CHAPTER 7
Structure
7 Structure
Figure 7.1 illustrates the structure theme as part of the MSP framework.
Figure 7.1 The structure theme as part of the MSP framework
The purpose of the structure theme is to describe how:
• programmes plan the delivery of projects and other work in the most effective way, ensuring the best pace of delivery to allow the organization to transition to the future state and achieve the benefits
• resources are selected, allocated, and optimized, including people, facilities, and equipment.
7.2 Key relationships with principles
The structure theme contributes to the adherence to MSP principles across the programme lifecycle. Key relationships with the principles are summarized in Table 7.1
Table 7.1 Key relationships between the structure theme and MSP principles
The structure theme applies the MSP principle |
By … |
Resulting in … |
Lead with purpose |
Planning delivery in the most appropriate way to achieve the future state and associated outcomes of benefit |
Continual focus on achieving the programme’s goals in the most effective way |
Collaborate across boundaries |
Maintaining clarity about the number and types of resources needed and how they will be sourced |
Effective and efficient use of programme resources |
Deal with ambiguity |
Providing manageable tranches of delivery that contribute to clear intermediate landing points |
Greater clarity in ambiguous environments, even when the ultimate ending point may not be known |
Align with priorities |
Adjusting the content of tranches to reflect new information |
Manageable progress towards the vision with safe places to stop and readjust |
Deploy diverse skills |
Planning delivery using the most appropriate mix of resources to achieve the outcomes of benefit |
More effective use of external skills and development of permanent staff |
Realize measurable benefits |
Ensuring outcomes of benefit are embedded in line with intermediate landing points |
Realization of benefits across the programme lifecycle, not just at the end |
Bring pace and value |
Planning the delivery of capabilities at the best pace to achieve the outcomes of benefit in line with the business case |
Achievable and managed progression towards the future state |
The delivery approach outlines the questions that the programme strategy must address as a minimum. Its content will vary depending on the organizations investing in the programme and the mix of projects and other work that is needed to create the desired outcomes of benefit.
The delivery approach in the programme strategy answers the following questions:
• How will programme work be structured and delivered, based on the organizational environment, the programme’s complexity, and the availability of skills and resources?
• What ways of working are most appropriate to the task, team, individuals, and context? What modes of delivery will be used?
• How will projects and work on processes be started, controlled, and closed to maintain alignment with the target operating model?
• What delivery standards are relevant to the programme?
• How will internal, intra-organizational, and external dependencies be defined and managed?
7.4 Establishing the appropriate pace
Definition: Pace
The timing of programme delivery to ensure the appropriate balance between a number of factors. The factors include delivery of capabilities, achievement of desired programme outcomes, available funds, maintenance of current performance levels, and business as usual (BAU) activities.
A programme aims to deliver maximum improvements with minimum disruption to an organization. The programme needs to have sufficient funding and the necessary resources with the right skills for delivery. The affected organizational units need to have sufficient capacity and capability to adapt to new operations while maintaining the performance of existing operations. Pace is about designing the programme delivery so that the investing organization(s) can ‘cope’ with the rate of change.
7.4.1 Balancing capacity and ability
Definitions
• Organizational capacity The amount of work that an organization can deliver in a given period of time.
• Organizational ability The overall capability of an organization to perform the work required to deliver outcomes of benefit with its current people, processes, and practices.
The programme organization will have limited capacity for programme delivery. Operational units being affected by change will have limited capacity to adopt new capabilities and adapt to new operational outcomes. In addition, the organization(s) investing in the programme may not have the collective capabilities to perform the necessary work. The programme needs to coordinate delivery to take into account the limited resources available, and ensure that the resources have the right skills to deliver and adapt to change. Questions to consider include:
• Will there be sufficient capability available to manage the work when required?
• Will programme and project staff have the appropriate skills and experience?
Utilities maintenance and improvement programme
Organizational capacity is the primary limiting factor on pace for this programme. Distinctive aspects of the programme are:
• limited resources, including internal maintenance crews, excavation and maintenance equipment, and available funding for external contractors
• significant ambiguity when scheduling, given the unpredictability of when unplanned maintenance requirements will be required and whether the conditions for working outside will be conducive to efficient work.
