projec ts and cli- Cost
Clear Speedy Bank roster Accurate
centre
e nt s. control authority allocation policy data
Fi r s t the features of the produc t of ser vice is brain -
s to r m e d in a group and posted using post-it notes to Separate
Function- Common
ally data
a l a rg e f l ip char t. Then for each feature identified we module
integrated source
a s k w h at advantage does this feature give or why we
Why?
a re d o i n g this.
Bank
Th e s e advantages are then clustered close to the Module
re l e va nt feature. We move onto consider ing these ad -
va nt a g e s and ask what benefi t is there in having this
a d va nt a g e in concrete ter ms to our organisation –
t h e s e b e nefits are then posted close to the relevant
a d va nt a g es.
Th e char t is then construc ted laid out in three
l aye r s w i th ar rows link ing features to benefits. The fi-
n a l s te p is to deduce what changes are needed to be
p u t i n p l ace to gain the potential benefits.

H i g h Le ve l O b j e c t i ve s 8
Staff side
agree
S
Revise Review Roster Budget
Agency
t a r t ing from the high level objec tives of the grade establishm policy
contract plan
o rg anisation we ask what outcomes from the structure ent done
p ro j ec t or ac tivit y are required to suppor t the Right grade
Increase Control
a c h i e ve m ent of the objec tive. Wor k ing back wards to right
revenue
Correct
payments agency
post
a l o n g t h e chain we state what is the gain needed for
t h e o u tcome and as a consequence what needs to Get skill Establish
Reduce Reduce
Optimise
facilities agency
c h a n g e to deliver this. The casual chains are linked up mix right ment MGT spend
bank
by a r rows and the resulting high level mapping shown
o n t h e f l i p char t.
Manage Manage Balance Control
Deanery care cost facilities Agency
What?
Control
Meet A&E
Trust
targets
Budget
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Th e B e n e f i t s M a p 9
T
h e outputs from the first t wo team wor kshops
a re copied to an overall benefits map and the
i n i t ial link ages shown. The process in effec t does
a s we e p top down and bottom up searching for ben- Enablers Advantages Benefits Change Gains Output Objectives
e f i t s a n d changes and some required changes, gains
a n d b e n efits will be the same. The char t will also
Cost Data Load Staff side Right grade
Control Optimise Manage Control
EOL centre Mf agree to right
agency bank Deanery Trust
control post
Budget
s h ow s o me chains that do not go fully lef t to r ight Clear
SLA
agency
Revise
grade Get skill
Common Manage
t h u s s h owing enabling ac tions needed outside of the Bank rates structure mix right Meet A&E
data authority care cost
Module targets
source
Check
p ro j e c t t hat can deliver the high level gains independ -
Review
Accurate Bank Establish
Function- establishm Balance
data Policy ment
Enabler 1 ally ent facilities
e nt l y o f the enablers on the r ight and vice versa. integrated
Bank roster
Revise Roster
Increase
grade policy
policy revenue
Th e draf t map is usually drawn up by the change
Separate structure done Control
Enabler 2
module Agency
Reduce
a g e nt a n d she will der ive a draf t that is reviewed and Speedy
allocation
Staff side
agree
Agency
contract
facilities
MGT
va l i d ate d by the organization’s team. D ur ing valida - Enabler 3
Right grade
to right
Org
Budget
Correct
structure payments
t i o n a n i nitial cluster ing of ac tivities takes place – par- post review
plan
Reduce
t i c u l a r l y to group similar ac tions together that for m a Transparen
t allocation
agency
spend
l o gi c a l c hunk that could be the responsibilit y of one Correct Control
agency
payments
p e r s o n o r func tional role (such as finance for the cost
re l ate d a c tions).

Example Map 10
Enablers Advantages Benefits Change Gains Output Objectives
Cost Data Load Staff side Right grade
Control Optimise Manage Control
EOL centre Mf agree to right
agency bank Deanery Trust
control post
Budget
SLA Revise
agency grade Get skill
Common Clear Manage
Bank rates structure mix right Meet A&E
data authority care cost
Module targets
source
Check Review
Accurate Bank Establish
Function- establishm Balance
data Policy ment
Enabler 1 ally ent facilities
integrated
Revise Roster
Bank roster Increase
grade policy
policy revenue
Separate structure done Control
Enabler 2
module Agency
Reduce
Speedy Staff side Agency facilities
allocation agree contract MGT
Enabler 3
Right grade Org Correct
to right Budget
structure payments
post plan
review
Reduce
Transparen
agency
t allocation
spend
Correct Control
payments agency
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Scaling Benefits 11
Tr i c k y
B
e n efits need to be profiled and scaled and with H a rd
s u c h a wide range of benefits possible in ter ms
o f scope and proximit y it is necessar y to sched - Easy
u l e a n d pr ior itise them. B enefits fall into t wo broad
c ate g o r i es: tangible benefits are those that can be
m e a s u re d and assigned some k ind of numer ical or dol-
l a r va l u e and intangibles that cannot be measured or
q u a nt i f i e d.
Ta n gible benefits such as reduced cost, lower ab -
s e nte e i s m or reduced sick ness are easy to visualise
a n d q u a ntify. M ore difficult but just as impor tant are
t h e i nt a ngibles such as: fair ness of a wor k schedule,
Value
i m p rove d transparenc y or inc reased morale or team-
wo r k . Th ese contr ibute to the overall well being of the
te a m a n d organisation and ac t more indirec tly on the
a c h i e ve ment of top level objec tives.
close near far
Wh e n

