Welcome to the first in a four-part series on Benefits Realisation Management (BRM). If you’re looking to maximise the value of major projects, these insights will help you ensure your efforts deliver real, measurable benefits.

This article explores six key areas where major projects focus their efforts but don’t always prioritise benefits. From business case development to performance management, we’ll show you how embedding benefits thinking into these areas can drive greater value.

If you’re wondering how benefits management fits into your projects, these six areas will provide clarity. Consider which of these you currently approach with a benefits-focused mindset—and where you could improve.

When I work with customers, they often tell me that benefits management starts with the business case—and that’s true. It’s where benefits are first defined, and frameworks like HM Treasury’s Green Book, the Project Management Institute (PMI), and the Association for Project Management (APM) all emphasise the importance of this step.

But here’s the problem: in most organisations, business cases and benefits tracking don’t speak the same language.

I rarely meet people who reuse business case data for benefits tracking without rewriting it. This creates extra work and means benefits get lost in translation between planning and execution. Business Case development is usually a very disjointed process. Different people work on each stage. Often, benefits must be rewritten later in a way that supports ongoing measurement, which creates inefficiencies.

A more effective approach? Think about tracking from day one. Set out clear, practical measures upfront so benefits can be followed through seamlessly from business case concept through to project completion and business as usual.

Create benefits maps to visually agree on benefits. This is a great way to show how the business case is aligned with specific strategic objectives and build ownership.

Standardise the identification of measures and calculation approaches from the outset ensures benefits remain central to decision-making rather than a last-minute addition.

This is not any more work it is just that a different mindset is needed to consider the end-to-end process of benefits management from the outset.

Benefits management should be embedded into planning to ensure projects and changes lead to expected value.

The truth is, benefits don’t just happen—they need intentional planning. Yet, once projects get moving, priorities shift, unexpected challenges pop up, and suddenly no one is quite sure if benefits are still on track.

Setting up clear calculations and tracking methods early—for financial and non-financial benefits—makes things much easier later on.

A well-structured benefits plan, combined with live dashboards, helps teams:
✅ Spot shifting priorities early.
✅ Adjust plans in response to changing conditions.
✅ Ensure every initiative continues to align with expected benefits.

Even a simple traffic light system can help teams stay focused on projects aligned with overarching goals and quickly spot when adjustments are needed.

3. Delivery Management

Capturing data on actual performance vs. expected benefits is crucial. Yet many projects lack structured processes for benefit tracking, leading to inconsistent or overly detailed data collection.

Without an effective approach, teams can waste time chasing missing data rather than focusing on strategic insights.

A well-designed benefits tracking system enables:
📌 Automatic data collection from various sources.
📌 Dashboards that surface key trends and risks before they become critical issues.
📌 Consistent reporting to project sponsors and governance boards.

A well-structured benefits realisation process ensures teams can easily identify which projects are delivering expected value and where interventions may be needed. This gives everyone—from project managers to executives—a real-time view of progress. No more guesswork.

Organisations must ensure their initiatives deliver the greatest impact on their investment. Effective benefits management enables teams to assess projects based on a mix of financial and non-financial benefits, such as:

📊 Strategic alignment – ensuring projects contribute to long-term goals.
📉 Financial return – ROI, NPV, payback periods.
🌱 Sustainability impact – emissions reduction, social value.

A benefits-driven prioritisation process ensures that resources are directed toward the most valuable initiatives rather than those with the loudest champions.

A benefits-led approach helps you:
✅ Compare financial and non-financial benefits side by side.
✅ Make informed trade-offs between competing priorities.
✅ Align decisions with strategic goals, not just short-term wins. With benefits clearly defined and measured, you can prioritise with confidence—not just assumptions.

Benefits assurance isn’t just about checking a box—it’s about making sure projects actually deliver what they promised.

When I talk to sponsors and senior leaders, they tell me they need trusted benefits data to make the right calls. That means:

🔍 Assess confidence in benefits delivery.
📉 Identify risks and dependencies affecting benefits.
📊 Ensure decision-makers have the right insights to intervene when necessary.

Without this level of assurance, benefits conversations often fall apart—with teams struggling to explain why things didn’t go as planned. A consistent process keeps everyone aligned and focused on value.

Delivering benefits isn’t just about hitting project milestones—it’s about improving organisational performance over time and seeing real, measurable impact.

That means regularly asking:
📈 Are projects delivering the expected benefits?
⏳ Are we on track to meet long-term goals?
🔄 Where should we adjust our approach?

A good benefits report or dashboard connects the dots between projects and strategic outcomes. It helps you to see the 'golden thread' of value delivery.

See:

By embedding benefits tracking into performance management, organisations can stay ahead of risks, optimise resources, and drive continuous improvement.

I’ve seen teams save millions by spotting failing initiatives early and shifting resources to better-performing projects. That’s the power of performance-focused benefits management.

When I work with organisations, I always recommend starting small.

Pick one of these six areas and focus on improving it over the next month. Maybe it’s making sure your business cases specify measure that can easily be tracked over time, or creating a map as part of your planning to ensure you have all the benefits covered with your project.

Even small changes—like stating the level of confidence you have in the benefits in your business case —can make a big difference. It’s all about keeping value at the centre of everything you do.

Here’s to making projects more valuable, more transparent, and more successful! 🚀

Wovex is the global leader in benefits management software, helping organisations:
✅ Automate benefits tracking from concept to realisation.
✅ Streamline data collection and reporting, reducing manual effort.
✅ Ensure strategic alignment, making better decisions easier.

With Wovex, organisations deliver more benefits with less effort, driving greater value from every project.

If you’re ready to make benefits management simple, clear, and actionable, we’d love to help.

These were originally published for a series for the UK Major Project Association.