Programme planning needs to make best estimates based on the best historic and predictive data available. The common experience of many efficiency programmes is that:
• there is frustration at the local level when productivity drops on one project for the benefit of another. The behavioural changes needed to optimize a portfolio of work within a programme can be significant
• plans are optimistic and do not make realistic provision for risks occurring, such as from worse than expected ground and/or weather conditions, to the breakdown of equipment and unavailability of workers.
Accurate reporting of actuals and re-forecasting based on an up-to-date understanding of experience and perceived risk are critical success factors for efficiency programmes, as is the creation of a culture where the whole programme rather than individual projects is optimized.
Bank compliance and adaptability programme
Organizational ability is the primary limiting factor for this programme. Distinctive aspects of the programme are:
• achieving the target operating model with previously well-guarded data made available so that customers can use it both within the bank’s systems and elsewhere; building the technology to do this requires skills that do not exist in the current bank
• existing bank staff do not have the ability and knowledge to do the technical work required
• new ways of working are radically different from the bank’s established culture of keeping data safe by retaining it and not letting go of it for any reason.
There is a need to bring in experts who have a good knowledge of open-access banking at a time when many other banks will be chasing the same specialist contractors. There is only a small pool of people with the detailed knowledge and experience of developing the interface layer of systems required and exploiting the technology when it is in place. To build the organizational ability for the future, the bank will need to pay external resources to do the work, and to train internal staff in parallel.
The common experience of many effectiveness programmes with a compliance aspect is that:
• the costs to comply are so high that the organization does not want to invest in exploiting additional new capabilities
• the organization fails to develop any competitive advantage from its investments in compliance.
7.4.2 Balancing achievability and affordability
The target operating model shows the processes, culture, organization, technologies, infrastructure, information flows, data, and knowledge and learning for the current and future organizations, and highlights the gap between them. This gap is filled by the programme through the delivery of capability via projects and other work.
Balancing the achievability and affordability of the programme is an iterative process which is accomplished through developing the target operating model and associated benefits in parallel with planning the programme’s delivery. If an acceptable balance between affordability and achievability does not emerge, it is worth considering:
• designing a target operating model in which the gap between the current and future states is smaller
• finding a different solution (e.g. delivering the programme more quickly or cheaply)
• negotiating the allocation of increased funding or allocation of other resources to the programme
• closing the programme earlier than originally planned.
National rail network programme
Affordability is the primary limiting factor for this programme. Distinctive aspects of the programme are:
• size of the funding required
• duration over which it will be required
• competition for funding from other government programmes
• influence of stakeholders, such as citizens and lobbying groups, on government opinion.
Effort will be required to ensure that value for money for citizens is defined, communicated, and understood. The programme funding will register as a notable percentage of the annual gross domestic product of the entire national economy, making the costs of borrowing significant. Close management of the borrowing and the timing of the allocation of funds to the programme will be required. The programme manager is aware that delivery planning must consider the availability of cash to the programme.
The common experience of major infrastructure programmes across countries shows that:
• costs are often significantly underestimated
• the difficulty of achieving the target operating model is not appreciated
• more effort than anticipated is required and costs rise
• the target operating model and all aspects of delivery need to be regularly reviewed and the business case regularly re-justified.
Charity organizational realignment programme
Achievability is the primary limiting factor for the charity programme. Distinctive aspects of the programme are the:
• lack of in-house capability in programme management
• size of the cultural change necessary to move to greater centralization and process control
• ability to deliver the technical solutions quickly enough in a two-year timeframe.
Effort is required to build internal capabilities, particularly those associated with embedding change in regional operations. The common experience of many organizational realignment programmes is that:
• the effort to change behaviours is underestimated
• unless processes and internal controls are changed to support the required change, initial benefits will be eroded over time.
The delivery plan will be critical in keeping a focus on every element of the programme.
The purpose of the delivery plan is to schedule the constituent projects and other work of the programme to show their relative timescales, resources, and dependencies. The plan covers the programme as a whole and the next tranche in detail.
An inherent feature of a programme is that it cannot be delivered through a linear set of delivery phases. Programmes require an incremental progression to the target operating model to take account of complexity and ambiguity.
Definitions
• Incremental progression An approach to delivering a programme that focuses on delivering benefits of value to stakeholders throughout the programme lifecycle, adapting as necessary to align with new information.
