Benefits tracking system underpins delivery of £47m for a UK water utility
A UK water utility moved from scattered trackers to a single benefits system that tied initiative delivery, evidence, and finance sign off into one disciplined rhythm.
Starting point
After a £126 million penalty for misreporting, the utility needed more than business cases to balance sank costs. It needed proof that promised benefits were being delivered and realized. Initiatives were spread across Operations, IT, Engineering, Construction, Finance, and R&D. Each area kept its own spreadsheet or tracker, with different formats and levels of detail.
There was no enterprise-wide view of initiative delivery, benefits realization, or slippage. Leaders could not see which initiatives were off track, which benefits were at risk, or how delivery linked into finance forecasts and regulatory commitments. Manual updates and siloed trackers diluted accountability and made it hard to challenge or assure benefits.
Approach
A cross functional delivery team, including Bhuvan Maingi, who now leads Strathen Group, was asked to build an integrated system for tracking initiatives and benefits. The starting point was to consolidate all active and planned initiatives into a single source of truth for the portfolio. For each initiative, the team defined standard fields for milestones, owners, benefit profiles, risk, and evidence requirements.
On top of this structure, the team designed a tracker that could serve both delivery teams and finance. Each record captured planned and actual dates for key milestones, the type and value of benefits, and the link to financial forecasts. Evidence fields and document links ensured that each benefit claim could be supported by data or signed documentation, rather than narrative alone.
Monthly benefits tracking was then embedded as a core management routine. Plan versus delivered dashboards were built to show progress at initiative, business unit, and portfolio levels. These views were integrated with Finance and Regulatory teams so that realized benefits flowed into forecasts and regulatory returns in a controlled way. Finance sign off became a formal step in confirming that a benefit had moved from planned to realized.
Automation played a critical role. Data pulls and validations were scripted where possible to cut manual effort and reduce error. Rules checked for missing evidence, inconsistent dates, or benefit values that did not align with baselines and targets. This meant the monthly cycle focused on interpretation and action, not data wrangling.
Delivery was run using agile routines. Daily stand ups and sprint reviews kept work on the tracker, automation, and dashboards moving at pace. Design thinking workshops with end users shaped the interface and process so that updates were quick and intuitive for busy teams. The goal was not to create another administrative burden, but to make the tracker the easiest way to keep leadership and Finance up to date.
Operating rhythm and governance were codified in parallel. Monthly benefits forums brought together Strategy and Asset Management, Finance, and operational leaders to review progress, address slippage, and agree recovery actions. An exception process captured the root cause of missed milestones, and an audit ready evidence repository was linked to each benefit claim for assurance and future scrutiny.
One integrated tracker replaced a patchwork of spreadsheets and slides, creating a single place to see delivery, benefits evidence, and accountability across the portfolio.
Outcome
The new benefits tracking system gave leaders a clear line of sight from initiative progress to financial and regulatory outcomes. Instead of chasing updates across multiple trackers, executives and Finance teams could open one view and see which initiatives were on track, which benefits had been realized, and where risks were emerging.
The system underpinned delivery and assurance of the £47 million in identified benefits. By making milestones, owners, and evidence visible, it increased on time completion across portfolios and reduced the risk that benefits would drift or be quietly dropped. When slippage occurred, it surfaced quickly through dashboards and monthly forums, along with root cause notes and recovery plans.
Finance gained greater confidence in the link between the change portfolio and forecasts. Realized benefits were signed off with supporting evidence, then flowed into financial plans and, where relevant, regulatory submissions. This tightened the connection between transformation activity, performance reporting, and external commitments.
Manual reporting effort fell as automation took over much of the data collection and validation. Teams spent less time compiling numbers and more time acting on them. The combination of agile delivery routines, design led interfaces, and clear governance made the tracker part of business as usual rather than a side project.
Benefits do not materialize from business cases alone. They materialize when delivery, evidence, and finance sign off are wired together in one system and rhythm.
This work now shapes how Strathen Group approaches benefits management. Build a single source of truth, wire it into finance and governance, and design the routines that keep benefits real, not theoretical.
