Building Organisational Capability

“Value does not come from having the capabilities, it does come from how organisations manage and utilise those capabilities. This may involve re-thinking the nature of the business model, business processes, people skills and competencies, behaviours, reward systems, organisation structure, physical facilities, etc.”

In the current economic climate, few organisations can avoid the imperative to become value centric. Whilst this statement may appear a well used management cliché, the reality is that many organisations continue to deliver change in isolation of the expected business value e.g. the benefits.

The ability to deliver value through investment in change has always been a critical success factor for organisations. This is becoming increasingly important in the context of public sector cost reduction, constraints on investment funding, the impact of the economy and increased regulatory oversight. The reality is that many organisations are reducing their training budgets and spending less on discretional staff development activities. Ironically, the need for development of organisational capability in benefits realisation has never been greater.

Experience has proven that anybody can implement a process around benefits realisation. Clearly, this by itself is not going to lead to successful benefits realisation as there are other factors necessary for success, many of them behavioural. This report is intended to challenge managers to lead and sustain organisational capability in benefits realisation. It considers what can be done to improve the realisation of benefits and more importantly, where to start. It builds on the first report of the series, “winning hearts and minds” and considers practical actions that will enable senior executives to create a value-centric culture, throughout the organisation.

The creation of a sustainable organisational capability in benefits realisation will not happen by itself. It requires a clear time-bound focus supported by strong senior management commitment. This report highlights six action points that collectively can provide a strong foundation for building organisational capability. They are:

1. Establish a programme of change to build organisational capability;
2. Identify a senior champion and initiate top down implementation;
3. Excite management buy-in;
4. Incentivise value-focussed behaviours through recognition and reward;
5. Focus on identifying the areas of greatest need to maximise effectiveness; and
6. Find innovative ways to engage and develop the commitment of the senior management team

These action points are highly interdependent and should be addressed within the context of the organisation’s priorities including strategic plans and annual business performance targets. Our challenge is to successfully build organisational capability in benefits realisation at a time when both the constraints and the need are greater than ever.