Transformation Business Cases

While a business case is traditionally seen as somewhat of a justification to invest, it also helps shape the manner in which transformation unfolds. Talking about strategy, vision, values, aims and objectives can be a very positive process, but they're often nebulous and meaningless if their value isn't monitored and evaluated. The painful consequences of transformation without business cases are usually felt several months after the initiative was launched, but the writing was often on the wall from the very outset. My name is Rob Lewellyn and as you know, companies need people with the right capabilities to manage and lead transformation. As you know, orchestrating successful transformation isn't that easy, and I mean innovative transformation which creates a new future without the constraints of the past. Which is why I hope that what I share in this episode will help you get better equipped to to perform at your best as a manager, leader or consultant. If you want to learn more, go.

To studythrive.com the business case for a new transformation initiative is a fundamental prerequisite which captures the reasoning for undertaking the initiative. However, some organizations launch into transformation projects and programs without a business case and without understanding the implications this can have later down the line. The last thing any company needs is someone trying to push digital initiatives through because it's the right thing to do or everyone's doing it. This is very naive and an example of the blind leading the blind. While a business case is traditionally seen as somewhat of a justification to invest, it also helps shape the manner in which transformation unfolds. Without a business case. Sooner or later, issues around buying scope and benefits often arise. I've personally witnessed a $60 million program where there was no business case. The painful consequences of this were not felt until months after the initiative was launched, but the writing was on the wall from the very outset. Technology leaders running complex transformations without a business case should not be surprised when the business involvement they expected is inadequate and when opposers begin to take political advantage of the fact that an initiative they don't want has no business case. For years, value, business benefits and ROI have been missing from many technology initiatives that support the business. While talking about strategy, vision, value, aims and objectives can be very positive, they're nebulous and meaningless if their impact is not monitored and properly evaluated. Hopefully, now that digital transformation has a more emphasized relationship with a business than traditional technology enjoyed, more digital leaders will understand the significance of value, ROI and benefits realization and then ensure that it gets the attention it deserves. While some organizations have allowed the need for business cases to slip through the net, others fortunately have CEOs CFOs and boards that have high expectations of business cases and the follow through realization of the expected value, business benefits and return on investment. The challenge for many technology focused leaders is that the discipline that we're talking about is a world away from the technologies that they know well, which further emphasizes the need for digital leaders to be business savvy. It's ironic that in an age when data points are in abundance that some digital leaders are already announcing that they're unable to measure benefits or ROI because they don't have the right data. And this is sometimes an indication of how working with business numbers can be intimidating and alien to technical leaders. For example, some might argue it's impossible to prove quantitative impact of social media on a business, which quite frankly is a bit of a cop out by people who have not invested sufficient time in understanding how this can be done. In the case of the social media example, the data exists, as does a range of methods to assess the ROI of social media. The data related to consumer behavior can be used to identify how, when and where social media influences consumers at each stage of their journey and then provide executives with the numbers they need. Whether you use break even analysis, payback period, net present value, or internal rate of return to calculate roi, there are multiple ways to measure ROI for different digital technologies. After all, digital solutions provide data and digital leaders need to know how to use that data to generate business value insights. Business activities like this are where strong digital business leaders will prove their value against strong technical leaders. If you've identified and clarified the business need, gathered the right team, and tested your assumptions, gathering the numbers that underpin costs and benefits shouldn't be difficult. Let me give you one more example. This time relating to mobile Calculating ROI would be based on questions such as how has the campaign increased consumer engagement and improved customer satisfaction? And how has it led to improvements in operational or workplace efficiencies? While on the surface these outcomes may seem qualitative, it's easy to uncover the measurable outcomes that can be used to provide executives with the business data they need. By improving your ability to prepare strong business cases, you'll get better at spelling out the business need for your idea. Aligning your case with strategic goals, and building the right team to shape and test your idea, you'll improve your ability to calculate return on investment, analyze risks and opportunities, and gain support from colleagues and ultimately to present better to your stakeholders and secure the resources you need. Let's also not forget that whether a well constructed business case succeeds or fails to secure the resource you need to undertake an initiative. It has in fact been a success by enabling executive to make an informed decision in the interests of the company, regardless of whether you agree with their decision. Calculating ROI for investments in emerging digital technologies will be far more challenging and requires more of a venture capitalist approach. It may be more difficult to sell these less tangible investments to your stakeholders, which is all the more reason to build a persuasive business case involving IT and business leaders. You need to demonstrate as best you can how the data you have now about something can act as a baseline. Then how, when compared with the data you'll collect after the transformation effort, you'll be able to measure value and return on investment.

If you want to take your transformation capabilities and credentials to the next level, go to studythrive.com.