• Tranche The work required to deliver a step-change in capability and benefits realization. Several interrelated projects and other work may be involved in a tranche. Work may be delivered incrementally across several tranches.
• Landing point A control point, following delivery of a step-change in capability and benefits realization (tranche), at which a programme can be redirected or closed.
Programmes are designed to help the organization move from the current state to the future state through a series of intermediate operating models. Each increment in MSP is called a tranche.
The intermediate operating model achieved at the end of each tranche is often referred to as a landing point. Landing points represent a set of coherent capabilities which provide a safe place to stop if necessary, or a new baseline from which priorities can be adapted in response to new information.
Not all benefits from the tranche will be realized by the landing point. At the landing point, capability is delivered and outcomes are embedded which then enable benefits to be realized over time.
Delivering in tranches enables the programme to adapt to learning and new information. Early tranches might deliver core changes with later tranches building on that core, resulting in quick wins and the reduction of programme risk. Early in a programme, the route to achieving the vision may also be unclear. Structuring a programme into tranches can help to explore different approaches and decide on the most appropriate mix of cost, time, benefits, and risk in achieving the vision.
In some cases, tranches may be planned to overlap where projects or other work need to start early and at risk. When deciding whether to have overlapping tranches, consider:
• Ongoing commitment to the programme If there is confidence that the programme will continue because progress to date has been to plan, and there is organizational capacity, capability, and funding to do so, starting the next tranche early may be advantageous.
• Risk appetite of the investing organization(s) Is there enough confidence to work at risk knowing that the programme might be closed at the next landing point? This is likely to be connected to whether the programme environment is stable or fast-moving.
• Willingness to modify governance Overlapping tranches increase administration and the complexity of decision-making, so the possibility for accelerated benefits realization must outweigh the costs.
Planning programme delivery considers a number of factors, including:
• the relative priorities of projects (e.g. procurements where outputs are prerequisites for future projects)
• resource requirements, including scarce and shared resources
• projects that will provide early benefits realization
• dependencies.
Figure 7.2 An example of a delivery plan showing tranches and landing points
To enable effective management, it is necessary to consider logical groupings of projects and other work, taking into account factors such as skills, knowledge, technology, existing team-working arrangements, geography, culture, and projects currently underway.
A key part of planning the programme is planning for transition. Change to an organization’s people, processes, and technologies needs to be planned and managed carefully to allow a smooth migration from the old environment to the new one. It is important to maintain performance levels in existing business operations while introducing new operations. Figure 7.2 is an example of a plan with tranches and landing points.
Bank compliance and adaptability programme
The programme rolls out around the world, region by region. Tranche 1 covers Region 1. This tranche starts with a number of projects which develop a new interface layer of systems for the bank to use in Region 1, allowing compliance with the new open-access banking regulations. Additional projects expand the interface layer so that new developments can rely on this new layer, rather than having to change legacy systems and processes. As soon as this technical work is complete, several projects develop new innovative products for customers, using the new interface layer alongside new financial technologies. These projects happen in parallel with other work.
When the new compliant interface layer and the new products are in place, they can be launched into the market as part of the transition. This is when the landing point has been reached, with the target operating model in place for Region 1. It is likely to take many months before customers use these new capabilities in large-enough numbers to deliver benefits in terms of profit and increased market share back to the bank. Other non-financial benefits come from compliance with regulations, plus the ability to adapt quickly in the future, by developing new products without having to change legacy systems.
Future regions will follow in subsequent tranches, depending on when their open-access banking regulations are complete. As Region 2 regulations are already clear, the projects for Region 2 can begin as soon as there is capacity available in Tranche 1. As most of the work has already been done to prepare for compliance in Region 1, the timescale for providing compliance is likely to be shorter in Region 2 and subsequent regions. Figure 7.3 illustrates a high-level delivery plan showing tranches and landing points for the programme.
Utilities maintenance and improvement programme
In this programme, the detailed delivery plan for the year focuses on allocating resources to maximize resource utilization and minimize disruption to services during delivery. Each tranche of delivery is scheduled over a year, coinciding with the release of yearly funding. An outline plan for the delivery of subsequent tranches has been created.
