Delivery-only tracking loses 70% of transformation value
- BCG's 2023 analysis of large-scale transformation programmes: 70% fell short of their stated value targets. The programmes did not fail to deliver outputs — those outputs were never connected to a structured path toward measurable business results.
- McKinsey's 2022 research on transformation ROI: organisations with dedicated value-realisation functions delivered 1.3 to 1.8 times the return on transformation investment compared to those that tracked delivery only. Gartner's 2024 portfolio management maturity research: fewer than 25% of organisations had a formal value-conversion process linking initiative outputs to measurable outcomes with named accountability.
Govern the next review around value-conversion, not delivery
Before your next portfolio review, audit every active initiative against one question: does this initiative have a named, dated value-conversion point with an accountable owner? Remove or pause any initiative that cannot answer it. Reframe the next review agenda around value-conversion milestones, not delivery milestones. D4 (Digital Transformation 2.0) makes the design choice explicit: a portfolio review that cannot identify where value is actively being converted today is a status meeting, not a governance process.
