The strategy deck was flawless. Sixty slides. Twelve months of consulting work. The Steering Committee signed off unanimously. The CFO called it "the cleanest finance transformation concept we have seen in years."
Twelve months later, the programme was quietly restructured. Not because of cost overruns. Not because of resistance from the organisation. The concept simply had not stuck.
Most steering reviews ask one question: is the concept being implemented? They measure progress against a plan. They check KPIs. They look for variance.
That question alone is not enough. It tells you whether the work is being done — not whether the work is the right work for this organisation right now.
A complete steering review asks two independent questions:
• Score — how closely does the implementation track the concept?
Measured on a scale of 1 to 5. This is execution.
• Fit — does the concept actually match the maturity of this organisation?
A binary check. Either it fits, or there is a gap. This is readiness.
The two dimensions move independently. A programme can score 5 out of 5 on execution — perfect adherence to the plan, every milestone met — and still fail, because the concept was designed for an organisation two maturity steps further along.
A programme can score 3 out of 5 on execution — visible deviations from plan, missed milestones — and succeed, because the team adapted the concept to what the organisation could actually absorb.
This is why the same finance transformation concept, delivered by the same consultancy, works in one company and fails in the next. The deck is not the variable. The fit is.
A steering review that only measures execution is half a review.
Which of your programmes has a strong concept that does not fit?
Reply with the name (or the silence). I read every response.
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Cordula Buss · Plan A2C
Helping finance and programme leaders build steering logic that works.