A key part of delivery planning is identifying the capabilities that will be delivered at the end of each year; even though the programme uses yearly tranches of delivery, it is important to recognize what capability will be delivered at the end of each tranche. Any projects planned for longer than 12 months are broken down into further detail. This ensures that the specific capabilities which will be delivered during the current tranche can be identified and that there is a clear landing point at the end of each year.
Figure 7.3 High-level delivery plan showing tranches and landing points for the bank programme
Definitions
• Multimodal delivery The selection of project lifecycles and/or methods of delivering the work of a programme that are appropriate to the task, the team, the individuals (including customers, stakeholders, leaders, and workers), and the context.
• Iterative project lifecycle A project delivery mode that repeats aspects of the design or delivery with the objective of managing any uncertainty of scope by allowing outputs to evolve as learning and discovery take place.
The constituent parts of programmes, i.e. projects and other work, may use different modes of delivery within a single programme and it is important to use the most appropriate modes for the situation. Selecting the most appropriate modes of delivery depends on many factors, such as an organization’s culture, the type and complexity of the work required to deliver the programme, and the people involved. Multimodal delivery uses multiple ways of working, based on what is most appropriate for those delivering the work and on the work itself. A single programme may incorporate a mixture of approaches to its component work, with projects using iterative, linear, or hybrid lifecycles (see below) or continual improvement activities.
Agile ways of working adopt iterative project lifecycles. In such situations, scope and quality of outputs build over time but are limited by defined and costed timeboxes. In an iterative lifecycle, time and cost are fixed within each timebox, and scope and quality emerge. It is important to note that agile ways of working are not defined solely by having an iterative lifecycle. Achieving the benefits of agile also relies on:
• collaboration (behaviours and the tools to facilitate collaborative behaviours if teams are not co-located)
• empowered teams who have the delegated authority to make decisions within the timebox
• customer focus (internal or external) and their expectations for quality
• a willingness to inspect and adapt to improve processes and outputs.
Definitions
• Linear project lifecycle A project delivery mode that aims to complete the delivery of outputs within a single pass through a set of distinct phases, completed sequentially.
• Hybrid project lifecycle A project delivery mode that combines a linear lifecycle for some phases or activities with an iterative lifecycle for others.
Linear lifecycles are used where it is optimal to define scope and requirements and deliver these through sequential phases, varying time and cost as necessary to deliver the outputs right first time. In a linear lifecycle (often called a waterfall model), scope and quality are fixed, and time and cost are flexed accordingly.
Many projects benefit from a hybrid project lifecycle that uses an iterative lifecycle and agile ways of working in some phases of an otherwise linear lifecycle. An example might be to design a solution in an agile way prior to integrating that design into a larger solution that is delivered, tested, and commissioned sequentially. This is increasingly seen as a pragmatic way of delivering projects in a collaborative yet controlled way. In programmes, outputs progressed using agile ways of working during a tranche are likely to be combined with outputs created using different ways of working to form the step-change in capability required to enable a stable landing point at the end of each tranche/increment.
Definition: Continual improvement
A delivery mode used for improvement work that enables an organization to identify waste in a process or system and work to eliminate this.
Not all work in a programme is project-based. To achieve outcomes of benefit, some processes or systems within BAU will need to be adjusted in order to adopt new capabilities and embed outcomes to realize benefits. There are a range of tools and techniques that may be deployed for this work, such as Lean Six Sigma. Figure 7.4 illustrates a multimodal delivery.
Further information on multimodal delivery can be found in A Guide to AgileSHIFT.
Figure 7.4 Multimodal delivery
Planning and control also involve identifying and managing the programme’s dependencies.
Definition: Dependency
An activity, output, decision, or resource that is required to achieve an aspect of the programme.
There are three main types of dependency:
• Internal dependencies between projects in the programme
• Intra-organizational dependencies of the programme on other projects or programmes within a portfolio
• External dependencies either within or outside the organization, such as legislation and strategic decisions.
Programme dependency management focuses on key dependencies which will potentially affect the programme as a whole. Showing these on a dependency network diagram can help to clarify these major interdependencies and any combined dependencies (for example, to show where transition cannot start until a number of project outputs are complete and combined to create a capability).
