- Benefit A Benefit is a positive result achieved by a project or action, providing specific improvements like cost savings or enhanced efficiency. Business Outcomes are broader impacts on organizational performance and reflect how multiple benefits align with and support the organization’s vision, strategy and goals. Business outcomes are essentially the "Why" for a number of project benefits, demonstrating their aggregated contribution to achieving True North.
- Business Drivers Business Drivers are the internal levers that directly impact or influence our organization’s strategy, operations, and ultimately performance. We can adjust these levers to reach our destination and achieve our goals. Adjusting and optimizing these levers, much like a sailor managing the ship’s controls, allows us to navigate the business landscape, respond to changing conditions, and make progress toward our desired destination.
- Business Outcomes Business Outcomes are the measurable results an organization sees from the strategies they employ and the business drivers they decide to invest in. Business Outcomes align stakeholders and solutions to deliver the measurable results that boards and leaders value as the return on their investment.
- Business Outcomes Framework The Business Outcomes Framework™ is a practical set of tools designed to help your team map your organizational strategy, initiatives and solutions to the Business Outcomes you need to achieve success.
- Business Outcomes Map A Business Outcomes Map is a strategic tool that visually represents how the key Business Drivers, Investment Areas and desired Business Outcomes of an initiative are aligned with its overarching vision, strategy and goals. It serves as the critical link between strategy and execution by clearly identifying an initiative’s “True North”. The Business Outcomes Map guides decision-making by providing a clear framework for prioritizing actions and resources. It ensures that execution is directly tied to the strategic goals of the organization and initiative, facilitating a more focused and effective approach to achieving business success.
- Business Value Category A Business Value Category is a grouping within an organization of various business drivers sharing common objectives or themes. The Business Value Category serves as a framework to align specific business drivers under a unified strategic umbrella. The Business Value Category structure helps in managing and optimizing the contributions of different Business Drivers and Investment Areas to the overall value creation of the organization.
- Buying Organization The Buying Organization refers is one or a collective group of entities involved in the decision-making process for making a Solution Investment to achieve their vision strategy and goals.
- Capabilities Capabilities are the abilities of an organization to achieve a specific business outcome or goal, and it is a combination of the people, processes, and technology that an organization needs to perform a task or function. They define what a business does or can do, not why, how, or where it does.
- Investment Area An Investment Area refers to a specific focus or domain in which an organization chooses to allocate its resources, such as capital, time, and talent, to achieve its vision, strategy and goals. They represent specific operational initiatives, programs or projects that align with the broader Business Drivers and are designed to deliver desired Business Outcomes. Prioritizing the Investment Areas ensures a thorough coverage of the initiative and the Business Outcomes required for its success.
- Outcomes Work The Outcomes Work team is focused on fostering market confidence in Solution Investments that deliver proven business value. We won’t sleep until every Buying Organization and Solution Provider in the market is able to speak the common language of Business Outcomes. Why? We hate waste. Wasted time, money and efforts that get in the way of achieving success. We are also huge believers in the power of people. We know that the key to success is people … and if belonging, trust and respect are not present initiatives will usually fail. The Business Outcomes Framework is all about aligning people and business goals to deliver success.
- Project Outcomes vs Business Outcomes A project outcome is the specific result or final output derived from a project, focusing on direct deliverables and success criteria. Business Outcomes, in contrast, are the broader impacts on organizational performance and business value creation resulting from initiatives and aligning with strategic goals. The key difference lies in their scope: project outcomes are project-specific and often short-term (on time, on budget, user satisfaction …), while business outcomes are broader, encompassing long-term organizational impact. Both are important. Project outcomes measure direct project achievements, whereas business outcomes assess the effect on the company's vision, strategy and goals.
- Solution Investment A Solution Investment refers to a strategic financial commitment made with the objective of achieving a suite of Business Outcomes. For our purposes, this involves investing in products, services and technologies that offer solutions to achieve the vision, strategy and goals of an organization and its initiatives. The focus of a Solution Investment is not just on financial returns, but also on the effectiveness and impact of the solution investment.
- Solution Investment Team The Solution Investment Team is the focused group of internal and external providers charged with delivering the Business Outcomes required by the buying organization to achieve its vision, strategy and goals. The team includes the key internal stakeholders, consultants, service providers and those solution partners accountable for the success of the initiative. Their decision making as a team is guided by the Business Outcome Map developed for the initiative.
- Solution Provider The Solution Provider team are those people bringing the solutions to the initiative. They are often external software and service providers and implementation consultants. The Solution Provider can also be an internal team such as Application Development if the solutions are being developed internally.
- True North "True North" for an organization provides a consistent direction and purpose for all its actions and decisions. It represents the ideal state as defined by its vision, strategy and goals. True North transcends short-term objectives and market trends, and the concept serves as a foundational benchmark fostering a sense of unity and direction among its stakeholders.
- Value Vectors Value Vectors are key aspects and attributes of an organization where improvements can create significant value. These vectors encompass both tangible and intangible elements, reflecting the diverse ways in which an organization can enhance its operations, performance, and strategic outcomes.