Ta n gi b l e a n d I nt a n gi b l e s 12
S
o m e benefits are difficult to quantify and fall
i nto that grey area of intangibles. I n the main
t h e re should be a balance leaning in the direc -
t i o n o f t angible quantitative benefits as stakeholders
a n d s e n i or managers will of ten want to see some real
p o s i t i ve evidence of value. I ntangibles on the other
h a n d c a n of ten be regarded as enabling or contex tual
re q u i re m ents that facilitate the tangible benefits.
An example here would be perceived fair ness in
a ro s te r schedule delivered by a system being seen
a s a e n a bler for system acceptance (reducing resist-
a n ce ) a n d deliver y of the cost savings. I n other words
a l t h o u g h a benefit may be intangible to a par ticular
s t a k e h o l der it can suppor ts the deliver y of objec tives
t h at c a n have real tangible value.
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B e n e f i t Pl a n n i n g 13
What
Improvements
are needed?
Who will be
T
Why do we
h e re’s an old saw that says that politician’s think responsible
need them?
t h e announcement is the implementation and for delivering?
t h e re is an element of truth in this when the I keep six honest ser ving-men
b e n e f i t s are identified and wr itten down they are not ( They taught me all I k new);
ye t d e l i vered. Until we have implemented the change Their names are What and Why and When
a n d d e l i vered the benefits nothing has ac tually hap - And How and Where and Who.
p e n e d. The benefits we have identified, scaled and pr i -
I send them over land and sea,
o r i t i s e d need to be catalogued into a plan that is the
co re d e l i verable of the benefits process and is used I send them east and west;
Where are the
a s a to o l by the board to ensure that they are getting When will they af ter they have wor ked for me,
But benefits
t h e m o n ey and benefits they were promised by the be delivered? I give them all a rest located?
p ro j e c t s ponsor. K ipling
How will the
benefits be
delivered?

Pl a n D o C h e c k Ac t 14
A
Plan and
u s eful way of assigning a benefit ac tion is to scope the
t re at it as a for mal wor k assignment or pack- benefits
a g e. What is required is for the change man -
a g e r to d escr ibe the benefit and what is required and
to gi ve t his to the person responsible for deliver ing
t h e b e n e fit. For example if a roster polic y has to be
w r i t te n t his could be issued to the personnel man - Correct & DO
a g e r a l o ng with timescales and acceptance cr iter ia derived Take
a n d we k now what it looks so we can state we wnat more action
i t i n t h e for m of a word document. R egular repor ting
i s re q u i red to ensure we are on track and to explain
d e l ays – just as in a nor mal deliverable – in fac t the
s u m to t a l of all the benefit produc ts adds up to the
b e n e f i t of the projec t that the change manager has Check it
to d e l i ve r. worked
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H ow c a n we h e l p ? 15
M o b i l i s at i o n fo r b e n e f i t
I
n s u m mar y the benefits pla nning process sets up a
te a m ac tivit y (together with the supplier if needed)
to d e ter mine the under pinning of the business case I nte r v i e ws b u s i n e s s d r i ve r s a n d
i n te r m s of benefits a projec t or ac tivit y will create and co ntex t
t h e d e l i ver y process to realise them. I nter views,team
l e d i n i t i atives, and benefits wor kshops for m the core
o f a n a c tivit y that provides cr itical infor mation for
b e n e f i t s analysis & successful completion of the rec -
o m m e n d ed solution. The end outcome of the plan-
n i n g p ro cess is an ac tionable plan to be used from ini -
t i a l i s at i o n r ight through to po st projec t review which B e n e f i t wo r k s h o p s
i s w h e re we find out if the benefits we stated in the
b u s i n e s s case have ac tually been realised.
Co a c h i n g a n d p l a n n i n g

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CrossLight M anagement
Public S ec tor Consulting
r morgan@crosslight.co.uk
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