National rail network programme
Successful delivery of the national rail network programme depends on the robust integration and alignment of relevant organizations, teams, and individuals. There are a range of internal, intra-organizational, and external dependencies to identify and manage:
• Internal dependencies Within the transport department, there are vertical dependencies from the project level to the programme level and from the department level to the programme level.
• Intra-organizational dependencies Within the transport department, there are horizontal dependencies between the national rail network programme and other programmes and operational functions (e.g. those focused on the road network).
• External dependencies There are horizontal dependencies between the national rail network programme and all involved government departments and the private-sector investors.
The specific internal, intra-organizational, and external dependencies are related, but not limited to:
• department-level strategies, policy, risks, operational capacity, and funding
• programme-level benefits, risks, capacity, landing points, and budgets
• project-level deliverables, benefit enablers, risks, resources, milestones, and costs.
Identifying and agreeing the ownership of dependencies by the governance boards, supporting offices, and individuals in the programme organization structure helps to improve accountability and makes roles and responsibilities more transparent.
Shared resources also represent a set of dependencies and must be carefully managed and used efficiently. Typical examples of resource-sharing include staff, infrastructure or facilities, information, and external service providers.
7.8 Benefits realization planning
Programmes exist to realize benefits for the investing organization(s); therefore it is vital that the intended benefits included in the benefits map and defined in a benefit profile are actually realized.
The purpose of the benefits realization plan is to detail the scope and schedule of all benefits realization related work. This includes scheduling organizational change activities, measuring and tracking the realization of benefits, assurance to understand any barriers to benefits realization, and ensuring that corrective actions are adopted where the organization is failing to embed outcomes and realize benefits as planned. The benefits realization plan is also used to manage any dis-benefits associated with outcomes.
The benefits realization plan also includes timings for measuring baseline performance levels before transition. This supports the work to realize and measure benefits after the capability has been transitioned and embedded into operations.
Planning for benefits realization is conducted alongside planning for programme delivery, to ensure alignment across the delivery of capabilities, management of transition and adoption, embedding of outcomes, and measurement and tracking of benefits. These activities can be summarized as pre-transition, transition, and post-transition. Drawing from the benefits map and benefit profiles, the benefits realization plan shows a complete view of the benefits, their dependencies, and the timeframes and resources required to track and measure them. The benefits realization plan also identifies timings for benefit reviews, where benefits and their realization can be formally assured. Figure 7.5 shows an example of a benefits realization plan.
Figure 7.5 An example of a benefits realization plan
In some cases, the benefits realization plan may be combined with the delivery plan to show all the work of the programme on one timeline. In all cases, the benefits realization plan and delivery plan must work together to ensure that the phasing of delivery of new capabilities is coordinated with the work to:
• prepare the business for change
• transition and adopt new capabilities
• embed outcomes of benefit.
Benefits realization does not take place only at the end of tranches of delivery work. Each tranche is designed to make a step-change in capability, and benefits realization and work to ensure this happens take place across the delivery of every tranche.
Charity organizational realignment programme
The programme manager, BCM, and programme office lead for the charity programme agree that a combined delivery and benefits realization plan would be the optimal way forward, given the lack of programme experience in the organization (see Table 7.2). The executive team, acting as the sponsoring group, have set a two-year time horizon for changes. The programme team want to keep the sponsoring group actively engaged with the leadership of the programme. They have, therefore, decided to plan in six-monthly tranches so the governance of the programme fits in with the business planning and reporting cadences of the charity.
As a result, there are four landing points where the programme could be stopped, if necessary. Work to be funded in a tranche that will not result in a new capability until a later tranche is shown as being conducted at risk. More detailed delivery and benefits realization plans will be developed but this level of detail is judged to be sufficient for the initial engagement of the sponsoring group.
Table 7.2 Combined high-level delivery and benefits realization plan for the charity programme
Tranche 1 |
Projects and other work Agree and implement digital fundraising technologies Design and implement marketing campaigns Compliance director hired (at risk) Requirements and user stories for technology-enabled service delivery approved and number of sprints agreed (at risk) Mapping of current business processes and associated internal controls (at risk) Adjust performance scorecard to track all benefits from end of Tranche 1 |
Activity to embed outcomes Train all relevant staff and volunteers in changed fundraising processes and technology |
|
Landing point Capability to increase fundraising embedded |
|
Tranche 2 |
Projects and other work Delivery of technology-enabled service delivery functionality using agile ways of working Definition of future business processes and associated internal controls (at risk) New organization structure agreed and communicated (at risk) Change champions in place and trained |
Activity to embed outcomes Start using technology-enabled service delivery capabilities developed to date in selected regions |
|
Landing point Capability to reach more service users via technology-enabled service channels embedded in some regions |
|
Tranche 3 |
Projects and other work Delivery of technology-enabled service delivery functionality using agile ways of working Recruitment and talent development to support delivery of new organization structure Training for new business processes and internal controls developed Internal programme capability sufficient to phase out contract staff |
Activity to embed outcomes Continue use of technology-enabled service delivery capabilities developed to date in all regions. Implement new organization structure, processes, and internal controls |
|
Landing point New organization, processes, and internal controls in place. Technology-enabled service delivery embedded in all regions |
|
Tranche 4 |
Projects and other work Potential additional delivery of technology-enabled service delivery functionality using agile ways of working Share knowledge of new processes and internal controls across the charity; redesign as required Investment in cross-charity events to share stories and ideas to build strong relationships between front-line and support staff and volunteers |
Embedding of outcomes Support for new organization to optimize new processes and internal controls, and build commitment to new ways of working |
|
Landing point All programme outcomes embedded, programme closed, and all accountabilities transitioned to BAU |
Utilities maintenance and improvement programme
In this programme, work is planned for completion over a five-year investment period, with work scheduled around annual tranches of delivery coinciding with each year-end. Planning benefits realization in this scenario includes defining the capabilities being delivered each year; for example, the ability to:
• schedule maintenance crews more efficiently
• group similar works together
and understanding how these capabilities contribute to outcomes of benefit. For example, reduced disruption could lead to the ability to service 10% more maintenance works annually with current crews and equipment.
There are separate delivery and benefits realization plans for this programme as some benefits will be realized over a number of years while each tranche of delivery will focus on a single year.
The resourcing approach outlines the questions that the programme strategy must address as a minimum. Its content will vary depending on the organizations investing in the programme and the mix of skills, facilities, technology, and systems required by the programme.
The resourcing approach in the programme strategy answers the following questions:
• What will be the approach to procurement and supply chain management, taking into account multiple modes of delivery and perhaps many organizations with different policies?
• What infrastructure will the programme need?
• What equipment and technology will be required for delivery?
• How will scarce resources, including infrastructure, equipment, and human resources, be shared between the programme and its projects, and the wider organization? (Where the programme is part of a wider portfolio, portfolio standards may exist for resource forecasting and scheduling.)
• What specialist skills and subject matter experts will be required, and how will these be sourced?
• How will the human resource requirements of the programme be managed?
• How will the balance between internal and external resources be controlled?
• How will the programme ensure that the resources in operational areas required for business change are managed to embed outcomes that will create benefits?
7.9.1 Procurement and supply chain management
The procurement of goods and services for programmes is a major contributor to success, ensuring that the programme has the resources it needs to supplement staff, facilities, equipment, and systems in the investing organization(s). It also ensures that the MSP principle of deploy diverse skills is upheld.
Deploying diverse skills requires establishing a balance between the use of external resources for additional capacity or enhancing the collective capability of the team, and the investment in the skills of staff. The same principle applies to other resources; for example, whether to lease facilities, equipment, and systems for the short term or to purchase the asset for the long-term use of the organization.
The approach to procurement and supply chain management needs to consider:
• the benefits of building long-term partnerships with suppliers rather than short-term transactional relationships
• the impact of forms of contract on supplier management and cash flow (e.g. whether to have a contract that reimburses time and materials, or a fixed fee with milestone payments linked to deliverables)
• the need to spread risk by working with multiple suppliers.
In some programme environments, the language of commissioning is used to refer to the process by which services are planned, purchased, and monitored. Depending on the programme, procurement and supply chain specialists may be embedded in the programme office, or accessed from the relevant function as required.
Utilities maintenance and improvement programme
The focus of the programme is on the increasingly productive use of maintenance crews and equipment, so that more maintenance works can be conducted with less disruption and fewer electricity outages.
The programme is part of the wider infrastructure portfolio. There may be other projects and programmes in the overall portfolio needing to use the same staff and equipment. Taking a portfolio approach may impact the staff and equipment available for the programme if resources are diverted to other programmes in the infrastructure portfolio. This may mean that the efficiency programme will need to increase its use of external contractors to carry out works (if this can be accommodated within the annual budget). Anticipating this need, negotiating flexible supply contracts for labour and equipment is key to success.
The portfolio office, which is providing programme office scheduling resources to the programme, defines any scheduling constraints or changes to the programme required as a result of portfolio planning and calls on the support of procurement and supply chain experts in the company to ensure that supply contracts optimize risk and cost.
7.10 Documents to support the theme
The documents produced as records of application of the structure theme are shown in Table 7.3.
Table 7.3 Documents to support the structure theme
Document |
Purpose |
High-level content |
Programme strategy: delivery approach |
To define how the programme will be structured to deliver the capabilities needed to achieve the desired outcomes of benefit |
Structure How the programme work will be structured and delivered, based on the organizational environment, programme complexity, and availability of skills and resources Delivery modes Ways of working most appropriate to the task, team, individuals, and context. Modes of delivery to be used Controlling projects and other work How projects and work on processes will be started, controlled, and closed to maintain alignment with the target operating model Delivery standards Delivery standards that are relevant to the programme Dependencies How internal, intra-organizational, and external dependencies will be defined and managed |
Delivery plan |
To schedule the constituent projects and other work of the programme to show their relative timescales, resources, and dependencies. The plan covers the programme as a whole and the next tranche in detail |
Tranches Grouping of projects and other work into tranches with clear landing points and sequencing of delivery Next tranche schedule Identifying dependencies, milestones, and key activities to track at programme level Resources Activities needed to acquire and deploy people, equipment, and facilities to support delivery Transition Schedules for transitioning and adopting capability into operations Risks and assurance Timing of impact of potential risks and associated assurance activities |
Benefits realization plan |
To detail the scope and schedule for all benefits realization related work |
Schedule Scheduling of organizational change activities and other benefit-related work Measuring and tracking How the realization of benefits will be measured and tracked, including the establishment of baselines Assurance Assurance is needed to understand any barriers to benefits realization Corrective actions What actions will be taken where the organization is failing to embed outcomes and realize benefits as planned Management of any dis-benefits The plan will outline how any disbenefits associated with outcomes will be managed |
Programme strategy: resourcing approach |
To define how the programme will acquire and manage the resources required to deliver the capabilities |
Supply chain management Approach to procurement, contract, and supply chain management Infrastructure What the programme will need, including equipment and technology Allocating scarce resources How scarce resources will be allocated and shared between the programme, its projects, and the wider organization. This may involve complying with portfolio-level standards for resource forecasting and scheduling Sourcing specialist resources How specialist resources will be sourced HR management How the HR requirements of the programme will be managed: recruitment, performance management, grievances, disciplinaries, the balance between internal and external resources, learning and development, and termination of contracts Change recipients How the programme will work with people in operational areas that are the recipients of change |
7.11 Focus of key roles for the theme
The areas of focus associated with the structure theme for the roles of sponsoring group members, SRO, programme manager, BCM and programme office lead are shown in Table 7.4.
Table 7.4 Areas of focus for key roles associated with the structure theme
Role |
Areas of focus |
Sponsoring group members |
Ensuring that the delivery and resourcing approaches are fit for purpose |
Senior responsible owner (SRO) |
Monitoring progress and direction of the programme at a strategic level Maintaining sponsoring group support for the programme Approving the documents associated with the theme |
Programme manager |
Designing the delivery plan (with the BCM) Developing the resourcing and delivery approaches that will be included in the programme strategy |
Business change manager (BCM) |
Designing the benefits realization plan (with the programme manager) Providing sufficient and appropriate operational resources to the programme Ensuring that: • transition is planned and will align with the required benefits realization • changes are implemented into operational areas • required performance levels for BAU work are maintained • operational functions are adequately prepared and ready for change • changes are embedded and sustained following transition |
Programme office lead |
Providing support for programme planning Providing programme and project resources |